So how do I connect a Zigbee network to a PC and the internet? MaxStream sells Zigbee USB radio modems ($250), but they are way too expensive. New Micros makes a carrier board for MaxStream’s Xbee modules ($75), which more or less fits the bill if you don’t mind the bulk, or plan to stick with the MaxStream system.

A couple of key-style USB dongles out there from different vendors. Integration Associates makes a Zigbee compliant dongle ($75) that probably could be interfaced to a module network from many of the vendors I have looked at so far. They apparently wil provide drivers for Windows, Mac and Linux.

I am not sure how easy it is to seamlessly transition from the simple proprietary networking methods provided by the module vendors to a Zigbee standard network. To be safe, I will probably selecting one of the module vendors which offer simple networking APIs then building my own gateway using a USB-serial solution like FTDI’s FT232R, then roll a serial-TCP driver for each platform.