Introducing Homeboy — A Better Insteon Experience

For a while now Richard and I have discussed that we’ve been working on software for home control. We’re fans of Insteon devices and technology for many reasons. The devices are priced reasonably, are very reliable, and are designed in a way to actually fit into a normal person’s house. We’ve always been frustrated by the software offerings that existed for controlling Insteon devices though. Most of the apps that are available are slow, unreliable, visually stale, and generally have an sub-par user experience. That’s why we’ve partnered with another Insteon fan, Matt Wilks, to create Homeboy.

Homeboy was created to provide Insteon fans with a great way to control their smart devices. Our new apps are available on Android and Windows Phone, and we think you’re going to really like them. Providing a great user experience is at the heart of the Homeboy experience.

At Homeboy, we don’t think you should need to wait just to quickly turn a light on. That’s why we’ve focused on speed with our apps. The lights and appliances you access all the time are presented to you first, because we know you want fast access to your favorites.

With this initial release of the Homeboy apps, we’ve focused on giving you a simple and quick experience for you to control your lights and appliances. View all your devices in one view, devices by group or room, or just your favorites that you would use most often.

We also know that providing a great user experience means different things on different platforms. Our Android app is designed using Android’s material design patterns. If you’re a Windows Phone user, you’ll feel right at home with our modern design, and you’ll love the ability to pin tiles for your frequently used devices right to your Start screen.

Homeboy is for Insteon customers using the Insteon Hub 2 (2245-222). Currently, Homeboy is designed specifically and exclusively to control your existing, configured Insteon devices. It doesn’t replace the Insteon for Hub app so much as supplement it. You still use the Insteon for Hub app to set up your devices, but then you can put away that complexity and let your whole household enjoy the simplicity of Homeboy.

We have many plans for Homeboy—from controlling Insteon scenes to supporting other Insteon and popular connected devices. But for now, our focus is on speed, efficiency, and simplicity. And we’ll be extending that to iOS and Windows platforms.

For more information view the press release. You can download Homeboy for Insteon Hub on Android and Windows Phone 8.1 today.