We've invented EnergyBuddy™ ...

a small, affordable and easy-to-use but stylish electronic gadget that will help you monitor, manage and see how your family uses electricity around the home.

EnergyBuddy's clever technology simply makes your electricity consumption visible - putting you firmly in control of your utility bill.

All this - and loads more - from a neat little box less than 4" square!

With EnergyBuddy you'll be able to:

• Save Electricity: 'see the difference' - make your electricity consumption visible and take control ...
• Save Money: 'feel the difference' - reduce your electricity bill as you learn where it goes ...
• Save the Planet: 'make a difference' - change your energy usage patterns, reduce your carbon footprint, involve the kids & feel good!

Bringing your electricity to life ...

With a unique glowing 'red, yellow, green' translucent top, EnergyBuddy tells you at a glance whether your consumption is over or under-budget.

It also brings your electricity use to life in far more detail with colorful dashboards showing dials, gizmos, graphs and other neat stuff so that you know exactly where your home's electricity is being used and what you can do to reduce it.

There's also remote on/off control if you've got one or more of our EnergyBuddy SmartPlugs!

And you can get info and control on your iPhone, iPad, Android smartphone or computer screen. As it happens. And get totally secure access from anywhere on the net.

Now that's cooOol!

So far, we've done the R&D and developed fully working pre-production Buddies ...

We're currently totally self-funded and have already developed everything needed to make EnergyBuddy work.

We have been working hard with our manufacturing partner in China since September last year. Injection mold tooling has been fabricated and is undergoing final adjustments. Printed circuit boards have been revised and are now final. And we are just putting the finishing touches to our firmware, cloud software and mobile apps.

The first 100 production samples are being built and we are already working with the first few units from this batch (see our update page for the latest production photos).

PLUS - we've had great feedback since we demonstrated our pre-production Buddies at this year's International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas back in January and at other recent events.

AND - our heartfelt thanks to Sarah and Joseph from Engadget (http://www.engadget.com) for stopping by while we were setting up the EnergyBuddy stand at the CEA Line Show in New York just before the show opened.

Read what they had to say, see some great pictures and check out their short video of EnergyBuddy here: http://www.engadget.com/2012/06/26/futuredash-energybuddy-hands-on

And now we need your help!

BUT - to make our dream come true and to get EnergyBuddy into as many homes as possible we need to raise enough commitment to place a volume production order and get EnergyBuddy manufactured at a reasonable cost.

That's where YOU can become a part of this!

We need your contributions for us to place our first production order.

And - we'd love your longer-term involvement and feedback once you've received your EnergyBuddy to help us make it even better!

What will we spend your money on?

Your contribution will effectively be a pre-order. We're offering various combinations of EnergyBuddy options - just take a look at the perks list!

Then - if we hit our project goal - the funding will be used for us to complete regulatory approvals, start volume manufacturing and launch the home energy monitoring revolution!

We expect (if everything goes according to plan) to start shipping the perk Buddies by early November.

Key Technical Specs

• EnergyBuddy gateway connects to your home LAN via Ethernet or 802.11 WiFi. External AC adapter included.
• Current transformer clamps for standard U.S. residential main circuit panels, with battery
• operated wireless transmitter.
• SmartPlug for standard U.S. 3-prong outlets, rated to 15A.
• iPhone and iPad apps will be available for free download in the Apple App Store.
• Android app
• Browser dashboards viewable in any common computer browser: Internet Explorer, Safari, Firefox, Chrome.

FAQ

We've been asked a bunch of questions since this campaign launched - we hope the answers help. We'll add to this list as it grows - if you have a question that isn't on the list below then simply contact us and we'll get you the answer!

• [Q] "How many current transformer clamps are included in the Home Kits?"
  • Home Kits come with 2 CT (current transformer) clamps and one transmitter.  This is for dual 120V conductors (as is typical in the U.S./ Canada).
• [Q] "How long is the battery assumed to last in the (current transfomer) transmitter?"
  
  • About 9 months, and we expect longer with better quality batteries.
• [Q] "What’s the maximum number of SmartPlugs that can be supported by a single EnergyBuddy?"
  
  • Theoretically there is no limit that our software can support.  Any limitation will come from the wireless link being used with the sensors and SmartPlugs.
  • We are using a proprietary 433MHz radio link with our CT clamp transmitter and SmartPlugs, and we are confidently testing with 10 SmartPlugs simultaneously at the moment.
  • If you need to manage a larger amount of devices, power strips and appliances then we recommend that you use the ZigBee version of EnergyBuddy that will be available later in the year. ZigBee will also be available as an optional upgrade to the initial 433MHz EnergyBuddy via a ZigBee USB dongle that we plan to offer. We will also be recommending, or possibly offering directly, ZigBee enabled SmartPlugs.
    
• [Q] "What support are you offering for International versions of EnergyBuddy?"
  • Certified international versions of EnergyBuddy will start to be available, probably by the end of the year. The AC adapter for the gateway is easily swapped for one with the correct plug (they are all universal AC voltage input already). Our CT clamp wireless transmitter supports up to three plug-in CT clamps, so can be used with one clamp for 220V-240V single phase, single conductor supply, two clamps for dual 120V conductors (as is typical in the U.S./ Canada), and three clamps for 3-phase. There will be 3 different sizes of CT clamp available that can support maximum conductor diameters of 15mm, 18mm and 25mm. AC voltage used for power calculations is programmable in our setup app. And a 220V – 240V version of the SmartPlugs already exists, that has options for several of the common plug types, including Schuko. It’s mostly a matter of getting everything certified for the specific countries or regions, and language localization of the software, and as a startup it comes down to cost and time. We are trying to get there as fast as we can, though please bear with us!
  • In the meantime, our basic Home Kit could be used internationally. The AC adapter for the gateway has universal AC voltage input and would just need an appropriate plug adapter. Although two CT clamps are provided, they are plug in, and so for 220V-240V single phase, single conductor AC supply, like in most of Europe, only one would need to be used. And the AC voltage used for power calculations is programmable in our setup app. Hence as long as the CT clamp will physically fit (maximum conductor size is 18mm for the standard Home Kit), then EnergyBuddy Home Kit (no SmartPlugs) should be useable. Language in the apps and browser dashboards will be U.S. English.  We have added options for international shipping.  However, such international orders will need to be at your own risk and liability, and with the understanding that the product will probably not yet have passed safety and electro-magnetic compatibility certifications for your country (other than the AC adapter). We will do our best to support your installation, and will support a return if it will not work, however we will not be able to cover return shipping costs.
  • We will also support kits with SmartPlugs for international use in countries with 120V supply, under the same conditions as above. This will include Canada, Mexico and other countries that we will be announcing in due course.
  • The EnergyBuddy kits will have passed UL or ETL safety certification for the U.S., and FCC Part 15 electro-magnetic compatibility testing.
• [Q] "What Support does EnergyBuddy offer for 3-phase?"
  • Our CT clamp wireless transmitter supports up to three plug-in CT clamps, so with three clamps can support 3-phase. This gives the total power on all three phases and does not break out power on each phase. There will be 3 different sizes of CT clamp available that can support maximum conductor diameters of 15mm, 18mm and 25mm. AC voltage is programmable in our setup app.
  • We will setup sales for optional additional CT clamps later on our EnergyBuddy website.
• [Q] "Do you offer support for second or more electrical panels"
  • Additional electrical panels can be supported with optional add-on sets of CT clamps plus wireless transmitter, which we will make available via the EnergyBuddy website later.  This will also require a cloud software update to be able to designate multiple panels.
• [Q] "Support for PV/solar and other renewable energy generation"
  • Support for PV and other power generation will be added in a later cloud software update, which will also include support for feed-in tariffs if appropriate. A second set of CT clamps and wireless transmitter, for the output of your inverter, will be required to monitor generation. The CT clamps will be available as an optional add-on, so you can get initially started with an EnergyBuddy kit for monitoring consumption, and add the generation monitoring later.
• [Q] "Is there a ZigBee version of EnergyBuddy?"
  • The initial version of EnergyBuddy available for pre-ordering uses a proprietary 433MHz wireless link to the CT clamp transmitter and SmartPlugs, and does not include a ZigBee radio.
  • The ZigBee version of EnergyBuddy will be available later in the year and will also have options to support ZigBee Home Automation Profile, ZigBee Smart Energy Profile or both. And it will be able to support other ZigBee enabled devices compatible with the appropriate Profile. There are already some third party ZigBee smart plugs and other energy sensors / controls that we support and we will announce details of these later. If a specific ZigBee device requires a new dashboard, for example a ZigBee programmable thermostat, then new dashboards can be added via a cloud software and mobile apps update.
  • For those pre-ordering an EnergyBuddy, we will also later offer a ZigBee upgrade via an optional ZigBee USB dongle.
• [Q] "Can the initial version of EnergyBuddy be upgraded to support ZigBee later?"
  
  • For those pre-ordering an EnergyBuddy, we will also later offer a ZigBee upgrade via an optional ZigBee USB dongle.
• [Q] "How can I monitor hard-wired appliances, such as HVAC, and lighting?"
  • For monitoring hard-wired appliances such as split A/C, electric ovens, lighting etc., there is a third party multi-circuit monitor that we support with the ZigBee version of EnergyBuddy that requires professional installation at the main electrical panel.  We will provide more details on this later.
    
  • However, even with our basic Home Kit, it’s easy to get a good idea of the incremental cost of each device or appliance as you switch it on or off, via our mobile apps and browser dashboards.
• [Q] "Does EnergyBuddy offer support for tiered, TOU and utility specific tariff rates?"
  
  • General TOU tariffs will be supported in the initial version, though the user will need to manually enter the start and end of each time period and the corresponding rate. In a later cloud software update, we plan to offer the ability for the user to select their appropriate TOU tariff without having to make any manual entries.
    
  • For tiered tariffs it is not easy to provide a general way to enter a scheme that will cover the myriad and complexity of tiered tariffs available from the more than 3,000 utility companies in the U.S., and the fact that those schemes may change on a monthly or seasonal basis in some cases. Our recommendation for tiered tariffs is either to set a fixed average rate (cents per kWh) that represents your average rate (usually shown on your utility bill), or to set a fixed rate that represents the cost of the tier that you generally end up in by the end of the billing cycle. The latter at least tells you the rate at which you will be saving if you reduce your usage, until the point that you save enough to drop in to the next lower tier.
  • We will later have a cloud software update that will add Green Button support (download of your utility data), that will add the ability to sync costs with your utility when a tiered tariff is in use. And once we release the ZigBee version of EnergyBuddy that will communicate with compatible smart meters (should include PG&E), then support for tiered tariffs will be automatic if the utility offers cost and tariff data via their smart meter ZigBee communications.
• [Q] "Is EnergyBuddy compatible with Green Button?"
  
  • We will later have a cloud software update that will add Green Button support (download of your utility data), that will add the ability to sync costs and consumption with your utility.
    
• [Q] "What's the product warranty?"
  
  • 12 months.
    

Any Further Questions?

IMPORTANT! INTERNATIONAL VERSIONS: Our basic Home Kit could be used internationally. See FAQ question for technical details. We have added options for international shipping.  However, such international orders will need to be at your own risk and liability, and with the understanding that the product will probably not yet have passed safety and electro-magnetic compatibility certifications for your country (other than the AC adapter). We will do our best to support your installation, and will support a return if it will not work, however we will not be able to cover return shipping costs.

If you are outside the U.S.A. and would prefer to wait for our certified international versions, please contact us to let us know your interest, and country of residence, and we'll keep you posted.

If you'd like to know more about EnergyBuddy or if you've got a question, then we'd love to hear from you!

Contact us whatever way is easiest - via Indiegogo, our website www.energy-buddy.com or via Facebook. We hope to hear from you soon!

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