What Can See Through Walls but Has No Cameras?

Well, that's one approach to home security

April 28, 2017 9:00 am

How can you have strong home security and keep a sense of privacy?

Ditch the cameras and go invisible.

That’s what Aura promises: A new device from Cognitive Systems, the two-piece device (which blends pretty easily into your home decor) foregoes video and tracks invisible radio frequencies given off by pretty much every device and appliance you own.

When someone or something walks by, it’ll disrupt those signals. You’ll receive a notice on your smartphone and, if you want, a 73 decibel alarm will go off. If multiple people in your house have the app, it can identify who walks by and turn on/off as people you know come and go.

All for a sense of (somewhat) privacy. “When you think about a camera-based system, you wouldn’t want to put it in a bedroom. You wouldn’t want to put it in a bathroom,” says Hugh Hind, the company’s CEO. But with Aura, “you can cover the whole house. There’s no sense of privacy invasion.”

Aura is available now for $499.

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