Smart Home Essentials for 2023
Every year HGTV builds and gives away a smart home. This year many of the gadgets included use Matter, an emerging standard that enables multiple voice assistants to communicate with devices using one wireless protocol such as Thread or Wi-Fi to avoid platform lock in.
Smart technology adds an additional level of convenience that you may have been unaware of previously. For instance, smart plugs can automatically shut off a coffee pot or curling iron.
Lighting
Smart home lighting is one of the easiest ways to upgrade your home, while simultaneously automating repetitive tasks. From turning on lights when you come home or setting them off automatically in response to dawn rising more naturally – there are endless options to choose from when it comes to smart lighting systems for smart homes.
This LIFX color smart bulb offers over 16 million customizable hues to explore and is compatible with Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple HomeKit via its user-friendly app interface. Furthermore, you can set its colors to sync up with music videos, movies or games for an optimal experience!
Nanoleaf smart light strips feature sound detection technology to automatically switch colors based on ambient noises such as music or gaming, whether they be music, gaming or even simply voice command. You can set it up through voice-commands or on-screen taps; plus they work locally rather than the cloud for quicker device response times. And with Matter support coming soon for iOS devices you’ll soon be able to connect these lights across platforms!
Security
If you want to ensure the security of your home, smart security devices can help keep it that way. From cameras that monitor activity and send alerts directly to you to smoke detectors that notify before fires start igniting, these tools can ensure both you and your family remain safer.
While smart home gadgets may seem costly at first, they quickly pay for themselves over time. By automating daily tasks such as turning on lights or heating at specified times, these gadgets help lower energy consumption and save you money.
One important caveat, however, is that not all devices work seamlessly together. So before purchasing any smart gadgets or voice assistants of choice (Alexa or Google Assistant work well here); other devices may use Z-Wave communication protocol instead (Yale Assure Lock 2 Plus for instance).
Automation
Smart appliances, equipment and gadgets integrated with automated routines will create a more convenient and comfortable home environment. Smart lights can turn on automatically when you arrive home to create the ideal lighting atmosphere; smart refrigerators ensure food remains at optimal temperatures; while robotic vacuum cleaners and mop pads reduce manual cleaning chores.
Smart hubs such as the Wink Hub 2 or Amazon Echo Plus serve as a focal point of your smart home ecosystem, connecting devices and orchestrating their functionality. Voice command allows for effortless adjustments such as playlist changes or setting movie night lighting conditions or checking who’s at the door.
Seek out smart hubs and displays compatible with your voice control assistant, such as Alexa or Siri, as well as devices compatible with IFTTT (Infrastructure for Tomato Toad Triggering Tv Tuning), for complete compatibility across a range of smart home platforms and manufacturers. Matter certified devices should ensure this.
Energy
Smart home devices make life more convenient – whether that means lighting up the lights using voice assistants such as Alexa, Google Assistant or Siri, locking the door with your phone, remotely vacuuming floors or remotely turning off lights – while some even help save energy and money!
Energy-saving smart devices like thermostats, lighting controls and power strips can significantly lower household bills while making life more comfortable in your home. Some even integrate with solar and EV chargers to monitor energy use and automate your home’s electric needs.
Smart technology has pervaded every aspect of our lives, making the best products effortless to set up, use and upgrade. A motion sensor doorbell with live video streaming and cloud storage lets you see who’s at the front door without being there. We will test whether smart locks integrate seamlessly with existing hardware such as keychains. In 2018, we are also looking at gadgets compatible with Matter, an initiative developed by Apple, Amazon, Google and Samsung that facilitates device makers developing multiplatform smart devices that work across ecosystems and platforms.
