Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) continues to set the pace in the world of tech at the speed of a bullet-train. A new market report indicates that Microsoft is ready to take its innovation up another notch as it prepares to unveil the Home Hub. The Home Hub is Microsoft’s answer for getting into the IoT market for connected devices. Amazon is already in the IoT market with its Amazon Echo (and more) and Google has shown interest with Google Home.
The Surface Pro line of tablets stole the spotlight from Apple’s iPad and the iPhone maker is now fighting hard to stay in the game. The Surface Studio and Surface Dial are Sui Generis and no other tech firm has unveiled a worthy rival product. The firm has not confirmed or denied its plans for the rumored Surface Phone but there’s no doubt that the device could disrupt the smartphone market. Layering the Home Hub into Windows 10 could be a shrewd business move that could help the firm take over and dominate the consumer electronics market.
Here’s what we know about Microsoft Home Hub
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) has not given official word on Home Hub but Windows Central reports that the firm started working on Home Hub even before its released the Windows 10 Anniversary update also known as Redstone 1. You’ll observe that Redstone 1 equipped Windows 10 with a feature that made Cortana accessible from the lockscreeen. Home Hub is built around Cortana and Redstone 2, Redstone 3, and Redstone 4 updates will perfect Home Hub.
Home Hub is an IoT solution for the connected home designed to rival Amazon Echo (Alexa) and Google Home. However, Home Hub won’t require you to buy any hardware because Microsoft is building Home Hub as software instead of the devices that Amazon and Google are pushing. Home Hub will work on Windows 10 PCs to provide you with all the functions of a digital assistant PLUS a screen.
Microsoft wants to make the PC the center of the home and Home Hub is a smart way to make shared PCs more communal. For instance, Home Hub will make it easy for family members to unlock a shared PC without a password with a family account. In the family account, they can access every info and app meant for the family such as calendar appointments and to-do lists. At the same time, individual family members can log in into their personal accounts using Window Hello to access information that they don’t want to share with the whole family.
Can Home Hub make your home smarter?
All the tech firms showing interest in building IoT devices for the connected home have made decent progress; yet, they’ve only begun to scratch the surface of what’s possible with the IoT. However, Microsoft is banking on Home Hub to outfit Cortana with powers to control smart home devices. Hence, having Cortana perform tasks around the house is as simple as speaking to your computer even when the PC is locked.
The best part is that Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) is planning to make it easy for third-party firms to make devices that will work with Home Hub. Hence, Home Hub could the an “operating system” for IoT devices in the same Windows is an OS for PCs and tablets made by different OEMs.
