Skylight, a company responsible for a variety of popular smart frames, is gearing up to launch the Cal Max — a smart calendar that’s a simplified version of a traditional smart display. You won’t be watching Netflix on the massive 27-inch screen or tinkering with dozens of different apps, as it’s aimed at providing families with a streamlined way to access their calendars, chores, meal planning, and photo albums without any of the clutter found on traditional smart displays.
The Cal Max is designed to help organize your home without introducing any unwanted distractions. You won’t find a massive lineup of supported apps (as you typically see on smart displays). Instead, you can seamlessly sync your data from Google Calendar, Outlook, Apple Calendar, Cozi, and Yahoo, allowing family members to automatically push all their activities to the Cal Max for easy planning. It also doubles as a smart frame, letting you view photos sent by members of your family.
Its sizable 27-inch touchscreen is a big selling point, as it makes it easy to see what’s on tap for the day without needing to rush across your kitchen and squint at a tiny 8-inch display. The unit can be placed on a countertop, though it comes with a mounting bracket so you can secure it to a wall — and since its screen is so massive, this is likely to be the better option.
You’ll find a variety of kid-friendly features on the Cal Max, such as a color-coding system and the use of emojis to celebrate completed chores.
The Cal Max sounds like a solid option for families seeking a minimalistic, distraction-free alternative to traditional smart displays, though it does have some significant drawbacks. For one, it doesn’t support Google Home or Amazon Alexa, so it won’t be serving as a central hub for the rest of your smart devices. Its large size could also be an issue for apartment dwellers, as finding real estate for the 27-inch display could prove troublesome.
But if you’re not worried about space and want a smart calendar that simplifies your life, the Cal Max is worth a closer look. Skylight has officially opened preorders for the Cal Max, with the device priced at $600. Units will begin shipping this spring.
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