Smart home technology allows you to monitor and control devices and appliances in your home remotely using your smartphone or other networked devices. Connected products like smart lights, thermostats, security cameras, locks, and more can be programmed to turn on/off automatically or be controlled manually from anywhere.
Smart home devices communicate with each other and with the homeowner through wireless protocols like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, etc. or through hardwired home automation systems. Cloud services and digital assistants like Alexa also enable voice control.
With home automation, you can save energy, time, and money while adding convenience and security. We cover and review the latest smart home gadgets and whole-home platforms to help you create your connected dream home. See our smart home product guides, news, buying advice, and more.
IoT devices that measure air quality are becoming increasingly common. I reviewed the Foobot back in 2017, then the Airthings Wave Plus in 2019. Recently I have been testing the Aranet4 HOME from the Latvian company SAF Tehnika. While the effects of high levels of CO2 were long thought to be benign, research has found that concentrations…
Buttons and switches are a superb addition to any smart home system allowing you to carry commands without reaching for your phone or shouting at Alexa. When I started this post, I knew there were a lot of options, but it turns out there are way more products that I realised. I have been looking…
You can get pretty much anything app-controlled nowadays; there is even an Alexa controlled microwave. So it is no surprise there is an app-controlled pedestal fan if anything I was surprised at the lack of competing options. I specifically bought this fan to be able to use it when I go to sleep. I am…
With April getting very warm, and all of us in lockdown, many of us will be trying to make life a little more enjoyable by having a BBQ. With so much time on our hands, it is well worth trying out smoking and other more advanced forms of cooking than just burgers and sausages. BBQ…
The Anker Eufycam 2C is my current favourite wire-free security camera, it is affordable, has a built-in spotlight, offers colour night vision and best of all has human detection to reduce all the annoying false alerts. On top of all this, Eufy cameras also have an RTSP option which allows you to integrate it with…
When it comes to automation apps on Android there are various variants on the Google Play Store today, but how to choose the best ones. If you browse the wide array of apps that specialize in this area, you’ll find this to be quite hard. Firstly, let’s explain why you need to automate your smartphone…
The smart home industry is booming, and with no doubt, smart home installation is transforming many homes as it allows you to simplify everyday tasks and automate many existing appliances at a touch of a button, and you can find Alexa in almost everything nowadays. For UK users, two things that don’t have a lot…
Following on from the Yale Linus Smart Lock news, Yale have also expanded their product range with a variety of smart storage solutions. Basically, everything Yale is known for will eventually become smart. There are two new products for the UK and a Smart Delivery Box for the US. Yale Smart Delivery Box I feel…
I was previously impressed with the performance of the Blurams Outdoor Pro, the affordable camera is one of the few AI facial recognition cameras on the market and it was quite accurate, much better than standard motion detection. Blurams are now taking that tech and shoving it in a smart doorbell and to make things…
Netatmo is the latest company to enter the smart lock market with the innovatively named Smart Door Lock and Keys. While there are a lot of products on the market, the big names such as August are designed for deadlocks only, but in the UK for our uPVC doors, we use multi-point locks with a…
Ring has had a string of bad publicity recently, so their CES product launch is somewhat tarnished. It has recently come to light, that Ring has been working with police to make it easier for them to access footage, and they are facing legal action for poor security and also a data breach. So as…
LIFX is expanding its smart lighting product range during CES 2020. LIFX Filament White In store: Spring 2020/ Target RRP: USD $29.99 The first product in the announcement is the new Filament White which allows you to have smart lights with vintage style Edison-type lights. LIFX will launch smokey, amber and clear glass versions, making…
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