This is a weird, undeniably useful object created to address our evolving technology-based lifestyles:

The Earzz Smart Home Monitor is a tiny device that can be programmed to listen for certain sounds. When it hears one of them, it alerts you via your smartphone and/or smartwatch.

The applications are manifold. The baby's finally asleep, and you don't want to wake her but do want to catch up on a podcast, so you pop earbuds in. The Earzz device can be set to alert you if it hears the baby crying.

Ditto for a dog barking to go out, a cat meowing to be let in, the doorbell, the washing machine beeping that the load is finished, a car coming down the driveway, et cetera. For those in larger homes, you don't even need to be wearing headphones for this thing to be useful.

Citing privacy concerns, the developers say that the AI driving the device listens for sounds only and cannot parse speech. (So if you're looking for a digital swear jar, forget it.)

As far as how many of these things you'd need to cover a given space, the developers don't mention a specific range; they only say "we recommend having an Earzz device per sound scene (e.g.: one for the kitchen, and another for the hallway if they are spaced apart)."

The Earzz Smart Home Monitor has been successfully Kickstarted. At press time there was 10 days left to pledge, and the units were going for $73 apiece.

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