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Deutsche Telekom unveils new smart home product

DT says the product will allow firms to launch Qivicom Home Base 2.0 in different European markets

German telecommunications operator Deutsche Telekom said it will presents new partner offers and products for its manufacturer-independent smart home platform Qivicom at this year’s IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin, which takes place this week.

The European telco also said that German firm E WIE EINACH plans to launch its products and services in the local market through the Qivicom smart home platform in the coming months, while Bitron Video announced plans to launch smart home solutions under its own brand in the Italian and French market.

Bitron Video joins Austria’s eww and Dutch KPN as the third company to market an international SmartHome offer based on Deutsche Telekom’s Qivicom platform.

“We are now partnering with over 40 companies, have presence in a range of different European countries and offer users numerous apps and components, from different manufacturers, that make home environments more secure, more comfortable and more energy-efficient,” Rockmann also noted. “We plan to continue expanding our range of products and services, integrating new products and partners, and developing additional markets,” he added.  

Deutsche Telekom plans to launch different models of the new Qivicom Home Base 2.0, which will have an identical outward appearance but they differ in terms of their pre-installed protocols. For example, the model designed for the German market, and several other markets, already includes the protocols HomeMatic, Homematic IP, ZigBee Pro and the inclusion of DECT ULE has also been completed. Another model includes the ZigBee Pro and Z-Wave radio modules. All versions of the new Home Base 2.0 can be connected to home DSL routers either by cable or wirelessly, via Wi-Fi. In addition, users can integrate additional wireless protocols, via USB flash memories, as soon as interoperability with the QIVICON platform is assured. The Home Base 2.0 has two USB ports.  

“The different versions of the new Qivicom Home Base 2.0 will help partners to enter different European markets,” Rockmann told RCR Wireless News. “The new design of the Home Base 2.0 is more compact and user-friendly as well as an updated esthetic design so it fits into any home,” he added.

The German also operator that within the next few months, consumers will be able to have access to new Qivicom-compatible devices including remote-control products in the Logitech Harmony lineup, including the Harmony Hub and the Harmony app. With these products, users can control their TV sets, lighting and heating systems and, with the help of wireless socket adapters, electrical appliances.

Netatmo’s weather station is also QIVICON-compatible. The weather station displays such data as outdoor temperature, humidity, air quality and air pressure.

The executive said that Deutche Telekom aims to expand the customer base for its smart home platform by the end of this year but was not able to provide hard figures.

ABOUT AUTHOR

Juan Pedro Tomás
Juan Pedro Tomás
Juan Pedro covers Global Carriers and Global Enterprise IoT. Prior to RCR, Juan Pedro worked for Business News Americas, covering telecoms and IT news in the Latin American markets. He also worked for Telecompaper as their Regional Editor for Latin America and Asia/Pacific. Juan Pedro has also contributed to Latin Trade magazine as the publication's correspondent in Argentina and with political risk consultancy firm Exclusive Analysis, writing reports and providing political and economic information from certain Latin American markets. He has a degree in International Relations and a master in Journalism and is married with two kids.