Cisco unveils a new “Home Energy Management System” that includes a 7” touch screen computer — what they say is their “first consumer gadget for the smart grid.”   The Cisco Home Energy Controller will allow users to monitor their energy use device-by-device, react to changes in energy prices and automate energy use. For example, if appliances like dishwashers and lighting systems are wireless-enabled and intelligent enough to provide real-time data from a digitally networked power grid, customers could use the interface to set rules like dimming their lights during summer days when air conditioner demands drive up the cost. The initial per-household sum Cisco expects it will charge utilities for its home energy system (utilities will probably subsidize the devices via electric bills) is $900. In a partnership with Duke Energy, Cisco plans to first test the home energy management system in 100 households over the next 15 months before trying wider deployments.

Don’t control systems in the HomeAV market already do this?