Samsung working on the one remote to rule your smart home

Samsung is pulling out all the stops when it comes to delivering on the smart home experience. Based on their SmartThings connected home platform, they have already announced that every one of their smart TVs slated for launch during this year will be based on this unifying platform. As a result, all of their upcoming Ultra High Definition TVs will theoretically be able to control other domestic objects based upon this platform, including lighting systems, door locks, and cameras--in effect, their smart TV acts as the smart home control hub.

Now the latest news on the grapevine is that Samsung is on the verge of unveiling a unifying remote control which will enable playing master to all of these smart home appliances. The remote is rumored to be based on their Tizen operating system, and being compatible with their SmartThings home control platform it should be possible to do everything from simple appliance control all the way to implement more complex scenarios: turning on perimeter lights and home security cameras at dusk, or dimming the lights and firing up your home theater as you settle down to watch your favourite movie.

While such abilities have existed in other products such as Logitech’s Harmony series of Universal remotes, Samsung’s system should provide a more seamless experience with their more pervasive SmartThings integration.

We’ll know more over the next few days as more details become available at CES 2016--stay tuned.