Innovation of the week: Track what's using electricity in your house

A new device will tell you exactly which appliance is sucking up all your electricity, said David Talbot at TechnologyReview.com. Sense is an orange box about the size of an eyeglasses case that connects to your home's electrical service panel. The device reads incoming power levels a million times per second, allowing it to identify the distinct power "signature" of appliances like garage door openers, toasters, and microwaves.

Sense sends the data it collects to the cloud for analysis, and then displays it on a smartphone app. Eventually, the company hopes to use that information to make personalized energy-use recommendations as well as sell anonymized data to utilities. Right now, it's handy for identifying sneaky drains on your power, like an old ceiling fan, or the cost of "always on" appliances like internet routers. Sense can be pre-ordered for $249.

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