Bye bye coolest dorm ever, Berkeley can’t handle your automated lights

UC Berkeley’s idea of dorm life probably consists of noisy roommates, unwashed linens, half-eaten cups of Ramen noodles, and maybe a few electrical outlets to power a laptop.

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The university is making freshman student Derek Low go back to those dark times just days after he debuted his B.R.A.D. (Berkeley Ridiculously Automated Dorm) dorm room system to the world via YouTube. As the video shows, his efforts had some pretty incredible results. Using custom-made iPhone and iPad apps, The B.R.A.D. system is capable of opening the dorm’s curtains in the morning, controlling lighting and music via voice commands, and probably a dozen other functions that could set the mood for many situations.

Word of Low’s “smart dorm” eventually reached officials in his resident hall, prompting them to view the video. I can only imagine their reaction went something like: “That’s entirely too awesome, far too much fun. We’re going to do something about this right after I put another stick up my a…” You get the point.

Officials then scheduled a judicial hearing to review if Low had violated resident housing policies. However, the outcome is of little consequence to Low, since he has decided to move out of the dorm and into his own apartment, where his automated living system can operate freely, he told InnovationNewsDaily.

“The whole system is quite mobile, actually, so that won’t be too difficult,” Low said.

So if you want to build cool things in your dorm room, you should probably head over to Stanford. I hear they support innovation (even the blinky lighted, romantic mode kind).

Screenshot via Derek Low/YouTube