Google’s OnHub router can turn your lights on when you enter the house
The OnHub router is getting a pretty cool update today. The highlight change is the addition of IFTTT support.
The online automation service can do a few cool things with this new functionality, such as turning your Philips Hue lightbulb on whenever a device connects to the network. This would be cool for automatically turning the lights on or off when you leave for work every day.
But we’re not going to lie — things are looking pretty limited right now. There are only 2 triggers for an IFTTT recipe when it comes to OnHub — one when the device connects to the network, and one when the device leaves the network.
Furthermore, the only action OnHub can do itself is prioritizing bandwidth for a specific device. The recipes that OnHub created for the functionality in the early going aren’t all that exciting unless getting a Google Drive spreadsheet log every time a device connects and disconnects from your network is your thing.
That said, it’s a start. We’ve always hoped for the OnHub router to be more than just a router, and this is a good first step into that territory. Here’s a quick rundown of the other changes you’ll find in this update:
- Device list now shows usage data for wired devices
- Updated device usage graphs in the app
- General stability and performance improvements
Be sure to grab the firmware as soon as possible.
[via Google]