I'm looking at installing a home intercom. I've looked around and for an "addressable" intercom (one that allows you to talk to a specific room, not just broadcast everywhere), It costs around $200/room for the hardware. Then on top of that, I have to pay to have it installed and wires "fished" through my walls. This is gonna be about another $600.

It would be great if there was a PDA based wireless intercom system. By being PDA based, it could use wireless technology and not require a cost incurred through wiring. There are many inexpensive PDAs that now have both audio and video today and the prices of both just keep going down. So, instead of having only a voice PDA, you can also have video. Being wireless, you could move them wherever you needed to, even taking one out in the yard with you. You would use touchscreen PDA's with a variety of programmable menus.

Since it would be software based as opposed to hard wired, you could do all sorts of things with the device as well:- Easily allow privacy blocking and unblocking- Have multiple layers of security and privacy... for example, one level of control for children and another for parents.- Each station could be enabled/disabled to allow/disallow voice/video.- They could also be used to do a quick web surf to look up info without having to go to the home PC.- MP3's could be broadcast to all rooms in the house or just individual ones.- It could be used as a security sytem with software based motion detection and snap photos when in security mode.- It could be used as a nanny cam

In addition, the software could be easily upgraded to add new ideas and functionality as opposed to the limited features that homeowners are stuck with in their existing intercom technology.

By eliminating the cost of wiring, the product would be equal to or less than conventional wired intercom technology. Yet it would have so many more features.

This is a project that any entrepreneurial programmer could take on and turn into a significant business.

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