The idea of “smart appliances” has been around for a while now, but has yet to really infiltrate the average household. Even having moderately priced smart machines running your home would add up considering you’d have to replace all of your old stuff.

The young developers of “Pluto” offer a simple solution which would allow you to smartify all of your currently existing home electronics for the reasonable price of 12,800yen (US$140).

The Pluto system consists of a box that fits in the palm of your hand called the “remote station.” The station connects to your home router via LAN cable. After plugging the station in, you download the Pluto app to your smart phone and you’re ready to go.

The app converts your smartphone into a sort of universal remote that can operate nearly any remote controlled device in your home. To set up you can select your appliance from a pre-made list or simply zap the remote station with your soon to be obsolete remote control.

Now you can operate your devices from anywhere, anytime over the Internet. For example, if you want to get the AC churning so it’s nice and cool when you walk through the door, just set it up on your phone.

Granted, this device has its limitations – like only working with remote controlled devices and probably has blind spots in the home. But it’s a rather easy to use and affordable way to bring your home up to 21st century standards.

The system was released in November of 2012 but as of this writing is out of stock on Amazon Japan. The trio of undergrads from Tokyo University who created and marketed this device can certainly feel satisfied.

Source: Pluto via Engineer Type (Japanese)