Microsoft Releases ‘Hohm’ for Home Power Bills

 

Microsoft today launched another attack on Google domination with the introduction of its Microsoft Hohm web application, a direct contender to Google’s PowerMeter. The application, which is currently only available in the US, is designed to help home owners track and reduce their power costs.

 

Electricity bills, if untracked, can easily burn a hole in most homeowners’ pockets. In the US, power bills can range from $100 for small properties to $300 or more for larger homes and mansions. With power costs varying at different times during the day, homeowners stand to save good deal on bills if they run their power-hungry appliances during lower tariff slots.

 

Microsoft Hohm promises to help you do just this. While it is a software appliance that sits in your computer system without touching your power meter or appliances, Hohm uses inputs from your power bills and home information to create an energy usage map for your home. With the map in hand, homeowners would be better equipped to track and control their power usage.

 

The current release is still only a free-to-download beta version and the project very much in its infancy. But with Google already entering into partnerships with power meter manufacturers for the development of smart meters linked to its PowerMeter appliance, it should not be long before Microsoft too moves into the next phase of Hohm.

 

Discuss in our Forums