Brilliant Idea: The Tendril

Charmian Love

April 7, 2010

A few weeks ago I came across a link to an innovative new product to help people monitor energy use in their home. Lots of companies have tried this before – but the user-friendly display and overall i-phone-esque design aesthetic give The Tendril a leg up on others in the market.

From their website: ‘The Tendril suite of smart energy products opens a dynamic, two-way communication between utilities and their customers. Utilities can work in collaboration with their customers to monitor, manage and control usage in near real-time. Customers can understand, manage and control energy consumption to reduce costs and their impact on the environment’

With growing trends in smart homes and smart meters, I think we’ll see many more products enter this space. The key to their success will be how well they are able to translate energy use information into something that allows people to make informed decisions about their usage.