So far we’ve talked about controlling Z-Wave events around your house with manually operated controls like hand-held remotes and key chains.  But one of Z-Wave’s most powerful features is the ability to let you monitor and control those events even when you’re not home at all. 

If you like your home control to be truly remote, you’ll want to consider adding a Z-Wave gateway into your installation.  This is a device that lets Z-Wave co-exist with another network, like the Internet, so you can monitor and control Z-Wave enabled devices from anywhere.

Hawking Technologies’ Home Remote Starter Kit lets you control your home while you’re away

From an installation standpoint, adding this kind of (very) remote control is simple.  Let’s use the Hawking Technologies Home Remote system as a starting point.  The Z-Wave gateway is placed where it can interact with your Wi-Fi broadband router.  You don’t need to worry about the gateway clogging up your existing home Wi-Fi network, because Z-Wave works on a different frequency and there’s no interference between the two.

The Home Remote system is expandable to a full-fledged home security system that can be monitored remotely.  Add one of Hawking’s security sensors, like motion sensor or the window/door sensor, or maybe one of the company’s video cameras.  Now you can get an alert on your PC or cell phone when someone’s come into the house, and the cameras will let you see who it is – even if you’re out of the country.