New smart grid router links with home wifi

(Belkin)

Over the last week wireless networking and mobile accessories company Belkin has revealed and begun selling a new consumer-oriented smart grid product.

The Belkin Conserve Gateway is a router system that works in tandem with a smart meter to provide real-time information about home energy usage. The device links ZigBee, the wireless operating system of most smart meters, with existing computer networks using wifi. Information on home energy usage is then delivered via a simple web interface.

According to Belkin the product is currently only available in the United States though is likely to appear on the European market in the future. The Belkin website advises American customers to contact the company for more information.

Both Google with the Google PowerMeter and Microsoft with Microsoft Hohm also offer real-time wireless internet energy monitoring services.

Hohm is currently only available in the United States; customers log into the site, enter their Windows Live ID and their postcode and then after answering a series of questions regarding their home, Hohm is able to predict their energy usage. 

Google PowerMeter services are available to customers of certain utility companies in the United Kingdom, Germany, the USA and Canada.