ADT, others give voice to home security

“You Speak. Your Home Listens.” That's how ADT is describing ADT Pulse Voice, a new app that adds personal voice commands to Pulse security systems.

Voice commands appear to be the hot new trend in home security. For example, I blogged recently about the voice control capabilities of Honeywell's Wi-Fi thermostat. And Alan Stoddard, senior director of marketing for Honeywell Security Products Americas, told me last week that a new release of Honeywell's Tuxedo Touch this month will provide for voice commands.

ADT announced the release of its new app today and bills ADT Pulse Voice technology as “the first of its kind in the smart home space.”

The company says the technology “enables homeowners to log in and log out of the Pulse Voice app via custom technology that recognizes unique voice signatures. Once logged in, users can arm and disarm their Pulse security panel, control their home's lighting, adjust thermostats, lock and unlock doors, and check the overall status of their home - all verbally and virtually touchless through an iOS or Android smart phone.”

ADT says it's all about making life simpler for today's busy homeowners. No longer do they have to interrupt what they're doing to manually control their homes. “Instead, a homeowner's voice can trigger ADT Pulse functions by recognizing select key words, device names and phrases to perform. In addition to accepting personal voice commands, the ADT Pulse Voice app provides auditory feedback to confirm actions and system status for all of its connected devices.”

The technology is a boon for the visually impaired as well, ADT says.

The company says it has also taken steps to secure homeowners' privacy in case a mobile device is lost or stolen. ADT says it does that by leveraging “a multi-layered identification process allowing only registered members of a household to log in. Through voice commands, a user is approved by three personal checkpoints: a secret phrase, state-of-the-art voice recognition, and confirmed identification of a mobile device. …Without all three verification checkpoints confirmed, any login attempt will be denied.”

The company says existing ADT customers can download the new app for free in the Apple App Store, as well as through Google Play.