Locking and unlocking doors has become part of our daily lives, and just when keys seemed to be here to stay, two Stanford students proved us otherwise. Sesame is a smart lock that works with many types of deadbolts and relies on wireless connectivity to open doors.
Che-Ming Ku, a robotics student at Stanford, and Jongho Shin, a cybersecurity student at the same university, launched last month a crowdfunding campaign for their invention. Candy House Inc., as the startup created by these two geniuses is called, made a name for itself when the Kickstarter project raised north of $1.4M, more than 14 times the funding goal.
“Technology is changing so rapidly these days, and you’re likely to upgrade your phone every year,” explained Ku, “but you’re probably not going to change your lock every year because a new and improved digital lock is available. Sesame lets you upgrade your lock without any hassle.”
One of the main purposes of Candy House was to make the Sesame smart lock as simple and intuitive to use as possible. That easy that you could even provide access to friends, or restrict access for uninvited guests. Hackers are not an issue, as Sesame features AES 256-bit military-grade encryption. Using an additional Wi-Fi access point, users can connect Sesame to their local Wi-Fi network and open the door remotely, in case the situation requires it.
“With many of these types of devices, there’s a learning curve that gets in the way,” added Ku. “Sesame is extremely easy to install and works with almost any deadbolt.”
There are several ways users can unlock their door using Sesame and a smartphone. First of all, there’s a companion app for iOS and Android. Next, people can set Sesame to unlock the door when a secret knock is performed either on the phone or on the door. Of course, Sesame will use Bluetooth to check if the paired smartphone is nearby before opening the door to anyone who knows your custom knock. Not at last, users have to option to shoot up Google Now and say “OK, Google, open Sesame!” It really doesn’t get any easier than that!
Early birds could get Sesame for $89, or $139, respectively, with the Wi-Fi access point included. Now that the crowdfunding campaign is over, the price will go higher, when the smart lock will hit the shelves. The first batch of Sesame smart locks will get to Kickstarter backers as early as May.
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Besides the magic word from Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, Sesame is also the name of a touch-free smartphone that could prove very useful to people who can’t use their hands.
Touch-free devices are currently being developed for disabled people only, but the truth is we’re heading to a future where we no longer use taps in order to control things. The change from hardware buttons to touchscreens, something that seems perfectly normal now, would’ve been classified as sci-fi a couple of decades ago, but the way we’re interacting with our devices doesn’t stop here. Moving our hands through midair or doing a certain gesture with our heads will trigger specific actions, and even though this sounds a bit far-fetched, I’m fairly certain that’s how it’s going to be. The Sesame touch-free smartphone is only one of the many devices that will pave that future.
Sesame Enable created this smartphone thinking that disabled people have a right to their privacy, as well. I’m saying that because in most situations, whenever these patients want to text or talk on the phone, they need to rely on someone to write the messages or dial the number and hold it as long as the conversation lasts. You know, not everyone has access to Stephen Hawking’s resources.
The developers of this phone haven’t built it from scratch. Instead, the Sesame touch-free phone is in fact a modified Nexus 5 with some special software. And some expensive software that is! From the $350 that the Nexus 5 costs, Sesame gets as high as $900.
In order to work without having to use the screen, Sesame makes use of the front-facing camera for tracking head gestures. Any movement is translated into a new cursor position. To switch the smartphone on or off, people need to use voice commands, so it seems like Sesame is always listening.
Currently featured on Indiegogo, the Sesame touch-free smartphone will get to backers in April 2015, provided that the $30,000 funding goal is reached in the next 30 days. To secure one for yourself, you need to pledge at least $900, half now and half at the time of delivery.
The noble intention of Sesame Enable may meet its end unexpectedly, as touch-free devices are known for their lack of precision. On top of that, I still can’t get over how expensive Sesame is…
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