Phantom is what Nest is in the US. But Phantom focused on the price-sensitive Chinese consumers. It is offering less expensive products. Phantom’s major products include app-controlled light bulbs and a home air monitoring device that features a pollution detector. Phantom produces energy-efficient Nova light bulbs. These wifi-enabled bulbs cost only RMB129 (or $21). Using the free Phantom apps, home lights can be controlled using Android or iPhones.
The air monitoring device is called Eco Tower. Using the Phantom smartphone app, Eco Tower provides information on temperature, air quality and humidity inside the house. At RMB159 ($43), the Eco Tower looks like a fine investment for an average Chinese household.
Recently, Phantom received $1.5 million in Series A funding through Matrix Partners. Phantom’s founders are products of the highly-esteemed Tsinghua University.