Home Depot launches connected home initiative

Nearly 2,000 Home Depot stores in the U.S. began offering a wide range of connected home devices that run on the Wink platform on July 7.

The Wink platform unites close to 60 devices, creating the broadest set of connected home products in one ecosystem, with fifteen leading manufacturers of home products ranging from light bulbs and locks to window shades, irrigation systems and water heaters, according to Wink and Home Depot.

"When looking for new products and services, we believe it is critical The Home Depot provide our customers the connected home options and convenience they desire – one that is easy, affordable and gives them the choice in products they need,” said Jeff Epstein, vp of home automation merchandising at Home Depot. “With Wink, we've found a partner that supports the industry leading brands we already carry on our shelves and online.”

Wink vp Brett Worthington said Home Depot’s nearly 2,000 U.S. stores offer consumers the broadest network of connected products.

"Together we are offering the simplest way to connect to products in the home from trusted brands like Leviton, Honeywell, Rheem, Lutron and Schlage."

There are close to 60 Wink-enabled products covering a variety of from garage door openers and dimmers to ovens and air conditioners. Manufacturer partners include Bali, Chamberlain, Dropcam, GE, Honeywell, Kidde, Kwikset, Leviton, Lutron, Philips, Quirky, Rachio, Rheem, Schlage and TCP.

All Wink-enabled products are operated through the free Wink app. The Wink app lets consumers personalize their experience to what works best for their home. For example, a consumer can operate just one light bulb or all of the light bulbs in a particular room, or they can group the light bulbs with other products in a particular area of their home. According to Wink, its app makes consumers' lives easier by letting them adjust the thermostat or turn lights off after leaving the house, or control energy savings by shutting off the air conditioner when leaving and turning it back on right before getting home.

Source: retailingtoday