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Turn on the U Smart Shower before you even get out of bed

The U smart shower allows you to control pretty much every aspect of your shower experience, except for singing.

Patrick Holland Managing Editor
Patrick Holland has been a phone reviewer for CNET since 2016. He is a former theater director who occasionally makes short films. Patrick has an eye for photography and a passion for everything mobile. He is a colorful raconteur who will guide you through the ever-changing, fast-paced world of phones, especially the iPhone and iOS. He used to co-host CNET's I'm So Obsessed podcast and interviewed guests like Jeff Goldblum, Alfre Woodard, Stephen Merchant, Sam Jay, Edgar Wright and Roy Wood Jr.
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  • Patrick's play The Cowboy is included in the Best American Short Plays 2011-12 anthology. He co-wrote and starred in the short film Baden Krunk that won the Best Wisconsin Short Film award at the Milwaukee Short Film Festival.
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Patrick Holland
2 min read

Today, one floor below the shark reef at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, the way you take showers may have changed forever. Moen unveiled its U connected shower. It allows you to control water temperature, shower duration as well as preheat the water all from your smartphone. That means you can turn the shower on before you even get out of bed.

The U is made up of two pieces of hardware: a digital value (this attaches to the water pipes) and a digital controller (it comes in either a two or four function button model). To be absolutely clear, the U is something you'd have installed when rehabbing a bathroom. It can support up to four showerheads, body sprayers and so on.

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Once installed, the U is operated via its digital controller or from an app on your smartphone. And this is where the fun starts. You can store presets with info on water temperature, shower duration and which heads are on and off. There is even a digital timer that will turn the shower off after a set time -- a great tool for limiting the length of your kid's shower.

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What really caught my attention was the warm up and pause feature. This pauses the water flow once the shower reaches your desired temperature. No more cranking the handle and walking away while the water gets hot -- which can waste gallons of water.

A spokesperson for Moen said that the U gets its name because "it's all about creating a personal experience for you."

At this time, the U is not compatible with the Amazon Alexa, Google Home or Apple HomeKit. But there is a strong possibility that functionality will be available in the future.

The U by Moen starts shipping March 1st. The two function version will retail for $1,160 which converts to £950 and AU$1,600. The four function version will cost $2,200, or around £1,800 and AU$3,850. Now you just need to update your Spofity shower playlist.