LG HomeChat Enables Remote Appliance Control

LG says it will unveil a new smart-appliance control system called HomeChat at CES 2014 that will enable users to communicate with dishwashers and refrigerators, among other hardware, via text message. The new technology leverages the Line messenger app, which is available on Android, iOS, Windows Phone, Blackberry and others.

Once HomeChat is in place, users simply send a message through Line instructing any number of compatible devices what to do at any particular time.

“Always at the forefront of innovation, LG is continually striving to inspire smarter consumer lifestyles in meaningful ways,” said Seong-jin Jo, president and CEO of the LG Electronics Home Appliance Company in a press statement. “We’re excited to be able to bring to CES our smart appliances with the newest communication and intelligence capabilities.” 

Additionally, LG says that the HomeChat system utilizes a technology called Natural Language Processing (NLP), which allows users to query their appliances much like they would an actual person. Hopefully, this function works better than Apple’s Siri, as there are no doubt a number of commands you don’t want mistakenly delivered to your appliances. 

“2014 LG smart appliance owners will be able to control all their compatible appliances using HomeChat on a single device, for a level of convenience never experienced before. Simply texting “I’m going on vacation” in HomeChat will result in the automatic response, “Should I convert to vacation mode?” which when replied in the affirmative, will turn on the refrigerator’s power-saving mode, set the robotic vacuum cleaner to sweep the floor at 09:00 every day and set the washing machine to run a wash cycle on the day before your return.”

All in all, HomeChat feels pretty gimmicky and somewhat cumbersome. Remotely controlling appliances, if necessary at all, would probably be a lot simpler through an array of toggle switches, but maybe the technology makes more sense in person. We’ll need to wait until CES to find out.