LAS VEGAS, Jan. 5, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Today at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Cirrent announced a partnership with D-Link, and announced that consumer electronics manufacturers Emberlight, LockState and smanos will enable their products with ZipKey for instant, secure Wi-Fi connections and a better out-of-box experience. Through partnerships with large Internet service providers such as Comcast, Cirrent has established a network of ZipKey hotspots that now cover more than 67 million homes.

Connectivity and initial setup problems are a critical barrier to the adoption of connected products: 40% of negative product reviews were due to these issues, according to Argus Insights' analysis of a quarter million customer reviews. These problems also lead to a poor out-of-box experience, with expensive support calls, high rates of product returns, and ultimately slower consumer adoption. Many connected products also have security weaknesses that leave home Wi-Fi networks vulnerable. Cirrent solves these issues by automatically connecting products to ZipKey hotspots, which provide secure access to the Cirrent cloud through the home Wi-Fi routers of leading Internet service providers. At CES, Cirrent demonstrated this capability with a ZipKey-enabled Bose SoundTouch 20 speaker.

"Smart home and connected consumer electronics products promise to really enrich our lives," said Rob Conant, Cirrent's Chief Executive Officer. "To bring their benefits to as many people as possible, we need to make them both easy to use and more secure. With our ZipKey technology, we're delighted to help leading product brands do just that."

The companies using Cirrent's ZipKey have prioritized customer experience and security as critical, while making it easy for everyday consumers to use their connected products. Manufacturers can make their connected products compatible with ZipKey by downloading a set of easy-to-implement software from Cirrent's website.

"We hear regularly from our users about how non-technical people love to use our products. We believe everyone should have the benefits of a wireless smart home and DIY security systems – techies and non techies alike," said Brian Stark, General Manager, Americas at smanos. "With Cirrent's ZipKey technology, our connected products are easier to set up, more reliable, and more secure, so now anyone can connect instantly." 

"LockState's RemoteLock is the world's leading Wi-Fi door lock for vacation rental properties. In this fast-growing market, hosts look for ease of use when adding technology to their properties, said Nolan Mondrow, president of LockState. "Cirrent's easy-to-implement technology and broad partnerships with Internet service providers brings a brand new capability to the connected devices market that dramatically improves the setup and out-of-box experience," said Mondrow. "We are happy to be one of the first companies to offer compatibility with ZipKey."

About Emberlight

Emberlight is building a home automation product that turns any bulb into a smart light. The device is a plug and play adapter that screws into your existing light socket, connects to your home WiFi network and enables you to control that light from anywhere in the world. For more information, visit www.emberlight.co.

About LockState

LockState brings the power of the Internet and radio frequency technology to access control devices such as smart door locks and physical access control systems for both residential and business use. LockState's RemoteLock platform brings remote control capability to door locks and other common devices such as thermostats, power plugs and more so that home and business owners can stay connected with their properties. LockState's mission is to utilize the Internet to extend the convenience and connectivity we have come to expect from the Web to these everyday devices to solve common problems that arise when owners are away from their property. For more information on LockState and their products, visit www.lockstate.com.

About smanos

In the picturesque outskirts of Amsterdam (Hoofddorp) came about the inception of smart home technology brand smanos in 2013. Harnessing cutting-edge design concepts, smanos delivers the ultimate user experience of wireless smart home and DIY security systems to households worldwide. Promising more than just a sense of security, smanos also ensures user-definable comfort and convenience, along with mobile accessibility and confirmation. In its pursuit for perfection in human-centric research and design, smanos continues to wow homeowners by putting the smarts of smart home and smart security directly in their hands. Dream big and live smart with smanos now!

About Cirrent

Cirrent, a provider of automatic, secure Wi-Fi connections for consumer electronics, makes it easy for manufacturers to transform the out-of-box experience through ZipKey and the support of the broader Cirrent ecosystem. Through partnerships with large Internet service providers such as Comcast Cable, Cirrent has established a network of ZipKey hotspots that now cover more than 67 million homes. For more information, or to experience a demo, please visit www.cirrent.com.

SOURCE Cirrent