POPP integrates Amazon Echo in its smart home control and improves user interface

Z-Wave Europe, the leading European Value Added Distributor for Z-Wave based wireless home automation, informs about user interface improvements by the smart home supplier POPP.

Extensive firmware updates for the POPP HUB smart home control center increase the performance significantly. One of the most important innovations is the integration of Amazon Echo voice control with virtual “Alexa” voice. Therewith, it will become easy to control the room temperature, dim the lights or control different devices or complex automation scenes only by using simple voice commands.

One important exception of the „POPP Smart Home“ skill is the intuitive simplicity of the voice commands such as “Alexa, switch the light on.” Functions can be started directly without starting the skill by calling its name before as it is typical for comparable smart home applications.

Thanks to the app store which is integrated into the POPP HUB user interface, the Amazon Echo skill can be installed and activated in only a few steps. Searching devices in the Z-Wave based smart home network works quick and simple.

Besides the Amazon Echo integration, the POPP HUB user interface was further developed regarding user friendliness within the last months. One of the new features is the accelerated registration procedure for mobile devices such as smartphone or tablet pc. These devices can be connected to the POPP Smart Home in seconds by scanning a QR code.

The biggest visible changes in the user interface can be done by the user himself. Due to the so called “skin” functionality it is possible to adapt the user interface’s look to own needs by using skins (templates) from the provided range. The opportunity of personal adaption is topped off with the inclusion of own icons. These can be uploaded from the user or obtained as package from a server.

An instruction how to create own skins (templates) can be found under developer.z-wave.me. These skins can also be submitted to the platform as it is already possible for the numerous apps. For skin development, it is necessary to have experiences with SASS and CSS as well.

The POPP smart home software bases on the certified ZWay software by Z-Wave.Me. Therefore, all submitted apps and skins will be proved by Z-Wave.me first before official release for public use. Since its start in 2016, the app store has developed to a collection with more than 120 useful applications which simplify the integration of various functionalities into the intelligent connected home for users. Therewith the POPP HUB is one of the most secure but also most flexible and most user-friendly smart home gateway in the market.

The ZWay software is used in the POPP HUB as well as for the Smart Home Stick, made for WD My Cloud™, and the RaZberry plug-on module for Raspberry computers. Thus, all apps and skins are available also for all of these platforms.

Alexa Developer Console.