Getting connected: ReadyWire connects devices throughout, outside the home

MIDVALE — When's the last time you heard anybody talk about being at the tech forefront of their neighborhood by having a "wired" home? Yep, thought so.

Companies like Midvale-based Phonex Broadband are the reason. The little-known gem has been producing technology that for more than a decade has helped people eliminate the need for wires and cables clogging up the home. And its latest technology, expected to be part of a myriad of devices, will do more of the same, making the home "connected" but without the wires.

"If we can get the kind of traction we want, we're going to double and triple the company in the next few years," said Brad Warnock, marketing director. "We're very, very excited about the opportunity we have."

Imagine setting up a video camera to monitor a baby but being able to see the image on any TV in the house. Or playing your computer's MP3 music files but hearing them on speakers you've toted to your patio or deck, or listening to them on your home's intercom speakers.

And doing it all with the devices plugged in only at power outlets — no connecting cords between them. That's what the Phonex ReadyWire chip technology will enable.

"We'll build products so that you can just plug them into the outlets. They'll know where they are, they'll identify automatically and set up the network, and you can start pressing the buttons and having fun instead of messing around with it all the time," Warnock said.

ReadyWire, simply put, will connect devices with voice, streaming audio, Internet video and home automation control.

ReadyWire is an evolutionary step from existing Phonex products. The wireless jack for phones lets a person plug in a couple of units — with one at an outlet near an existing phone — to get a phone signal at any other power outlet in the home.

So far, 11 million units have been sold in the decade they've been available. A popular application has been to attach them to a satellite TV set-top box, enabling the satellite TV company to have a phone connection for its network communication. That allows it to coordinate pay-per-view offerings, check the status of accounts and fight fraudulent piggybacking of TV signals.

"As long as the set-top boxes can call the network, they can figure out anything they want to about that customer," Warnock said.