We've already seen that Apple's iPhone is a mighty fine home controller, but it looks as if AT&T bigwigs are just now getting wind of that. At a recent event where the company showcased some of its newly developed technology, it talked up eventually linking the iPhone and its fiber-based U-verse service. More specifically, the iPhone could be used "as a remote control," and iPhone owners could also listen to voicemails on their television or watch recorded shows on their handset. There's no word on when said features could eventually be rolled out, but may we implore AT&T to spend more on U-verse expansion before making it even more awesome for those lucky enough to have it?

[Via phonescoop]

We've seen some fairly intuitive home security creations in our day, but this little wonder ranks pretty high up there. Utilizing a couple of cameraphones, a microcontroller, solenoid relays, a photoresistor, wires galore, a soldering iron and a robust picture messaging plan, this cameraphone activated cameraphone can be used to snap pictures of a pre-defined location whenever you get curious. We could even see building an entire fleet if you're really paranoid, but by the time you add all those additional lines, you may be better off just pulling the trigger on a bonafide CCTV system. Nevertheless, feel free to follow the read link and hack until your heart's content, and check out a video of this setup in action after the jump.

Controlling your domicile's lighting, temperature, and home theater settings from your cellphone is far from revolutionary, but New York-based CLIQK is implanting the aforementioned abilities onto Apple's iPhone. In an admittedly vague press release, the "digital lifestyle services firm" stated that it was "treating" its VIP members to "specially customized iPhones" which enabled them to access "specialized applications and ringtones that are not available from Apple or to the general public." Quite comically, the firm even noted that it had "unlocked" the true power of the iPhone, and that its tweaked version allowed users to take control of their homes' security, lighting, temperature, shading, and even music from afar. Unfortunately, there's no mention of a price nor requirements for joining this so-called VIP clique (ahem), but hey, wouldn't it be more fun to just create your own home automation app?

[Via I4U News]

A Mechanical Engineering research team based in Punjab has tweaked out a remote control plane to use what is ironically verboten during flight as its means of control. Using a programmable chip on the plane, the team was able to successfully take off and land the aircraft with a cellphone -- no brand mentioned -- and are now busying themselves with "perfecting the art of speed, height and direction of the plane." We wish them good luck with that, as those are the key elements to not having to cough up money for a new plane for every run.

[Via textually.org]

SK Telecom, never wanting to be outdone by clever hackers in producing totally useless and bizarre devices that no one really needs, is in the final development stages on a Roomba-style robot that can be controlled by your mobile phone. The circular cleaning bot will be able to receive direction from a phone user on where to scrub, buff, and vacuum, while the controller views all of the exciting, floor-sweeping action on his or her cell phone via a built-in camera at the front of the bot. This should be the prefect product for those who feel the Roomba makes life too easy by cleaning a room on its own -- although it's possible that this technology could be adopted by legions of young men hoping to get a better look up women's skirts. Only time will tell.

Trust the folks at NTT-Neomeit (an NTT West group subsidiary) to find new and even cooler ways to use your cell phones -- and we're thinking this is off-the-scale cool -- it seems Neomeit is not happy with you simply watching TV, listening to music, or playing games with your cell, so they have busted out whole-home automation from your pocket. Using a web interface on your phone, commands are sent to a wireless router in your home which are relayed to either a remote control power switch, or an infrared transmitter. The scenarios where this could be useful are pretty endless, from turning on lights, recording a show you didn't setup or even setting fire to the entire home lighting up the Xmas tree as you arrive home to wow the family. The same page will also allow for device usage monitoring, so you can see what's what when you are away from home. A beta trial will get underway in May with launch expected in September for about $4 a month. Sweet!

[Via Pinktentacle.com]

We're not exactly sure what's up with Asia's infatuation with toy cars and shoving completely irrelevant (but entirely useful) features inside of them, but now Marsilli is offering up its own admittedly peculiar flash drive in the shape of a vehicle. Presumably in direct competition with Gold Kiwi's Bluetooth GPS receiver ride, this Mobile Remote Control Car is a diminutive four-wheeled ride with impressive aerodynamics, a 512MB flash drive built-in, USB connector in place of a central-mounted exhaust, and it even allows users to drive it around a cardboard course with "any cellphone." Of course, we're not entirely sure if all that controlling action is done over Bluetooth or some other propriety channel, but we have strong suspicions "every mobile" might not be equipped to handle this road burner. Nevertheless, you can probably pick one of these up in the near future at your favorite street corner vendor in Asia, but for now, click on through for a more closeups.

When you're already using your cellphone to track your wild domesticated animals, keep your family safe, and even buy gadgetry, you might as well use it to let the butler in too, right? Waleli has revamped its GSM-doorbell apparatus, which allows pedestrians to "ring your mobile," so that a simple doorbell press phones the owner and allows for a full-fledged conversation to occur. After you've determined that the mystery caller should gain entry, you simply "enter a pincode" which triggers the system to unlock the house or open a garage door. New to version 2.0 is the ability to access the device remotely in order to create a virtual remote control; if you (or your significant other) gets locked out of the crib, the machine will recognize your phone number and release the latches for its master on command. While we aren't sure how much this incredulous convenience will cost you (or save you over the long haul), at least the GSM-doorbell allows for more important keys to occupy that overstuffed keyring.

[Via Textually]

In what seems to be a brilliant marketing maneuver, Nokia is hyping its new CK-20W Car Kit as the "first integrated hands-free solution to combine high-quality communication, music, navigation and push-to-talk in the car," when all you're really getting is a dash-mounted dock and a remote. According to Nokia, you need to supply your own GPS Bluetooth receiver if you want navigation functionality (they suggest the forthcoming Nokia LD-2 Navigation Pack), although music streaming and hands-free chatting are achievable right out of the box. The kit is compatible with most Nokia phones and even standalone MP3 players if all you want are some tunes, but adding the nav pack requires you to own a S60-powered device to run the Route 66 mapping software. Prices have not been announced yet, but both the car kit and GPS receiver are expected to be available next quarter.

[Via Wired Blogs]