DoorBot is but of the latest in an increasing number of DIY connected products. It is an interesting product taken alone, but made far more interesting and useful since the developers are integrating with the Lockitron Internet-controllable appcessory. But what may be even more interesting than DoorBot itself is the site on which the campaign for it is being launched: Christie Street. The name refers to the street on which Edison developed the light bulb, showing that not everyone shares disdain for the man most commonly associated with the incandescent bulb.
There are two things about Christie Street that stand out:
- It positions itself specifically for inventions, not the “creative works” like albums, music videos, and photo books that run deep in Kickstarter’s roots and which are a somewhat strange fit for the kinds of high-profile tech that tend to gain a lot of attention in Kickstarter’s Product Design section.
- It is as committed to protecting buyers — yes, buyers, not backers — via an escrow system. Is it fullproof? Probably not. But it is welcome to see a crowdfunding site take responsibility for how its users view transactions as opposed to clinging to its liability-limiting self-definition.
In short, if you’ve been a fan of noteworthy crowdfunded gadgets such as the Pebble smartwatch, Swivl rotating imaging and video base, Memoto lifelogging camera and others, Christie Street may evolve into a better destination for these kinds of projects, both for gadget creators and consumers.