Welcome to our Smart Home and Automation category page—the hub for all things smart and convenient that can revolutionise your daily living. Here, you’ll find comprehensive guides, reviews, and the latest news on devices and ecosystems that promise to make your home safer, more efficient, and undeniably more enjoyable.
Smart Home and Automation refers to the network of intelligent devices and systems that connect to the internet and to each other, offering remote control, monitoring, and data collection. From voice-activated lighting to intelligent cooking appliances, this category spans a wide array of products designed to bring ease and automation into your home life.
Whether you’re a tech-savvy early adopter or a homeowner seeking practical solutions for everyday tasks, smart home tech offers a wide range of applications that can genuinely improve your living standards.
Whether you’re just starting your smart home journey or looking to expand your existing setup, our Smart Home and Automation category is rich with expert advice, detailed reviews, and the latest updates to help you make informed decisions. Dive in and discover how smart your home can truly be!
I previously wrote an article comparing Zigbee vs Z-Wave and the pros and cons of each smart home technology. Thread is a new smart home communication protocol that builds upon the Zigbee specification and is available at no cost; however, this requires agreement and continued adherence to an End-User License Agreement (EULA). Albeit, you have…
I have recently covered several smart home products, and many of these use the Zigbee communication protocol. There is also the Z-Wave which I have covered extensively in the past, and then you have Thread which is an up-and-coming protocol. It can get confusing what the difference is between these technologies and which is best,…
I am in the middle of reviewing the Google Nest WiFi Pro. The main reason why I bought this router was that it could work with Matter and is a Thread border router. This section of the review ended up being longer than expected due to various issues, and therefore I decided to split it…
The Homey smart hubs have been around for years now, and I covered the launch of the original Homey Pro back in 2019. Homey has been trying to be the panacea of smart home fragmentation long before the Matter was a thing. They are arguably the best solution for anyone using a mixture of smart…
SwitchBot made a name for itself with the SwitchBot Bot, which is an affordable smart button pressor. It is a simple yet innovative way to make dumb electronics smart. A few other random brands have tried to rip off the ideal, but no one has competed with SwitchBot for this clever little device. I have…
SwitchBot recently sent me the new SwitchBot Hub 2 to review, and they sent along some of their smart lights to test with it. I am still in the process of finalising the hub review and thought I should quickly cover the lights separately. SwitchBot LED Strip Light Specification SwitchBot Smart LED Bulb Specification Set…
The Aqara Video Doorbell G4 was announced globally a couple of weeks ago many Aqara and HomeKit users have been waiting impatiently for it. This camera ticks a lot of boxes that popular alternatives from brands like Arlo, Eufy and Ring lack. This is one of the few video doorbells on the market that is…
TP-Link Tapo has been quickly expanding its range of products. Rather than just expanding the range of smart lights, plugs and cameras, they have started to expand into a more diverse home automation company. At the centre of the home will be the new H100 Tapo Smart Hub, which you can their pair up with…
Aqara is entering the competitive world of smart doorbells with the global launch of the Video Doorbell G4. This is not to be confused with the Ubiquiti UniFi Protect G4 Doorbell but it does make a good alternative product to it. While some aspects of this doorbell camera look like appealing than the competition,…
Earlier this week, Arlo announced the Arlo Pro 5 for the UK, which is essentially the same as the Arlo Pro 5S that launched in the US a few months ago. The camera is an incremental upgrade to the Arlo Pro 4 I reviewed at the start of 2022. The three main improvements are: During…
Today, Arlo has announced the new Arlo Pro 5 for the UK, which includes some useful upgrades compared to the excellent Arlo Pro 4, which was announced 2 years ago. The two main features worth mentioning are a new, improved 12-bit camera sensor which will provide superior colour footage 24/7, and an improved battery which…
Philips announced the Hue Go Portable Table Lamp, but it has only just become available. While the overall design is very different to the Hue Go 2 I reviewed at the start of the year, it is a very similar product. Philips Hue Go Portable Table Lamp vs Hue Go The similarities are basically…
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