If you haven’t invested in Smart Home products yet and don’t know where to start, have no fear! The following article will break down the different categories to get you started.
Are you still unsure if you should even invest? Here are some reasons why you should.
Instead of dumping a bunch of Smart Home products on this list, we decided to outline which categories are out there and give some examples of products within each category instead.
Smart Doorbell
When you pull up to a Smart Home, the first interaction you will notice is the doorbell.
What is it?
A Smart Doorbell is basically a replacement to your old chime doorbell that is connected to your WiFi network.
What are the benefits?
When someone rings your doorbell, you will be notified on your smart phone or tablet. Smart Doorbells are also equipped with a camera, microphone and speaker which allows you to see and communicate with the individual at the door.
Examples of Smart Doorbells to purchase:
Smart Lights and/or switches
One of the more popular categories available in the Smart Home are lights. We will cover in a separate article on whether to have your lights changed to Smart Lights or to just change your light switches (or to do both).
What is it?
Smart Lights are WiFi enabled lights that replace existing light bulbs that can be controlled by a smart phone or tablet. There are also standalone Smart Lights that are designed to be decrotive lighting.
Smart Switches on the other hand are WiFi enabled switches that replace the existing light switches in your house.
What are the benefits?
Biggest benefit is being able to control the lights in your house remotely. Another benefit would be automating certain activities. An example would be setting mood lighting when you are about to watch a movie or shutting down all of the lights before you go to sleep.
Smart Light bulbs specifically come with added benefits. Some bulbs come with the ability to change colors to further enhance mood lighting. Other bulbs have built in cameras, some with speakers and others with WiFi extenders. These are added bonuses to give more value to spending the extra money on a Smart Light.
Examples of Smart Lights for purchase:
- Philips Hue White A19 60W Equivalent Starter Kit (Compatible with Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit, and Google Assistant)
- LIFX (A19) Wi-Fi Smart LED Light Bulb, Adjustable, Multicolor, Dimmable, No Hub Required, Works with Alexa
- Sengled Pulse Dimmable LED Light Bulb with a Built-In Wireless Bluetooth JBL Speaker, Satellite Bulb, Pewter
Examples of Smart Switches for purchase:
- Wemo Light Switch, Wi-Fi enabled, Works with Amazon Alexa
- LUTRON P-PKG1W-WH Caseta Wireless 600-watt/150-watt Multi-Location In-Wall Dimmer with Pico Remote Control Kit, White
Smart Thermostat
Controlling temperature in your home is a year round activity. This is usually the first Smart Home product that individuals get when they first engage in this category.
What is it?
These are WiFi enabled thermostats that replace your existing thermostat allowing you to remotely control the temperature in your house.
What are the benefits?
Instead of walking over to your thermostat to change the temperature, you can do so on your mobile device. If you own an Amazon Echo, Google Home or utilize Apple HomeKit, and have a compatible thermostat, you can even control the temperature with your voice (more on this below).
Smart Thermostats are also good at observing your daily patterns, such as when you leave the house, when you arrive home and when you go to sleep. Based on these patterns, the thermostat will automatically adjust temperatures which will lead to huge savings on your utility bills.
Examples of Smart Thermostats for purchase:
- ecobee4 Alexa-Enabled Thermostat with Sensor, Works with Amazon Alexa
- Nest Learning Thermostat 3rd Generation, Stainless Steel, Works with Amazon Alexa
- Lyric Round 2.0 Wi-Fi Smart Programmable Thermostat with Geofencing, IFTTT, Works with Amazon Alexa
Smart Speakers
What is it?
A Smart Speaker is a type of speaker that works over WiFi and offers capabilities past just audio playback. Smart Speakers act as a voice activated personal assistant and they complement existing Smart Home products.
What are the benefits?
Smart Speakers were originally designed to deliver audio content wirelessly. They have now evolved into personal digital assistants and act as a hub to many Smart Home products.
Two of the popular products out right now are the Amazon Echo and Google Home. When using these within your Smart Home eco system, you can use ask your voice activated assistant to turn on the lights or to set the thermostat to a specific temperature.
As your Smart Home evolves, you will be able to control many of your products by verbal command.
Examples of Smart Speakers for purchase:
Check back again as we cover more on Smart Home products including more advanced must-have categories.