Samsung Touts A BetterConnected Smart Home With Blockchain Security

© CNET Screenshot courtesy of CNET

During a keynote presentation at Samsung's developer conference on Wednesday, the company showed off a slew of software updates coming to phones, TVs, home appliances and other devices designed to connect better and more securely.

Samsung's main theme for the event was "Cal technology," or simplifying the process of connecting smart devices so they work together instantly. Samsung's SmartThings umbrella has expanded to include more integrations with energy, pet and cooking devices, as well as the Samsung Hub Everywhere.

SmartThings users can enable Philips Hue Sync in the SmartThings settings. Users get smarter device commands for Samsung's Bixby voice assistant, and developers can program more voice controls into their apps using the new Bixby Home Studio.

Samsung will next week integrate Google's Mater smart home standard with smart devices built into SmartThings, or Google Home, meaning an easy way to integrate devices from one app platform to another.

Samsung also has a new security feature that not only protects your smartphone's network, but relies on it. Knox Matrix is ​​a new security system that connects all your devices to a private blockchain that has nothing to do with crypto mining, instead using a group verification system to ensure that phones, routers, your smart TVs and other Galaxy devices are compatible. . they are all safe. If a device is compromised, other devices automatically disconnect it from the network.

Samsung chose to use the idea of ​​a private blockchain instead of verifying through the cloud because the company wanted a more localized and distributed way to ensure security. This means that the device must manage itself, check if the software is up-to-date, and even download updates locally to one device (such as a phone or router) and then transfer them to another device with a version older software. . This is an exciting way to think about smart home security, and users will be able to experience it starting with the launch of Samsung devices in 2023 and eventually with products from partner companies.

Samsung phones will get One UI 5, which offers more customization options with modes and routines, a revamped version of the old Bixby routines that learn about usage patterns and personalize your phone. Bixby also gets a new text-to-speech feature that answers calls for you and reads what you type, which is useful if you're too shy to talk on the phone.

There were other announcements, including a new premium health SDK for developers to build apps using the "bioactive sensors" in the Galaxy Watch series, as well as the proposed Samsung Health Stack SDK to help healthcare institutions with research their health. neurology

I have bought all Samsung products ️