There’s a theory about parcel delivery teams, at least in the United Kingdom. Perhaps it’s the same in the United States of America, but it goes something like this. Google Now notifies you that your parcel is on the way. You arrange to take the day off work so that you’re at home when it arrives, but something happens and you need to go out. Typically in my case, I’ve run out of milk or cheesecake. There’s a store some two minutes away, so I am out of the house for five minutes. When I get back there’s a card from the parcel delivery company telling me that they’ve tried to deliver the package, but there was no answer. It’s as though the parcel delivery van was waiting around the corner and as soon as I was out of the house they were preparing to deliver the item.
We’ve reports today that SkyBell have released a successor to their “smart bell” product designed to let you know when there’s somebody at the door and better yet, allows you to communicate with them. This is the second version of the SkyBell product, which features an improved camera and WiFi range. The unit’s camera works in conjunction with a speaker, so when used with the free application for your smartphone allows you to see and talk to whoever is at your door. The unit contains a motion sensor so it can even inform you when somebody is approaching your front door but hasn’t yet pushed the doorbell. The application is designed to be quick – it can provide you with a video feed inside five seconds from launch and the new camera includes a 140-degree lens for wide angle viewing. It includes a built-in night mode so that you don’t necessarily need a door mounted lamp.
SkyBell have also revealed that cloud recording facilities are in the works together with timer support, so you don’t have to have every event triggered. Users might want to only have the motion alerts triggered at night or when home alone, for example. SkyBell is available now for $199 and the application is compatible with Android and iOS devices.