Cypress switches on to a smart way to live — using your phone

HONG KONG: Have you ever grumbled your way out of bed after a hard day's work because you forgot to turn the lights off in the apartment before you settled down to sleep?

Imagine being able to simply reach out to the bedside table, pick up your mobile phone and punch in a couple of keys to turn off the lights — or turn on the air-conditioner.

Patrick Shum, chairman of Cypress Group, believes such hi-tech aids are sought after by many people in Hong Kong.

And in anticipation of what it sees as huge potential in the smart living market, the company — a Singaporean subsidiary of Cypress Group — plans to launch a technology application in September to control an entire network of systems in the home via smartphone platforms such as the iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry and  Android.

Known as Carrot technology, the service will also enable the user to operate a home theatre by selecting pre-programmed settings saved in the remote control, said Lam Ma-hau, director of Cypress Systems.

"A number of big Hong Kong developers have shown interest in the product as they want to install the system in their rental properties to upgrade them as smart homes," Shum said. "Tenants of these buildings are young professionals in the finance industry and they like this kind of technology."

A smart home is generally a newly built one that is equipped with specially structured wiring to enable occupants to remotely control or programme an array of automated home electronic devices by entering a single command.

But Shum, who also develops luxury projects in Hong Kong, said his product was wireless so that customers could use it after installing switches in existing units. It could take just one day to install the system, but it would take longer to install a system reliant on cables.

Competitive pricing was an added factor, Shum said. "Developers usually spend HK$30,000 (RM11,659.31) to turn a unit into a smart home. Our charge is 50% of that," he said.

But in the long run, Shum said he would target individual buyers. "Individuals can buy the device and upgrade their flats as smart homes. One day, it will become a popular birthday gift or a gift that a guest will bring to a housewarming party," he said. "A user may pay no more than HK$5,000 to HK$6,000 for basic solutions. For example, a device that offers remote control in a limited area such as a living room. Buyers can then add extra solutions to enlarge the service.

"Hong Kong developers have many projects on the mainland. Once we have started in the Hong Kong market, we will expand into the mainland market," said Shum. Other Asian markets would follow. — SCMP