MOORESTOWN, N.J. — In recently disclosing its decision to get into the home video-security market, video camera resource iON America also revealed that mass-merchant superpower Walmart has begun to embrace the connected-home movement.
iON America recently unveiled its iON The Home camera — the first such product from the camera manufacturer for the burgeoning home video-security category, and revealed an exclusive tie-up for the item with retail giant Walmart beginning this month.
The company’s iON The Home security camera line offers consumers an affordable, easy-to-use and install home surveillance system tied to a free cloud storage platform. It will be part of a new connectedhome merchandising display that Walmart is adding to its electronics department.
A spokesman for the retailer confirmed to TWICE that the discount chain is rolling out connected-home displays in 1,700 stores, starting this month. The displays will vary in size, and will carry between 10 and 20 differ- ent items, including iON’s videosecurity cameras.
The iON The Home system is designed to send out event alerts to users’ connected smartphones and tablets any time movement is dedicated in the camera lens.
The camera, which carries a $129 suggested retail and is offered in a choice of white or black colors, features a unique i n t e g r a t e d pop-up stand/mount system that adapts easily to either wall mounting or tabletop placement.
The camera is connected by Wi-Fi and offers 720p HD video resolution. iON provides Android and iOS apps that tie the cameras into the Cloud-based storage platform and event-notification service.
Once users set up the camera, they can trigger the app to set up and register an account. At the end of the process, the user is presented with a QR code that they can scan with their camera to register the camera to the phone.
iON offers iON The Home camera purchasers up to 24 hours of ongoing Cloud storage free of charge in perpetuity. Additional storage capacity for up to seven days will be available for $10 per month, or 30 days of Cloud storage for $30 a month.
Users will be able to prepay for Cloud storage by purchasing a card at Walmart. Additionally, the system will allow multiple users to register their smartphones with the camera to monitor events at no additional charge.
“That means that at any point in time you can go to your phone and see what happened beforehand,” said Giovanni Tomaselli, iON America CEO and founder. “That’s a big advantage that few or our competitors can match.”
Other features include IR sensors that enable recording at night and in low-light environments, twoway mic/speakers that allow hearing what’s going on, and the ability to speak over the phone to any individuals within earshot of the camera.
Users can also tap the smartphone app to trigger the camera to grab a still image of anything being monitored over a live stream; event capture with auto storing will bypass periods of inactivity.
Users can program the app to notify them of activity events in a number of different ways, from having the phone ping them to sending out email alerts.
Captured activity recorded on the Cloud can be downloaded to the phone for further analysis.
Users can add as many cameras as they require, registering each unit with a QR code and later monitoring them all within the App. Up to four cameras can be monitored in each smart device screen view at a time. Fees for additional Cloud service capacity will apply to each camera separately, however.
“The telling difference here is that you can get a lot of value-add out of this product without having to spend any recurring revenue,” Tomaselli said.
The first iteration of the iON Home Camera line will not be weather resistant, so applications are limited to in-home use or within protective housings of some kind. But Tomaselli hinted that the feature is a likely addition for future product generations.
Tomaselli said iON is a video camera company that is building its business with “key pillars” in the action video space and now home surveillance. Tomaselli said iON launched the product exclusively with Walmart and Walmart.com (Sam’s Club may be added in time, he said) because “we’ve built up a very strategic relationship with them and will be combining the product with incremental Cloud services at retail as a cash-register ring.”
He explained that Walmart will be selling incremental Cloud storage plans on a card that can be purchased in stores.
