The holiday season is here and that means finding the perfect gift for the techie in your life, or yourself. If your tech-nerd hasn't already ventured into the world of smart home tech, now's your chance to surprise them with cool gadgets to get started. But where do you begin? Read on for some great ideas to tech up your home and as a bonus, save you some green in the process.
There is so much smart technology out there. A person could get lost for hours researching and comparing. You may think you have to have a hub to begin turning your home into a tech world dream, but you would be wrong. The most important thing you MUST have is a good wireless router.
Once you have a wireless router that will reach the nether regions of your home, you can begin to build your hub-free smart home system.
SMART PLUGS
One relatively inexpensive way to smarten up your home is to invest in smart plugs. Turn lamps or appliances on or off with your smartphone. No matter where you are at the time. Some smart plugs also offer the ability to set a schedule for when you are away. Are you concerned about using too much energy? There is a smart plug that will monitor your energy usage.
SMART LOCKS
Do you or your kid keep losing the keys to the house? Yeah, been there done that. Smart locks eliminate the need for bulky keys on your key ring. You can set different codes for different people. Have guests coming in for the weekend? Set a code for them and then erase it when they leave. Did you forget to lock the door before you left the house? No worries. Through geofencing, some smart locks will lock the door when it no longer detects your smartphone in the area.
SMART LIGHTING
The easiest way to transform your home into a smart home is to switch out the light bulbs. The best smart bulbs are easy to set up, compatible with all smart home systems and produce a bright light. No one wants to be in the dark! Whether you want to change the mood of the room or track your energy consumption, there is a smart lighting option out there for you. Light bulbs aren't just for lighting a room anymore.
SMART SPEAKERS/HOME ASSISTANT
Seems like every home these days has a smart speaker. If your home is one of the few that does not, you will find there are two main speakers. One has a girly name, the other does not. A smart speaker allows you to use your voice, rather than your fingers, to find information, recipes, music, the weather report or your favorite podcast. They will even tell you a joke or a bed time story if you ask. All kinds of fun can be had with a smart speaker.
SMART THERMOSTATS
In my opinion, one of the best smart home additions to our house has been our smart thermostats. We can set a schedule for our HVAC system to adjust when we leave the home, return and turn in for the night. The energy savings we receive far outweigh the cost, which is not terrible in the first place.
SMART FIRE ALARMS/CO DETECTORS
Let's face it. The alarms in our houses right now are dumb devices. They will screech at you when smoke or carbon monoxide is detected. But, what happens if no one is home to hear the obnoxiously loud noise? Smart smoke detectors not only sound the alarm in your home, it will send you an alert to your smartphone! How cool is that?! Some smart detectors will even light your way out of a smoke filled house with emergency lights.
Well, now, that was an education. Not only are you smarter about all these newfangled smart tech items, your home will be smarter as well. Click here to read about the top 5 problems with smart home tech.