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!
It has been nearly two years since I reviewed the original Blink XT. Since then many new products have hit the market to contend with this outdoor security camera, but many have failed to offer the same level of value this low-cost camera achieves. Since I reviewed it, they were bought out by Amazon, and…
Smart locks are one of the most exciting prospects in the world of smart homes and home automation. As the smart speaker and home surveillance market have become saturated, smart locks have not gained a great deal of traction in the UK. The exception appears to be in the US when August is quite popular….
Nearly a year ago I reviewed the excellent Eufy RoboVac 11, priced at £210 it was considerably cheaper than competitors such as Roomba. It didn’t have any smart controls, but I never felt that I missed them as it happily did its thing without any input from me. Recently I have been checking out the…
It is safe to say that the home security camera market is a little saturated nowadays. Things seemed to escalate quickly when cheap IP CCTV cameras came to the market, and I still use the Ezviz EZ-C3S-Wi-Fi today. Once companies like Arlo introduced wire-free solutions, the market boomed, it was now affordable and easy to…
I must admit; I had never heard of SimpliSafe before I was contacted to do a review for them. It turns out that this home security company is quite popular over in the States and they are hoping to replicate this success in the UK market. Another admission, I only have a vague awareness of…
I have talked about Plex a few times over the years, it is a fantastic application, and I have one of the lifetime licences to make the most out of it. Like most users, I use it to manage my locally stored media, providing access from a server to all the streaming devices in the…
Anker produces some of the best affordable robotic vacuums and they have just updated their models to the new Max series and for a limited time, you can get a 25% discount via their pre-order deal. For £1 you will receive a 25% discount code valid for the first 3days of the product launch. The…
Following my review of the Hive Hub 360 and the outdoor camera, Hive has just announced the launch of Hive Radiator Valves as part of the home heating range. I am a huge fan of zoned heating, it used to be limited to just Genius Hub, Z-Wave and Honeywell. In recent years Tado and Netatmo…
When I first wrote this review I mistakingly thought I had to use the hub with the camera, however, the camera can work independently, but you won’t have access to some extra functionality of Hive Actions where you can link devices together Originally starting out as a smart thermostat company developed by British Gas, Hive…
Smart door locks have been a little slow to take off in the UK. In the US they have had August for years, but that is only compatible with the less secure deadbolt style locks. In the UK, with our multi-point locks, the best solution has been the Yale Conexis L1, which is excellent and…
One of the big issues with wireless CCTV cameras is the regular need to charge or replace the batteries. With some companies, like Eufy, you can go several months between charges, while Reolink offers a solar adaptor to provide some extra juice. The Soliom Solar Cam follows a similar concept as Reolink, but the solar…
*This review has been updated to reflect the new firmware which addresses my main gripe with motion detection* In the past few years, the wire free outdoor camera market has boomed there are now dozens of options on Amazon. I have recently reviewed the Ring Spotlight, Eufy E, and D-Link, all of them being great…
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