Ecobee Now Works with Siri
Ecobee’s SmartThermostat with Voice Control now works with Siri, essentially turning the thermostat into a “HomePod” on your wall. Siri will be able to get ecobee to set timers, provide weather forecasts, control the lights, and play music (why you would want that is another story). This is the first third-party device to include Siri, though the feature is not exclusive to ecobee. For the integration to work, you must have a HomePod or HomePod Mini (an Apple TV or iPad used as a HomeKit hub is a no go). The thermostat also supports Alexa, and has since its release, but both AIs cannot be active at the same time.
The NPD Take:
- The fact that you must own a HomePod or HomePod Mini does limit the audience by quite a bit. This new addition will be useful for anyone who already owns the thermostat and the speaker(s), but probably won’t win over consumers who don’t already. If Apple’s mission is to have Siri in more places in the home, they will have to look at more flexible, and less expensive, options.
Tile is Going UWB
Tile has just announced its newest lineup of trackers, including an upcoming ultra-wideband (UWB) model. The Tile Ultra, as it is called, uses both UWB and Bluetooth, and is supposed to become available in early 2022. The new Point and Locate feature uses AR to find items with turn-by-turn directions and a visual indicator. Also announced was a new Tile Pro, and new versions of the Sticker, Slim, and Mate.
The NPD Take:
- Turn by turn directions and a visual indicator sound just like Apple’s AirTags. Unlike AirTags, the Tile Ultra will work with both iOS and Android and so it obviously could be very compelling for Android users in the market for a new tracker. Since AirTags came out, Apple has maintained a commanding share of this market.