A Bluetooth Hub That Turns Your Phone Into a Universal Remote

In our weekly column on crowdfunded projects, we look at sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo to find new and interesting projects. That's because in the last couple of years, some of the most exciting developments in technology have come not from the established players, but from small teams with big dreams - like the Pebble smartwatch and the Oculus Rift.

One project hoping to make it big is the AnyMote Home - this small IR device can connect to your smartphone or tablet using Bluetooth, where a companion app can be used as a smart remote.

The AnyMote has profiles of over 800,000 devices, and the makers say they are still adding more. There's also a learning function, where you can teach it to recognise other IR remotes that are not already supported. The app can also integrate with services that support Wi-Fi, such as XBMC, Sonos and Roku.

The way it works is simple - you just launch the app on your phone or tablet (both iOS and Android are supported), and connect to the AnyMote Home. Then you just pick the category and brand of the device you want to control, and set up the on-screen controls.

What's interesting about the app is that you can set up multiple devices on a single screen, or create macro functions. So, for example, you could set up the remote app to turn on your TV, set top box, and air conditioner, all with a single button, and switch them all off in one go.

Or you could create a custom remote which has, say, the volume buttons for your soundbar, along with the channel buttons of your set top box, a power and source button for your television, and XBMC controls for when you want to use your HTPC instead of the set top box.

You can see the full video below:

You can get the AnyMote Home for $70 now, or two for $130. The AnyMote Home is already fully funded, but will continue to accept pledges until October 10. The company has completed its final prototype and battery tests, and claims it will start delivering the Kickstarter batch of hardware by May 2015.