KB Home unveils first-ever Apple HomeKit-enabled community in San Jose

AppleInsider

The Promenade at Communications Hill in San Jose, Calif., will be the first HomeKit-enabled community, featuring built-in Apple-connected smart home connectivity for prospective buyers.

By integrating HomeKit during manufacturing, homebuilder KB Home aims to have the most seamless HomeKit support possible. Apple-certified accessories will allow homeowners control of lighting, temperature, door locks and more from an iPhone, iPad or Apple Watch.

KB Home now has a model home to view at Promenade at Communications Hill. Pricing starts in the low $900,000s, though HomeKit packages run extra.



The three-story homes range in square footage from 2,148 to 2,178, and they can be built with up to five bedrooms, four bathrooms, and a two-car garage.

Though Apple authorizes HomeKit accessories through a certification process, the company does not make any of its own smart home appliances, instead relying on third-party vendors. KB Home did not indicate which HomeKit partners it is utilizing for its HomeKit-enabled community.

Beyond the Promenade at Communications Hill, the Apple HomeKit package from KB Home is also available for buyers at Magnolia at Patterson Ranch.

Apple announced last month that it expects to have more than 100 HomeKit-certified accessories available by the end of this year. Most recently, iHome began shipping its 5-in-1 environment sensing SmartMonitor, tracking motion, temperature, humidity, sound and more.

urchin11

doesn't need LCD screen, but price needs to be less than $20

cali

This could be the future for Apple.

I wouldn't mind seeing Apple acquiring a 3rd party appliance company and  subsidizing neighborhoods to include Apple HomeKit devices exclusively and ready to go. 

I can see Apple designing entire neighborhoods in the future. 

pablotresunoseis

Apple needs to start making their own HomeKit hardware. Third party support is great but it slows them down. They're at the mercy of others. Maybe buy some of the smaller companies like Canary, Ecobee, August, etc. 

macxpress

Oh gosh...don't go down the we need to buy XYZ company. We'll have Sog in here spamming the thread up with how much he hates Tim Cook and that he's not doing his job. 

shapetables

This is being marketed in the wrong city. Raise your hand if you want your product selections made for you by killer-block-head homes because you don't understand technology or at least like driving to Best Buy.

fallenjt

Sure, but these houses at cool $1M look like stacking shipping containers. Wtf? KB Homes are fcking cheap built, so they need bells and whistles to sell!

fallenjt

macxpress said:

Oh gosh...don't go down the we need to buy XYZ company. We'll have Sog in here spamming the thread up with how much he hates Tim Cook and that he's not doing his job. 

Lol...Sog is a mathafackeng Asian who has personal problem with Tim Cook on his human right support. He believes Tim needs to listen to him to run the biggest company in the world. Btw, I'm Asian too.

edited November 2016

kendog52404

While the support of Apple Homekit is nice, and a useful feature, my concern is future proofing and non Apple owners.  While the future proofing can't really have anything done about it, aside of making it as easy as possible to upgrade/replace, the non Apple owners issue is, in my opinion, the bigger problem.

Sure, right now, with this developer in particular, if you don't own Apple hardware, for whatever reason, it's simple to just not include it in your new home.  My concern is, when this type of tech is standard in all but the cheapest new homes, then you have people potentially being locked out of ever using the devices in the home if it was built for Apple, but you prefer Android or vice versa.  I'm not getting into the whole debate on Apple vs. Android vs. Android variants vs. Windows and so on, but I do think that there needs to be some kind of open standards that the smart home industry can all agree on.  That way, a device maker doesn't need to certify their device for individual standards, they just certify to the standard, and everything likely works.  They may have a basic standards level, that everybody has to meet for the device, and an enhanced or plus level that could include any proprietary settings or standards.  It would also simplify support in device operating systems as well.  Instead of having to create and maintain development of a wide variety of proprietary Smart Home standards, they just help maintain the "Smart Home Open Standards".

cali

kendog52404 said:

While the support of Apple Homekit is nice, and a useful feature, my concern is future proofing and non Apple owners.  While the future proofing can't really have anything done about it, aside of making it as easy as possible to upgrade/replace, the non Apple owners issue is, in my opinion, the bigger problem.

Sure, right now, with this developer in particular, if you don't own Apple hardware, for whatever reason, it's simple to just not include it in your new home.  My concern is, when this type of tech is standard in all but the cheapest new homes, then you have people potentially being locked out of ever using the devices in the home if it was built for Apple, but you prefer Android or vice versa.  I'm not getting into the whole debate on Apple vs. Android vs. Android variants vs. Windows and so on, but I do think that there needs to be some kind of open standards that the smart home industry can all agree on.  That way, a device maker doesn't need to certify their device for individual standards, they just certify to the standard, and everything likely works.  They may have a basic standards level, that everybody has to meet for the device, and an enhanced or plus level that could include any proprietary settings or standards.  It would also simplify support in device operating systems as well.  Instead of having to create and maintain development of a wide variety of proprietary Smart Home standards, they just help maintain the "Smart Home Open Standards".

 Hell  no . If people can't afford Apple and  prefer knock off devices they deserve to be left out in the cold. 

  Apple IS the standard 

edited November 2016