Iāve been getting quite into smart home technology recently, especially using my Raspberry Pi to start controlling more obscure items around the house. Smart and connectedĀ home appliances are becoming more common but it makes me wonder, what happens to all our older electronics?
I loved theĀ smart plugs we talked about recently. TheĀ plugsĀ can be controlled remotely, so you can turn off the dumb old device you left plugged in (hello hair straighteners). With enough of these plugs around the house, all your mains-powered devices can be under your smartphoneās control at all times. This just leaves your ancient, battery-powered devices adrift in a connected world.
The Tethercell AA Smart Battery Adapter, a BGR deal this week, lets you bring the battery-powered devices into the future. The way it works is so simpleĀ Iām surprised it hasnāt been done before. Say you have a device that takes AA batteries. You simply swap one of those batteries for the Tethercell adapter, which contain a smaller AAA battery inside. You can then control the adapter from your smartphone, turning the battery on or off.
Itās an elegant and simple solution. You only need one adapter even if the device takes a whole bunch of AA batteries. The smartphone app gives you the control weāve come to expect from smart home products, such as creating schedules, setting timers, and even receiving updates when the battery level is low.
The downside is that the Tethercell adapter uses Bluetooth LE, which will work fine when youāre at home but Iād prefer a Wi-Fi model for better range and potentially remote connection via the internet. Other than this Iām impressed with the simple solution and feel it would be a great way to bring those straggling devices up to date.
The Tethercell AA adapter is usually Ā£40.95 but is down to Ā£29 on Amazon at the time of writing. The adapter connects to apps available for iOS and Android.
Main image Ā© Tethercell
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