Basics of a Smart House

With a smart house, you’re getting convenience, comfort, and security all wrapped up in smart home systems you can control from your mobile device – whether it’s a smartphone or a tablet.

You could connect smart home devices and electronics to integrate with each other, so you have one whole smart house functioning as you would like to.

What Makes a Smart House?

You’ve probably already heard of a smart home. Contrary to what most people may believe, it’s not merely a buzz word nor exclusively for the wealthy. Smart home systems come in packages that fit most homeowners’ budgets.

Also, the beauty of it is you spend what you want to include in the system. Let’s take a look at every room in the house and see what features make it “smart.”

Living Room

Security System

It’s ideal to install a smart security system throughout the entire house. You have to start the smart security system set up in the living room since that’s where your front door is. Many security systems allow for a video intercom feature.

This allows you to see who is at the door before you let them in. You can even lock or unlock the door from a mobile app that connects to your phone.

Smart Thermostat

When you have a smart thermostat, you have a smart house.

A thermostat as part of your smart house features is a convenient addition to your home.

There are the convenience and comfort of not having to adjust the temperature throughout your day manually.

Another attractive feature of a smart thermostat is energy efficiency. You can set the thermostat to adjust in the summer, winter, or whatever season it is when you don’t need too much heating or too much cooling.

According to the United States Department of Energy, homeowners can save up to 10% on their power bill with a smart thermostat installed in the home.

Smart Lighting

Control the lights in your home from your app. You can also set the lighting system to turn on or off, depending on whether it’s detecting natural light in the room. This way, you can have the lights off or lower when there is sufficient natural light.

That’s a convenient energy-saving feature of a smart house that many homeowners are loving. When you only use the lights you need, you’re saving energy.

Bedroom

Lighting

You want to feel relaxed, rejuvenated and comforted in your bedroom. A bedroom in a smart house will have smart lighting systems. This feature allows you to control the lights in the room without leaving the comfort of your bed.

Bed

A bed is also an essential component in the bedroom. You can get a smart bed that lets you control the temperature on the side you’re sleeping on. That’s a convenient feature for couples who don’t have the same body temperature when they sleep.

Mattress

You can upgrade it a little more by having a smart mattress. This bedroom innovation allows you to track your sleeping schedule by connecting the mattress to an app. You can use the data you gathered by determining if you have sleeping issues.

Kitchen

Smart Refrigerator

A fridge is one of the most popular smart home appliances. A smart fridge has a touchscreen option in the front with several cool (no pun intended) features.

Having a smart fridge makes a smart house.

You can make digital notes on it. This way, you can always remind yourself of the food items you’re running low on.

Many smart fridges also come with an app that you can install on your phone. You can access the list you make on your smart fridge touchscreen on your phone.

Upgrade to Smart House

There are many other devices and appliances you can upgrade to make a smart house. What’s great is these smart home devices are made to integrate with other smart home electronics and devices easily.

Smart Home Devices for Pet Owners

Whenever we would leave for work, we’ve all had moments when we wonder if our pet is going to be okay alone at home. Fortunately, today’s smart home devices are not just for the benefit of people. They can also be beneficial for pets.

In today’s post, we’ll share some smart home devices that are ideal for keeping your home a safe, clean, comfortable, and fun environment for your pets.

Smart Collars

If your furry friend loves to wander around or is always determined to escape from the house, you absolutely need a smart collar.

Smart collars are useful for tracking pets.

Smart collars have real-time GPS tracking. This feature ensures that you can know your pet’s exact location at all times – as long as the collar is secured around their neck.

You can also set up a perimeter around the house, also known as a “smart fence.” This will alert you via a mobile app if your pet has left the border you set.

Smart collars can also track the activity and health of your pet. This is a handy feature as it will let you know your pet is tired or if he or she needs exercise.

Smart Thermostats

It’s never a good thing to feel too hot or too cold inside your home. No one likes this feeling when they have to stay at home all day – the same goes for your pets.

Smart thermostats can keep your house a comfortable and relaxing temperature for your pets when you have to leave them. With a smart thermostat, you can also check and adjust the temperature via an app on your phone. This ensures that your pet doesn’t get too cold or too hot when you’re away at work or running errands.

Smart Sensors

Sensors are a vital component of every smart home. From door sensors to temperature monitors, there’s a smart sensor for just about everything.

A door sensor can send you a notification when your pet gets out of the door. A carbon monoxide sensor or smoke detector alerts you immediately so you can handle the problem right away. These smart sensors ensure that you’re pets are protected at home whether or not you’re there with them.

Home Security Cameras

Having security cameras at your home is smart – and for obvious reasons. Obviously, you can see the on-goings in your home at all times – even when you’re away. You can just check it on your mobile phone or computer.

This setup is perfect for pet owners who always wonder what their little furry friend is doing all day while they are not home. Whether they sleep all day, roam around the house, get restless, or make a mess.

Security cameras also play an essential role in the safety of your pets. In case of a burglary or home invasion and you’re not at home, you can keep an eye on your pet and the intruder while you alert the local authorities.

Automatic Pet Feeders

Sometimes, busy days keep us out of the house for longer than we anticipated. In times like this, you can still make sure that your pets left at home eats on time with the help of automatic pet feeders. This is one of the smart home devices that help pet owners feed their four-legged friends through WiFi-enabled technology.

Through this device, you can conveniently set portion sizes and set a recurring feeding schedule. This ensures that the device is dispensing food throughout the day when you set it to. You just have to make sure that the container is filled with pet food.

Smart Hub for Pets

There are interactive smart home devices for pets to help them not be bored while at home for most of the day.

Another innovative product in the smart home devices for pets category is an interactive smart pet hub.

These interactive pet devices can keep your pets busy all day, so they don’t get bored and make a mess in the house while you’re away.

Final Words

Our pets are an important member of the family. They give us unconditional love and attention, so they deserve the best. As pet owners, we must prioritize their comfort, safety, and security.

Smart home devices can improve our lives – and they can also be beneficial for our pets. We can take advantage of the many different features of smart devices to ensure that we’re creating a happy home for our pets.

Step into Spring with the Help of Smart Home Tech

While we don’t have hover boards, flying cars, and a visit to Mars is not feasible just yet, today’s technology has paved the way for some extraordinarily fascinating and useful innovations to add comfort and safety to our lives. Smart home systems, specifically, transform your house into a hub where multiple technologies that simplify modern life.

As we step into springtime, spring cleaning is upon us once again. To switch up this old routine, why not include transforming your place into a smart home. We’ve listed some items below to help your home with this transformation. We’ll also share some tips on how to buy these smart home products.

Whether it’s controlling your home theater, remotely locking the doors or turning the lights on and off, here are some smart home systems products for a smart home.

Smart door linked to a mobile app

Doorbells and smart door locks – Opening your doors for house guests or family members while you’re not home yet would be convenient – not just to you, but for your visitors as well. With smart door locks instead of regular entry locks, you can utilize Wi-Fi to control your locks remotely. Smart door locks can also be integrated with security cameras so you can have a clear, unobstructed view of who is at the door before you let them in.

Security cameras – Like we mentioned above, security cameras let you see who is trying to gain entry into your home. You can have the cameras placed strategically throughout your property. A lot of these devices have an accompanying mobile app that lets you check them through the app installed in your mobile device. It’s an especially useful feature that enables you to check in on your home while you’re out.

Smart lights – Smart lights come in an array of colors that make any space visually appealing. Aside from aesthetics, these devices are highly energy efficient. You can remotely set them to turn on and off at specific times. Additionally, they can be turned on when you people to know you’re home even when you’re not yet; this feature can prevent potential break-ins. Many smart lights even have features to deter the blue light effect, also known to interrupt sleep.

Refrigerators – Another smart home device is smart refrigerators. As we all know, the kitchen is the heart of the home, and there are smart home systems available to help with the daily tasks in the kitchen.

Smart refrigerator is an innovative kitchen appliance

With smart refrigerators, you can see what’s inside the fridge without physically looking at it; interior cameras allow this feature to take place. This feature is especially useful when you’re, say at the grocery store, and you need to find out what you have in stock in your fridge. Smart refrigerators also have touch panel screens that can be interconnected to other smart home devices.

Tips for Buying Smart Home Products

By automating your home security system, your lights, speakers, and other devices, you can have precise control over your home, letting you live safely and comfortably. Before you shop for these devices, here are some helpful, smart home products buying tips.

Know What Your Needs Are

Before picking smart home products, know what your specific needs are, as well as your expectations. If you’re building a new house, then you may have considered integrating full automation throughout your property. If you want to upgrade your current lighting, audio, and visual components, then specific wiring changes and reconfigurations may need to take place. Either way, speak with professional home automation to know precisely what things are advisable to do for your home. Professionals can help design a home automation systems that work for your new or current residence.

Prepare for the Future

When you have a smart home, it feels like you’re living in the future. While that’s true, remember that technology is always changing. There’s always going to be innovations and advancements, especially in smart home systems. While you have the latest TV or smart home refrigerator model, there will come a time when a newer model with more advanced features will show up. Make sure that whatever smart home devices you get are open to upgrades.

Stick to Your Budget

Smart shoppers make and stick to their budget. While a smart home upgrade is an investment, you still want the costs – from installation to integration – to be reasonable. Home automation professionals can help you devise smart home systems that fit your budget and still meet your needs.

Avoid These Mistakes When Building Your Home Theater

Having movie nights is the quintessential pastime. Whether it’s a family bonding experience or a date night, everyone loves sitting back and watching a good movie. However, with the rising prices of movie tickets and snacks, many are opting to skip the movie theater and just staying in. Fortunately, a good movie night is still possible in the comfort of your own media room – especially if you have lush and comfortable home theater furniture.

A Worthy Investment

Lush home theater seats

More and more people are investing in home entertainment systems. However, there are still some who associate the words “home theater” to “lavish” and “extremely expensive.” They think that only mansions can have a dedicated movie room right in their private property – that could not be further from the truth, especially these days when you can build home theaters no matter what budget you have; it doesn’t have to break the bank.

Also, having your own home theater is a worthy investment that may pay you back in spades. It’s the ultimate space for your family and friends to relax. And if you ever decide to put your house in the market, the value of your property can exponentially go higher with the addition of a media room, especially when it’s furnished with quality home theater furniture.

Naturally, you may feel apprehensive about the money, space, and time you are dedicating in order to build a home theater. In today’s post, we’ll talk about the pitfalls of building a home theater and how best to avoid them. We hope the information you’ll find here will make your home theater project more manageable to navigate.

Don’t Over or Under-Budget

When you build a home theater, of course, you want it to last for years to come. Those who are committed to creating the best, custom home theaters may feel compelled to put in more money and get the most expensive products on the market. However, a high cost doesn’t always mean it’s the best out there.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of going over what your intended budget is when it comes to building a home theater – especially when you are constantly exposed to varying and contradicting information out there surrounding home entertainment systems, home theater furniture, and other components of a home theater. However, spending on specific features of a home entertainment system may or may not make a significant difference in the performance of your system, specifically the audio and video quality and the comfortability of the furniture and other equipment.

Until you have a better understanding of the features that you are willing to pay for, it’s better to hold off on purchasing more expensive home theater furniture and products. When you do proper research, you will always find more affordable versions of home theater components such as receivers, cables, and other more expensive ones.

We’ve talked about the pitfalls of over-budgeting; however, the flip side of it is to not under-budget. We understand the importance of managing your expenses and not splurging. However, going for the cheapest options is not always the best decision – especially when the quality and performance of your home theater suffers.

A home theater is supposed to be an investment; while it will inevitably cost you time, money, and effort, it will all be worth it in the end if you have a finished product that you are proud of. If your home theater components start failing soon after you finish installing it, the money, time, and effort you have dedicated into the project could be for nothing. We recommend that you find a good balance between finding the best deals and spending on top-of-the-line products. Also, one more thing to remember is you may eventually want to upgrade your home theater systems; and it’s best to save up for an upgrade rather than shelling out money.

Don’t Buy Without Doing Research

It’s always tempting to walk into the nearest store and make a one-time purchase of all the components you need – especially when a store representative is convincing you. However, it’s always important to do your own research before even getting any home theater furniture or equipment.

Store clerks may not always have the most in-depth knowledge and experience with home theater systems. Also, some of them are just in it to make a sale. Plus, the performance of surround systems and televisions may be different from when you actually take them home.

Read reviews and customer testimonials, follow online articles and blogs from home theater experts, get recommendations from friends or family who are experienced with home theater systems. Whatever type of research you want to conduct, it’s always better to research first, buy later.