Home automation refers to any device – or group of devices – which allow parts of your home to be automated.
Examples include automatically closing all your windows and doors, controlling the thermostat and heating in your home and having smart light bulbs which adapt to the environment and time of day.
Rolling your own customized home automation with the Raspberry Pi is also a common solution nowadays.
Automations in the modern smart home are one of the most useful things today. They make things easier such as creating bedtime routines that help get the little ones to sleep, or even help you to relax after a long day. They may even be of help to families who are hard of hearing. For … Read more
The Ring Alarm is a great tool for ensuring the security of your home. It helps protect most aspects of your home, most notably entryways – but what about your garage? After all, this is another way thieves can enter your home. One component of the Ring Alarm System, the Contact Sensors are advertised for … Read more
I’ve spoken before about how I prefer Ethernet (network cable) to Wi-Fi. This is for a number of reasons: to prevent Wi-Fi jamming, to avoid having to re-enter Wi-Fi passwords all the time, and for better reliability. So when I recently ran out of free Ethernet ports on my home’s router, I grimaced… but I … Read more
Smart plugs are one of the best additions to smart ecosystems everywhere. Not only do these bring basic smart features to older devices, but they also open up new doors for people innovating in what smart technology means and how it interacts with our lives. This leaves us with one big question. Is there a … Read more
In the world of smart home manufacturers, companies such as Ring, Wyze, and Google Nest, just to name a few, often receive the most recognition. However, there are others who may not be as popular, who are just as notable. One such brand is Hive. Hive is a trademark company owned by Centrica Hive Limited … Read more
Back in 2013, a small company appeared on Shark Tank: a company called DoorBot, who later rebranded as “Ring”. In their appearance, Ring outlined their smart doorbell – one of the first smart doorbells on the market. Since then, Ring have released smart cameras, an alarm system, a range of smart lights – along with … Read more
The Philips Hue indoor motion sensor is quite a useful device: when it detects motion, it allows you to automatically turn your lights on to pre-set colors and brightness levels, configurable for different times of the day. However if it’s positioned or installed in the wrong position, it can either miss people walking past, or … Read more
Picture the scene: you arrive home after a long day’s work, and as you walk through the front door, your Hue Lightstrips automatically illuminate – as do your hallway Hue ceiling lights – gently welcoming you into your home. Bliss. That’s one of the benefits of Philips Hue’s motion sensors. But picture another scene: all … Read more
Whilst looking at smart doorbells for my house, I came across the Ring Doorbell Elite – which is powered by an Ethernet cable. This reduces the need for running electrical cable to power it, whilst also guaranteeing interruption-free video uploads. Power over Ethernet therefore seems like the perfect fit for smart homes… right? Ethernet cable … Read more
If you want to take your smart home to the next level, learning a programming language can be a crucial next step. After all, mass-market smart devices can only do so much. If you want to do more with it, you need to extend them – or buy a more general device (like a Raspberry … Read more