Setting up a wireless network in the home requires at least two components: a wireless hub, which connects to the modem (DSL or cable) or serverPC, and a client device such as a PC insert card, which connects to the hub.
While server and PC vendors have been experiencing flagging sales since the beginning of the year, Cisco Systems, which sells networking equipment like routers and switches, has only felt a fraction of their pain.
Consumers can interrogate this server from a PC or iPhone to see not only the consumption pattern of various appliances attached to smart plugs around the home, but also to send instructions back to switch them on or off.