Steve Castle
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Steve Castle’s fascination with technology began as a staff writer for luxury magazine Robb Report, where he reported on high-end home theater, and has grown to include home tech from smart home to green and emerging technologies. He has been writing about technology for 20 years.
Ready to toss your cable box? It could be what connects your smart home
With about 25 billion connected devices, can the lowly cable box become the hub of the smart home anfd the undisputed Internet of Things King? The cable companies would like that.
To sync the microwave and range, GE’s Chef Connect adds a dash of Bluetooth
GE's Chef Connect Bluetooth feature will be included in a new Profile range line and over-the-range microwave that can sync to eliminate common kitchen hassles in lighting, vents, and clocks.
This brick-laying robot can build an entire house in 2 days flat
An Australian engineer has developed a bricklaying robot that can lay 1,000 bricks an hour, work 24/7, and complete the shell of a home in just two days.
Nest Protect users get insurance discounts, Big Data concerns
Liberty Mutual announced insurance discounts for customers in some states who use the Nest Protect communicating smoke and carbon monoxide detector.
Emergency Floor aims to give refugees protection from the ground
An Indiegogo campaign for Emergency Floor aims to help refugee health with a low-cost floor made from wooden shipping pallets and a flooring surface that can be fitted together on top.
Ily is sort of like a smartphone for the whole home
Ily aims to return to the simplicity of the family phone with some modern upgrades, so grandparents and grandchildren can use it, and it even connects to old landlines (and Wi-Fi too).
How to use Siri to control Apple HomeKit
Apple has just released some Siri commands for you to use to control the few HomeKit-compatible devices available.
Toilet of the future is flush with solar power, sensors
Researchers at Caltech took seven high-tech steps to build the toilet of the future, including adding solar power and sensors.
In drought-stricken California, smart meters catch water hogs, help find leaks
Forget drought shaming; the consequences just got a whole lot worse. Drought-stricken Long Beach, California, recently installed 200 smart water meters that report usage and can catch water culprits.
The Sage RF cooking appliance is like a super-precise microwave
Freescale Semiconductor's new RF microwave oven concept uses radio frequency (RF) emitters instead of magnetrons to heat our goodies.
Toss that filthy sponge for an antimicrobial 3D printed scrubber
Throw away that filthy kitchen sponge. This 3D printed scrubber is made from an antimicrobial filament and contours to nearly any surface for safe scrubbing.
You can now control Nest with Sen.se sensors
Sen.se’s endlessly cute Mother sensor system now works with the Nest Learning Thermostat to adjust temperatures throughout your home, by determining when you’re not home or when you’re asleep.
Strips is a window sensor so thin it’s nearly invisible
This svelte, 3-mm thin sensor hides in the frame of a window or door and communicates with your smartphone or smart home system if you leave one of them, or a refrigerator door, open.
This home looks ordinary but it could save its owners $70,000
How would you like to live in a house that uses nearly zero energy, has a smart home system automating lights, music, doors, and is filled with energy efficient appliances?
World’s thinnest light bulb is made from graphene
Researchers from Columbia Engineering report that they have demonstrated an on-chip visible light source using anatomically thin graphene, making it the thinnest light bulb.
LEDs are gaining in popularity, a new survey finds
According to a new survey, 65 percent of Americans have purchased LED lights for their homes, and 86 percent want smart lighting technology in at least one room. With the price of LEDs dropping, this trend is likely to continue.
Which appliances cause the most fires? The answer may surprise you
According to the UK site Which?, the appliances most often involved in home fires are washing machines. The combination of water and electricity can prove a dangerous one, according to the findings.