Skip to main content

Craving God-like control of your whole home? Meet NEEO

It seems like just about everyone is looking for a smarter way to control their growing collection of devices these days, spurring a host of ingenious new methods to help you take the reigns of your electronic empire. Most of these new creations utilize the smartphone or tablet you already own. But if you’re looking for an even more comprehensive smart universal remote system, you may want get down with a new device currently making a Kickstarter push called NEEO.

Related: Hi-Fi Corner: Hands-on with Samsung’s new multi-room speaker pods

Recommended Videos

NEEO adopts a dual-front attack to give you ultimate control of everything from your stockpile of home theater gear, to smart light bulbs, thermostats, and window shades. At the heart of the system is (of course) an app for iOS or Android devices, which allows easy setup for control of more than 30,000 home theater and smart home devices. The company says the database is comprehensive enough to include “all major AV products produced in the last 10 years.”

NEEO BrainBut the real bones of the system comes from the aluminum-clad NEEO hardware, which begins with a sleek disc that fires Infrared signals in 360 degrees called The Brain. The Brain is partnered with our personal favorite component of the system, a real-life control wand featuring a simplified selection of tactile buttons, and a touch screen with a resolution claimed to be higher than that of Apple’s iPad retina screens. But that’s just the start of the features on board this “thinking remote.”

The wand is embedded with patent-pending “hand detection technology” that is able to recognize who you are when you pick it up to call up your favorite content and devices, and also allow for locked-down parental controls. The unit also includes a stand and a rechargeable battery that NEEO says can go months without charging, four antennas featuring dual Bluetooth protocols (including low-energy BLE) and Wi-Fi connection, and an SOS feature that allows you to summon a chirp from the wand via your smartphone when it inevitably gets lost in the couch cushions.

Still not convinced? NEEO also repeatedly calls attention to the remote’s “insanely easy” setup, claiming the system will work right out of the box with Google’s Nest devices, set top boxes like Roku and Apple TV, Philips Hue lights, DVR boxes from Cablevision, Verizon, Time Warner, and Comcast, and just about every other remotely controlled device you likely have rambling around your home.

As of publication time, NEEO has raised over $640,000 of the company’s initial $50,000 goal, so no worries about this thing vaporizing into the ether due to lack of funding. If you’re interested in grabbing a NEEO to help simplify your setup, you’ve got a shade over two more weeks to jump onto the NEEO Kickstarter page and put yours on order. It’ll cost you around $220 for the whole system at this stage in the game, but what’s a little money in comparison to smart home omnipotence?

Ryan Waniata
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Ryan Waniata is an audio engineer, musician, composer, and all-around lover of all things tech, audio, and cinema. Hailing…
Beginner’s guide to cigar shapes and sizes — and why they matter
Why your cigar choice says more about you than your watch (and how to pick the perfect one)
A collection of cigars

Walking into a cigar shop and facing what seems like a million options is enough to make anyone panic. Cigars stacked everywhere, each with a strange name, size, and a slightly different shape from the last one. If you haven't done this before, it's tempting to just grab something, anything, and run!But hold on a second. Those shapes actually matter. They aren't just there to look fancy or make things confusing. The size and shape change the whole experience of smoking that cigar – how it tastes, burns, and feels. It's kind of like how driving a tiny sports car is way different than driving a big truck. Both get you where you're going, but the experience along the way is not the same.

What are cigar vitolas?

Read more
The writer of one of Netflix’s biggest drama is taking on James Bond next
We still don't know who will star in this new installment.
James Bond at a casino

The news that Denis Villeneuve would be taking on the next James Bond film was certainly exciting for many, and as we continue to speculate about who might take over as 007, we're also learning more about who else will be working behind the scenes on the film.

We now know that Steven Knight, the writer behind Peaky Blinders, will be writing the next Bond movie. While Knight is best known for his work on TV, which includes Peaky Blinders and the recent Stephen Graham series A Thousand Blows, he's also the writer behind Spencer and Maria.

Read more
Every new Game of Thrones spinoff explained
George R.R. Martin's television world continues to grow
Matt Smith starring in House of the Dragon

When it first aired on HBO in the early 2010s, Game of Thrones dazzled audiences with revolutionary special effects and terrific acting in a unique fantasy world. Based on author George R.R. Martin's series of novels, the universe depicts the battles between several different noble families as they try to climb to the top of the continent of Westeros, both politically and figuratively. The war scenes, family drama, and massive number of characters helped make the story feel fresh and new every time a new episode aired.

As Martin's attention shifted to television and away from his books, fans have looked to the TV series to finish some of the stories he couldn't finish on the page. Game of Thrones left fans wanting more, despite its poorly received finale, and a plethora of spinoffs are on the way. House of the Dragon already has two seasons completed, and there are several others in the coming years to look forward to.
House of the Dragon
House of the Dragon finished its second season in 2024. The show chronicles the heated family dynamics of the Targaryen empire almost two centuries before the events of Game of Thrones. The third season should pick up the civil war between Queen Rhaenyra's forces and King Aegon's after a slow-building conflict throughout the second act.

Read more