Hive is a trademark of Centrica Hive Limited that manufactures smart home devices. It is one of the largest connected home providers in the UK and, by May 2018, the company has over 1,000,000 subscribers.
By using the Hive app and website, customers can control devices connected to the internet, from thermostats, to lights, intelligent plugs, motion sensors, and windows and door sensors.
Video Hive Connected Home
Histori
Prior to the creation of the Hive brand, British Gas has tested remote controlled heating services, starting in September 2011, using technology from AlertMe. This led to the launch of the Remote Heating Control service in 2012 paving the way for Hive-branded smart heater systems later.
Hive was established when Centrica's parent company, owner of British Gas, established Connected Homes sector in 2012. The year after its establishment, the company launched Hive Active Heating on October 14, 2013, an intelligent thermostat that allows customers to control heating and hot water in their homes via a website or enterprise applications. This system can be installed at customer's home by British Gas engineer.
In February 2015, British Gas purchased AlertMe's connected home company in a deal worth £ 65m. This allows Hive to build its devices using the Honeycomb platform developed by AlertMe, which facilitates users' ability to control all of their smart home devices through apps. This means Hive can compete more closely with similar platforms used by competitors such as HomeKit, Project Brillo, and Nest Labs.
Hive Active Heating 2, the second edition of the company's smart heating system, was released in July 2015. The new model is enhanced to include two additional features. Vacation mode settings allow customers to set a certain temperature when away from home. The push function allows customers to quickly turn on heaters and hot water for up to six hours.
This smart thermostat was designed by designer Yves BÃÆ'Â Â © har, based in Silicon Valley, who won the Miami Design Design Visionary Award in 2015. It was praised for its sleek looks, with critics saying it was the company's first active heating model upgrade. , which is criticized for having boring aesthetics. However, in the same year, complaints about the lack of data security caused changes in the software. The company increased data encryption as a result of the investigation by the magazine Which one? .
The company also paired with Dulux Paint to provide the accessory frame for thermostats in a variety of different colors.
In November 2015, the company released Hive Multizone, which can be paired with a thermostat to allow customers to control up to three separate heating zones in their homes.
In 2015 the company announces future plans to use the Honeycomb platform to support and enable seamless integration with third-party products including Samsung cameras.
The company launched two new products in January 2016. The Active plug enables users to attach devices, monitor whether they are on or off, control them remotely using a mobile device or laptop. Window or Door Sensor allows customers to monitor remotely when windows or doors in their homes are opened or closed.
The company released Motion Sensor on February 9, 2016. Customers can use it to track movement inside their homes remotely.
On June 13, 2016, the company launched Active Lights, supplied by Aurora Group, which can be remote controlled by users to turn on and off bulbs and program lighting schedules.
On August 11, 2016, the company announced a partnership with IFTTT (If This, Then That) to enable smart thermostats to connect to 300 additional products and services through expanded prescription-based automation.
In September 2016, Hive announced it would partner with Amazon Echo, allowing customers to use Alexa's voice control to enable lighting, plugs and heating.
On September 27, 2016, the company launched two new, controllable LED lamps to change the color and tone of the lamp.
Maps Hive Connected Home
Marketplace
The energy efficiency target set by the UK energy industry regulator Ofgem aims to convert 53 million homes and small businesses to use smart gas and electric meters by the end of 2020. Since this was announced, there has been an increase in partnerships between companies and corporate intelligent thermostat companies.
Operation
The company is the only UK based home-based organization that provides end-to-end services, including the creation and installation of devices while also providing ongoing customer support.
Starting with 15 staff members, by 2015 it has grown to 200. The company offers services in the UK, Republic of Ireland and North America.
Device
The main devices on offer include smart thermostats, light bulbs, motion sensors for doors and windows, and what the company calls a smart plug - all operating on an interconnected system connected to a central hub connected to the internet.
Devices can be controlled through a hub, either by using a company website or a smart phone app (available on iOS and Android). Users can turn on and off devices either remotely or manually.
Criticism and Controversy
In August 2015, which one? The investigation revealed that the Hive app is a "thief's dream" for sending unencrypted data, including heating schedules and remote settings, pose a security risk to customers if their Wi-Fi is tapped. The company told about which? investigation in May 2015 and immediately began encrypting previously vulnerable data.
There is criticism from Hive because users can only operate devices designed for enterprise systems, rather than integrating various platforms such as companies like nCube do. However, in August 2016 it was announced that partnership with IFTTT would enable cross platform collaboration.
In February 2016, errors in the system caused the temperature in some customer homes to increase to 32 degrees, and caused 30 of 300,000 Hive customers to contact the company. After customer concerns over things like high energy bills and fire risks, the company advises customers to rearrange their thermostats.
Awards
References
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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