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Turn your Wi-Fi router into a smart home hub with this USB device

klug home smart hub 1
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Smart home hubs come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and forms — from an old smartphone to integration into a TV. Klug Home by Intraix, a newcomer to the game, is a small USB device that connects with a user’s smart devices when plugged into a Wi-Fi router and allows them to be controlled with a single smartphone app.

With its new smart home hub, Intraix combines data from multiple sources with the aim of creating a smarter and better integrated ecosystem. Klug Home is capable of interfacing with numerous connected devices, hubs, and software, with Nest, SmartThings, and Amazon Echo being among them. It can also talk to digital assistants such Apple’s Siri, Amazon’s Alexa, and Google’s Ok Google.

In addition to voice control, Klug Home features contextual awareness, using lifestyle learning to give users a personalized experience. The software’s algorithms are able to learn a user’s behaviors and preferences. With the data the system gathers from a user’s devices, it can interact with the user to create the ideal home atmosphere.

“We believe that smart devices can be even smarter when they work together and play off of each others’ synergies,” said Bryan Lee, co-founder of Intraix, in a related statement. “A truly smart home starts with better software — and this is where we make a difference. We’ve designed Klug Home to listen, learn, and understand your habits and preferences at home. It gets smarter as it gets to know you better and is able to develop single contexts across the multiple devices that you own and use most.”

Intraix launched an Indiegogo campaign for Klug Home today, and the device is now available for pre-order. The price is set at $78 for early adopters, with shipping set to begin in October 2016.

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Stephanie Topacio Long
Stephanie Topacio Long is a writer and editor whose writing interests range from business to books. She also contributes to…
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