Here smart meter uses GPRS data to send information to power company, then I can look hourly power consumption from customer pages that they have set up, there is chance to look data in graph or spreadsheet format, exporting to excel, hourly, daily, weekly consumption and from day, week to month range, then there is year month by month graph and also comparision to previous year, very nice service, even mothly fees are bit high, but there is nothing that can be done to those, so at least I get fancy graphs with that money.
Some think that this smart metering will then lead to price vary by hour based on market price. So far such has not been however what companies have aimed, they do sell contracts that use market price, but price is average for whole month, so there is no chance to actually time your usage to time of lower price, which I think might be good point of market prized electricity.
Price will however go up in future, how much is unknown, but there is no security with electricity prices.
I can browse all my electric bills on site too, I can download them as pdf documents and can see how electricity has not got more expensive, but transfer of electricity has increased over 30% of price as everything else on that bill in few years, electricity tax has risen 94% to save the planet or something like that, yes you pay that even when using renewable energy.
There is also comparison graphs to typical similar places where I can see typical being many times more than my usage.
Well those are possibilities that system gives, there are lot of nice things, but does it increase monthly base fee and does it make eventually electricity to cost a lot more at certain hours, I guess those are threats then. Security is threat always I guess, but they work hard to have systems up to date, so I'm not concerned as much with them as I'm with our government systems, healthcare, taxes, etc. Generally those are run by monkeys and only luck has prevented major catastrophes.
Oh and some meters here use electricity data or whatever it is called in english, but it does transmit data over electric wires. One can of course buy devices to make lan for own house using electric wiring and sockets at wall, I guess it is similar technology and can be rather secure also.
Do you have laws about storing personal information in US? I would guess there would be defined security level for each kind of data and that should keep things enough secure if company fails to meet level that is required then company have to pay a lot.
I have some memory that there would be very good laws about that in US, but my memory is not too well, it can be as well memory of some movie too, things tend to mix sometimes
Anyway in total I would say it is a good thing and also it is thing that probably will happen anyway, but there is possibility of off grid at many places which is better in so many ways that if I would have chance for that route, then I would go for it.