HomeSeer Technologies just released its HSM100 Z-Wave Multi-Sensor, a device that can sense motion, temperature, and light. The HSM100 is completely wireless, battery-powered (with an accompanying battery monitor that will email or phone the homeowner when power is low), and ready to integrate into the HomeSeer-run home and all the other Z-Wave products out there.

I’ve heard this and that from users of HomeSeer’s home control software, and most seem pleased with performance. The company openly markets Z-Wave devices ready to be controlled by the software, including lighting and HVAC controls and switches made by Intermatic, ACT, and Leviton. And although the temperature sensing function of the new HSM100 strikes me as a bit superfluous (isn’t that what thermostats are for?), the lighting sensor aspect has its uses. As their press release suggests, the lighting sensor will prevent motion detection from “lighting a room that is already well lit.” At the very least it might save a little bit of energy usage. I imagine a creative soul can find a cool way to integrate this device into a macro setting of some sort ...

The $99 HSM100 will begin shipping this month.

Between watching re-runs of the “The Jetsons” and convincing his Insteon and Z-Wave controls to get along, Ben Hardy is immersed in the world of home automation, home control, and home networking.

About the Author:
Ben Hardy - Contributing Writer

Between watching re-runs of the The Jetsons and convincing his Insteon and Z-Wave controls to get along, Ben Hardy is immersed in the world of home automation, home control, and home networking.