TP-Link’s smart home brand, Kasa, has just announced a slew of new products at CES 2019 today, and that is headlined by a new smart doorbell. While most (if not all) other video doorbells offer 1080p recording, the Kasa Smart Video Doorbell does Quad HD recording, for a better image, and it also has HDR support, not to mention infrared LEDs for night vision. This is going to provide for a sharper image, even without a whole lot of light being available. Like other smart doorbells, it will also record 24/7 so that you won’t need to worry about missing out on something happening in front of your home, just because they did not ring the doorbell. The Kasa Smart Video Doorbell will keep recordings for up to two days for free, with other upgrade options available through its Kasa Care subscriptions.
Many new home security products debuting at CES 2019
In the home security market, Kasa has a ton of new products launching at CES 2019 today, besides the Smart Video Doorbell mentioned above. There is also the Kasa Smart Wire-Free Outdoor Security Camera System. This is a completely wire-free security camera, and it is also weatherproof since it is an outdoor camera. It does record in 1080p resolution, along with having two-way audio and night vision. Kasa has also added some sounds to this camera so you can set off a siren or mimic talking through the camera, to deter would-be intruders from getting into your home. Like the doorbell, this camera system will store recordings for up to two-days for free. You can get 14 and 30-day plans through the Kasa Care Subscriptions.
Then there is the Kasa Smart Spot Indoor Security Camera, which is an upgrade to its very popular indoor camera. This is a wired, 1080p camera, with a wide field-of-view (about 130-degrees). It also sports two-way audio, and works with both Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, unfortunately the Wire-Free Outdoor Security Camera System does not work with either assistant. The Smart Spot can set multiple activity zones, so that you aren’t getting alerts whenever someone walks through the camera while at home. Only when someone is in a specific area, or if it is someone that the camera doesn’t recognize. The Kasa Smart Spot can hold recordings for three hours, and you can upgrade that through its subscription plans.
Finally, in the home security section, Kasa is announcing some new Smart AI features, which will be added to its subscription plans throughout 2019. This includes person detection, so that the camera only alerts you when it sees a person and not a tree moving or leaves blowing around. It also has face detection, allowing it to alert you when a family member gets home – maybe your kid coming home from school. Finally, there will be a video summary feature, which will give the day’s worth of recordings in a time lapse.
Smart Lighting & Control
Kasa isn’t sticking to just cameras and doorbells at CES. It also has a slew of new lights that it is announcing today. Starting with the new Kasa Smart WiFi Light Switch. This isn’t just any old light switch though, it has a voice assistant built-in, though Kasa has not mentioned which voice assistant is built-in here. But it should act similar to having an Echo in the wall. There is also Kasa’s Smart WiFi Power Outlet, which is a pretty small in-wall power outlet, and replaces your traditional outlet, making it a smart one. This is different from a smart plug, as this will sit flush inside your wall. Though, speaking of plugs, there is a Kasa Smart WiFi Outdoor Plug being announced as well. This one will work outside, great for controlling your Christmas lights and such. Since this is an outdoor plug, it is weatherproof, so you won’t need to worry about it getting damaged by snow and rain.
Finally, wrapping up the lighting, is the Kasa Smart WiFi LED Light Strip. This is similar to what many companies already have available. It’s a strip of LED lights that you can put behind your TV, on your desk and whatnot. With the Kasa Smart app grouping feature, you’ll be able to combine it with other lights in a single tap. This light strip is about two meters long and there are extensions available that will make it up to 10 meters long. All of these smart lights here should work with both Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, seeing as all of Kasa’s other products already work with both assistants, it would only make sense for that to be the case here. Though, Kasa has not specified whether they will or not. But we should be getting more information on that as we get closer to launch.
Pricing & Availability
Starting in February, the Kasa Smart WiFi Power Outlet will be available for $39.99, with the Kasa Smart Outdoor Plug being on sale for $44.99. Coming in the Spring of 2019, the Kasa Smart Spot Indoor Security Camera will cost you $49.99. Finally, coming in the first half of 2019, is everything else. That includes the Kasa Smart Video Doorbell, Kasa Smart WiFi Light Switch with Voice Assistant, Kasa Smart Wire-Free Camera and the Kasa Smart Light Switch. These products do not yet have a price available, though that news should be coming out when it gets closer to its launch later this year. Finally, the person detection, video summary and other AI features that Kasa is also announcing today, are targeted to be released throughout the first half of 2019. It sounds like these may be rolled out individually, instead of all at once as an app/platform update. But we should know more in the coming months as these start to roll out. Kasa says that they will release more information on pricing and availability for all of these features in the coming weeks and months. You’ll notice that these products are much cheaper than those from competitors like Nest, Philips Hue and ARLO, that is because Kasa strips out some of those features that its competitors have, to be able to hit these lower price points.