It looked like Roost when getting ready to go full-on Nest when the company made the leap from connected batteries to smoke alarms, but its latest product represents a different approach to a connected home strategy. The Smart Water and Freeze Detector is, dare I say, not as sexy as a smoke alarm or even thermostat, but could prove quite useful for home owners, nonetheless.
“We were looking to expand our presence in the home and strengthening the position of Roost to provide peace-of-mind in the home,” the company’s CMO David Henry told TechCrunch. “By adding the smart water leak detector (with a humidity and temperature sensor) as well as our existing smart nine-volt battery for smoke alarms, we are now now capable of truly capturing bits of information around the home and turning them into appropriate notifications when they are most important to the consumer.”
The $49 device connects to the smart home platform the company set up for its smoke detectors, bringing alerts connected to water leaks, freezing, and changes in temperature and humidity, all of which can lead to expensive home damage – or, at the very least, pricing heating bills.
The detector utilizes WiFi, sending alerts to the company’s app (the same one utilized by its smoke detector). Roost promises a simple set up and three years of battery life, so you won’t have to think about it for while. It goes on sale this fall.