Home & Garden, Tech
Smart Home for Beginners: 7 Ways to Smartify Your Home
Smart homes are the way of the future. Once you start converting your home into a smart home, you’ll find new ways to up the technological ante and discover other smart items to add. Below are seven awesome ways to smartify your home, from basics such as smart lighting to advanced options such as a smart sprinkler system.
Smart Lights
A great place to start your automated smart home journey is upgrading your old-fashioned switch-controlled lighting to a smart light system. You’ll be able to control your lights, their brightness and even their colors from a mobile app or with voice controls. Check out the Philips Hue smart lighting system for a top-selling option that instantly transforms your lights into a smart system.
Smart Speakers and Multiroom Audio Systems
A smart speaker system and a multiroom audio system will let you stream your favorite podcasts, music and other content from any room in the house with ease. Each speaker integrates with one another and the main control app so you can control each one effortlessly. The Amazon Echo Dot has a sleek, compact design that provides big power, high responsiveness and clear and crisp audio.
Smart Bluetooth Bathroom Scale
Modernize and smartify your health and wellness by adding a Bluetooth bathroom scale to your smart home plans. This type of scale will monitor and record your weight every time you use it so you can easily keep track of your weight-loss goals and progress. This modern, stylish digital body scale from Sharper Image is a favorite.
Smart Thermostat
Elevate your in-home climate control with a smart thermostat that you can control from anywhere via a mobile app. This Ecobee 3-Lite Smart Thermostat doesn’t require a smart hub and has a minimalistic style that will complement any home decor. With a smart thermostat, you can turn down your home’s temperature when you’re out of the house to save money. Then use the app to turn it back up before you get home to have it nice and cozy for you. You can do the same in the summer to keep your home cooling costs at a minimum. A smart thermostat is more reliable and has a clear, easy-to-read digital display that will modernize your home in a unique way.
Smart Security Cameras and Doorbells
Keep your smart home secure with a smart doorbell and integrated security camera, like this Nest Hello Video doorbell and camera. Replace your existing wired doorbell with this Nest model to get access to high-definition 24/7 streaming of who’s close to your front door. The infrared LED lighting system gives the Nest night-vision capabilities, while the built-in speaker and microphone let you communicate with people who ring your doorbell. You’ll be able to keep track of deliveries even when you aren’t home and monitor who stops by without having to go to the door. You can’t go wrong with a smart doorbell and security camera if you want to increase your home’s security and your convenience when expecting guests or deliveries.
Smart Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors
This is an often overlooked smart-home upgrade. A smart smoke and carbon monoxide detector, like this one from Google Nest, will send alerts to your mobile device if it detects a problem. No more deafeningly loud and obnoxious beeps if smoke or carbon monoxide is detected. Instead, a smart detector will alert your phone and the device will speak in a human voice to tell you what the problem is and where it’s coming from.
Smart Sprinkler
If you have a yard or garden, then adding a smart sprinkler system can be a serious game changer. No more manually turning nozzles or lugging hoses to keep your greenery growing and lush. Instead, you can control everything with an app from wherever you are. The bigger your yard or garden, the more you’ll be able to appreciate how much time and effort a smart sprinkler system will save you all season long.
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