
Show HN: Chui – The World's Most Intelligent Doorbell - nickfrost
https://preorder.getchui.com/the-world-s-most-intelligent-doorbell
======
sstarr
The first thing I thought of when I saw this was the doorbell scene from
Ferris Bueller's Day Off: [http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/282975/Ferris-
Bueller-s-D...](http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/282975/Ferris-Bueller-s-
Day-Off-Movie-Clip-It-s-Ed-Rooney.html)

Seriously though, I like the idea but what happens if someone holds up a photo
of a friend or family member who's face automatically unlocks the door? It
would be pretty easy to get a suitable image from a Facebook profile, for
example.

~~~
notahacker
In fairness, technology that can reliably tell subtle differences between
faces should be adaptable to differentiate between a face and a static image
of a face that doesn't even blink never mind change expression (though I
suppose you could still fool it with a high res video...). They also mention
the option of passcodes as an additional security level. These could still be
compromised of course, but so can actual keys.

Personally I'll stick with keys for actually letting people in, but the
ability to see who's visiting when I'm out, and leave them automated messages
if I'm busy would be neat.

Can't help thinking there's a novelty market for a simple stripped down
version that lacks the long range connectivity but simply uses the facial
recognition to trigger different cheesy ring tones to identify different
friends and family members.

------
lukashed

      > Chui is registered to your account and can only work with our web application.
      > You're prompted to approve if someone tries to register it to another account,
      > effectively rendering any stolen Chuis useless. No information is accessible on
      > any stolen Chui
    

How do you achieve this? From your video it looks like Chui is based on a
stock Raspberry Pi - what prevents me from using another SD card or altering
the information on the SD card (the 'registration' stuff)?

Another question out of personal interest: When I cut off the power off my
Raspberries without shutting them down, the filesystem is often left corrupted
and the Pi refuses to boot. Did you manage to find a solution for this? Is
there something like a 'mini UPS' out there that stores just enough power to
securely shut down the Pi?

~~~
Udo
I'm using a Pi as a server for my hacked-together home automation. It seems to
run ext4 and hasn't corrupted in the face of frequent power-offs. Out of
curiosity, was there anything special about your setup? Did you track the
corruption down to anything specific or was it just random?

~~~
lukashed
Mine are also running ext4. I haven't investigated it too much, but it
happened 2-3 times during development (quite frustrating when you haven't
backed it up for a while).

On another project we're running 30 Pis simultaneously and before we told the
operators to shut them down properly each evening we had at least one
corruption a week (which wasn't too much of a problem since we always had some
provisioned cards on hand).

There seems to be an UPS solution for the Pi already [1].

[1] [http://www.piups.net/](http://www.piups.net/)

------
krapp
Has anyone run independent hardware and software tests on devices like this
and Lockitron? Are the services open-source?

I just find the whole idea of remote locks to be disturbing. And yes, that
even extends to keyless entry on cars. I'm just a Luddite that way.

~~~
lukifer
Just as evolution doesn't judge by anything other than success (a cockroach is
arguably more "evolved" than a human), neither should technology. A simple
mechanical twist-bolt happens to have significant technological feature
advantages over a fancy mobile-enabled whatsit, even if it's lacking in other
areas.

You pays your money, you takes your chances. :)

~~~
krapp
Sometimes dumber is better.

------
thruflo
Strikes me that a simpler product might be more attractive: i) a doorbell you
can switch off when you don't want to be disturbed ii) a lock you can control
with your phone.

~~~
lukifer
As soon as it interfaces with a lock, you're talking about a high degree of
mechanical complexity and hassle to install, at which point you might as well
chase the high end of the market with every bell and whistle possible.

~~~
thruflo
Just because the tech is complex doesn't mean the customer proposition or
feature set should be.

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tzs
> Have an annoying friend or neighbor that always shows up unannounced. Add
> him to the do not disturb list and Chui will not even bother you with a
> notification (or a doorbell chime if wired).

If I do not hear a doorbell chime from within the house when I press a
doorbell button, I fall back to pounding on the door. Their "do not disturb"
feature should have an option to sound a low volume chime near the door, just
loud enough to convince the person at the door that the doorbell is working.

> Don’t want Chui to simply be triggered via button press. No problem, Chui
> can be triggered via Motion Detection and Face Detection. Whereby the
> presence of a face or motion will prompt it to take a photo and make deliver
> a notification.

It would be fun to go beyond simple motion detection and recognize gestures,
so I could allow my friends automatic entry, provided they do a Klingon
salute.

------
norova
I love the idea, liking the design so far, and wanted to back it. However,
$200 for this seems way too steep. I feel the same way about the Lockitron
($179). Granted, I live in a 900 sq. ft. apartment and not a multi-level house
with backyard, etc., but spending almost $200 so I don't have to get up from
my couch to see who is at the door is asking too much.

Like I said, I love this idea and I want to back it, but I can't commit that
much cash to it (I realize you are only charged when it ships). At that price,
the market is too niche (people with physical disabilities, large houses, or
just large wallets) and I can't see this succeeding for long.

~~~
aroch
I agree with you, it's cool but there's no way I could justify it. However, I
think Lockitron offers more utility than this and, assuming I was allowed to
install my own locks, I could see myself potentially using it

Hell, it'd be cheaper and probably less confusing to visitors for you to just
yell from the couch.

~~~
nchafni
Chui is also beneficial while you're away. If you're expecting to be occupied
you can have Chui deliver messages for your. You don't require your visitor to
have a certain kind of smartphone to work with your lock, and it can make your
home more intelligent(ex: recognizing when you get back and automating certain
tasks.)

~~~
aroch
Still requires having previously dropped the dough to get a smarklock. Given
that Lokitron lets you remotely unlock/lock, it saves you the ~$200 this costs
and only takes a simple SMS if the person doesn't have a smartphone

~~~
nchafni
yes, but lockitron doesn't tell you who's at your door nor does it allow you
to communicate with them...

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deluvas
What happens if you cut the wire?

[https://s3.amazonaws.com/crowdhoster/chui/uploads/ckeditor/p...](https://s3.amazonaws.com/crowdhoster/chui/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/data/000/000/007/content.jpg)

~~~
nchafni
Chui is supposed to be wired into your doorbell which would render that
impossible. And if you're using it for monitoring then you've set to be
triggered by motion and it would notify you prior to such action.

------
ars
This feature set is very cool!

I personally would not install a device that requires a 3rd party to function
when the functionality should be on my own computer, but other people may not
feel that way.

One issue is that it doesn't look like a doorbell - people aren't going to
find it to press it. Make the button stick out more and light it.

Powering it is going to be tough for people. Make sure the wire to power it
has a VERY tiny connector, so you can drill a very small hole in the wall and
feed the wire.

But I'm pretty impressed with the idea.

------
Chui
Chui runs depth detection to prevent pictures from being used!

~~~
abritishguy
Get a prototype to the Cambridge University Computer Lab, we'll break it.

~~~
StavrosK
Out of curiosity, how do you break depth detection?

~~~
noonespecial
I'm guessing the same way you break it in humans. Like this:

[http://www.davidairey.com/anamorphosis-and-the-art-of-
chalk-...](http://www.davidairey.com/anamorphosis-and-the-art-of-chalk-
pavement-drawing/)

~~~
StavrosK
These don't work if you have two eyes and are close to them.

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goldenkey
This looks similar to August: [http://www.august.com/](http://www.august.com/)

All products that are pretty much laughable in terms of security. These
companies have huge liability in case of robbery.

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yeukhon
If I cut the power, wouldn't it defeat to have the most intelligent doorbell?

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bigd
Seems very easy to steal. and 200$?

I'll buy mine second-hand at the black-market ;)

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saraid216
I would love to know where the name comes from.

Personal vested interest.

~~~
matthewbadeau
I believe it's Japanese for "attention!" or "warning!"

~~~
vilhelm_s
or "leopard" in Swahili, or various words in Mandarin, or a tiny town in
Brazil...

~~~
saraid216
I feel obligated to throw in that it's also my surname.

------
auvi
Maybe someday Google will buy Chui for $1B.

------
yetanotherphd
"Don't want to deal with breaking up with your emotional boyfriend?"

Quick someone submit a pull request to fix their gendered language.

