This week’s Smart World Series features a software giant’s appeal to Internet of Things (IoT) developers, retrofitting older refrigerators to connect them to the Internet, delivery drones, smart thermometers for babies and the launch of SiliconANGLE’s Smart World Problems series.

For those who missed last week’s Smart World Series, here’s a chance to catch up on the exciting developments in the connected world.  Each week, SiliconANGLE rounds up the top news trends regarding smart homes and cars, smart data centers and IT, smart infrastructure and all things related to the Internet of Things.

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Microsoft appeals to IoT developers

Microsoft is appealing to Internet of Things developers in hopes of solidifying the success of its Windows 10 next gen operating system. According to Microsoft’s recent announcement, it will make a version of Windows 10 that is able to run on Raspberry Pi 2, the newly announced pocket-sized computer from the Raspberry Pi Foundation.

Find out more about the announcement here.

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Old fridges get connected with GE-Wink collaboration

GE Appliances is teaming up with smart platform maker Wink to send out 20,000 GE Connect Boxes which are  Wi-Fi modules that would allow older GE refrigerators to connect to the Internet. Though this is exciting news, only those refrigerators bought after 2009 with RJ45 ports are eligible for the upgrade.

Also featured in this roundup is Intel’s acquisition of Lantiq, a semiconductor company to further its IoT push and Branto, a 360-degree security camera that doubles as a communications hub.

Find out more about these products and announcements in our Smart Living roundup.

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Pixie Kit

Pixie, the ‘Location of Things’ solution

Tracking where you last placed your car keys can be tricky for most, but the rise of IoT smart tags can help locate lost items.  Pixie is another location-based tracking solution but it adds the element of augmented reality into the mix to make finding and tracking things easier.

Find out more about Pixie here.

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Alibaba delivery drones take-off in 3-day pilot scheme

Though Amazon was first to announce intentions to use drones in home deliveries, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is now testing drones for a similar purpose. The testing phase includes delivering 450 packets of ginger tea that will be distributed to customers in Beijing.

Find out more about Alibaba’s delivery drones here.

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Pacifier-shaped thermometers get smart for unassuming babies

Taking babies and toddlers’ temperatures can now be as easy as sticking a cute teddy bear sticker on the kid’s forehead or allowing them to such on a pacifier, thanks to smart products such as Pacif-i and eSkin Thermometer.

Also featured in this roundup is Reach Bionics Inc.’s wearable technology that utilizes the ear muscle for control and the Tao Chair that teaches you how to burn calories just by sitting on it.

Learn more about these smart gadgets in our Smart Health roundup.

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Robots replacing firefighters in the Navy?

Flames in naval vessels can be very dangerous especially for those responding to the fire. To address this problem, the Office of Naval Research (ONR) has come up with a prototype of the Shipboard Autonomous Firefighting Robot (SAFFiR) which takes care of deadly fires onboard ships.

Also featured in this roundup is the partnership between Ericsson and Landis+Gyr to aid in the Middle East’s Smart Metering and Smart Grid projects and the Smart Building Conference to be held on February 9, 2015.

Learn more about these announcements in our Smart City roundup.

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Swatch watches

Swatch to sell smart watch that magically never needs to be charged

Swiss watch maker Swatch Group Ltd. is said to be working on a smartwatch that is one of a kind – it will never need to be recharged. No news yet as to how Swatch plans to accomplish this but if it does succeed, the company could take a huge chunk in the smartwatch market.

Learn more about Swatch’s plan here.

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Report: 14 top U.S. hospitals testing Apple’s HealthKit

According to a report from Reuters, 14 hospitals in the U.S. are running a pilot program that involves the use of Apple’s HealthKit service. HealthKit allows the participating hospitals to easily collect patients’ blood pressure, weight or heart rate from a variety of connected health and fitness devices with the hope of helping doctors better monitor their patients.

Learn more about the hospitals testing HealthKit here.

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Smart World Problems: Hazards of connected life

Honeywell International Inc. is facing a patent infringement lawsuit from Allure Energy Inc. which has accused it of using the technologies and patent of its EverSense thermostat and used it for the Honeywell Lyric smart thermostat, Allure is seeking an injunction that would prevent Honeywell from selling the Lyric thermostats, stop its false advertising and pay for damages. Also featured in this new roundup is how smart meters are playing a role in house fires and Foscam IP cameras hijacked once again.

Find out more about these issues in our new Smart World Problems roundup.

Tune in next week for more interesting stories, discoveries and innovations in the world of smart and connected things.

Image credits via Pacif-i, Pixie and Swatch