Wink has a powerful new smart home hub, introducing the Wink 2 with a number of cool features, including support for Amazon Alexa.
The new Wink 2 replaces the company's previous $69 Wink, adding more force and features in a slimmer package. At the same time, the new Wink 2 is also more expensive, coming in at $99.
For that extra cash, however, the Wink 2 brings several new upgrades, such as an Ethernet port and a more powerful Wi-Fi radio to complement the Lutron Clear Connect, Bluetooth Low Energy, Kidde, Wi-Fi, ZigBee and Z-Wave support.
Wink says that its new Wink 2 is the first smart home hub aimed at the mainstream consumer, delivering greater convenience and simplicity without compromising performance.
"Wink's mission is to make the smart home accessible, and empower users to harness the real world benefits it provides in everyday life," says Nathan Smith, Wink's founder and chief technology officer. "Wink Hub 2 enables users regardless of their technical know-how to buy the products they love from the brands they trust, and know with confidence they'll work together seamlessly through Wink."
The new Wink 2 is also 25 percent slimmer compared to its predecessor, and its upright design reportedly maximizes its range to guarantee smooth communication between the hub and smart devices.
Wink also added some software improvements with its latest Wink 5.0 mobile app, such as auto-discovery to accelerate setup, and a new process to transfer all automations and smart products from the first Wink Hub to the new Wink Hub 2 that is fast and hassle-free.
This would certainly make things a lot easier for Wink users looking to upgrade to the latest hub, as the backup system would do the job instantly instead of requiring users to manually port over their existing devices.
Saving the best for last, the new Wink Hub 2 plays nice with the popular Amazon Alexa, although the hub itself doesn't have voice recognition technology. The Alexa integration will enable users to easily control their smart home through voice commands such as "Alexa, turn off the lights" and have Amazon's gadget send a command to the smart hub. Shortcuts will also be enabled soon, allowing users to give short commands such as "Alexa, bedtime" and have the lights dimmed to a preset level.
The Wink Hub 2 will hit retail in late October at a $99 MSRP and will be available at select Walmart stores, Walmart.com, The Home Depot, Amazon's website and Wink.com. The original Wink Hub will continue to be available while supplies last, selling for $69 at The Home Depot, Wink.com and Amazon.com.
The smart home market is still on the rise, with many American households not even using smart home technology yet, but Wink is carving a name for itself and its new smart home hub aims to take things to the next level.
