Smart Home Technologies

Smart home technology is no longer a luxury reserved for the wealthy or tech-savvy, and the tech industry has responded with ever more sophisticated solutions. While many people associate this automation with gadgets like Google’s Nest, Amazon’s Echo or Apple’s HomeKit the term is much more broad than that and encompasses a wide range of solutions for your home. This encompasses everything from remote-controlled heating and lighting to CCTV, home safety systems doorbells, and smart locks. Some allow you to keep track of children, elderly relatives and pets to monitor electricity or water use; and more.

The key to a successful smart home system is integration. This is why the best products available are those that can work with other devices and systems to make your property smarter. For instance the smart light bulb can communicate with a central hub to set your lights to a specific schedule or to switch them off when you leave the house. A video doorbell can alert you to visitors coming in and trigger your alarm system call the police or fire department. And, once you’ve mastered IFTTT (If This Then That), you www.bizcrisis.net/best-samsung-home-theater-systems/ can use services such as Stringify to automate your devices in more complex ways.

Of course, bringing a whole range of new devices into your home comes with some issues. CNET strives to be aware of company policies, raise privacy concerns and direct questions to companies.