The smart home was once the domain of millionaires, billionaires and sci-fi movies. Today, even a modest apartment can be turned into a smart home thanks to the many products available at affordable prices that are easy to install and can be moved from house to house.
Here are three must-have smart home technologies.
1.) Smart thermostat
Smart thermostats often take just minutes to replace, but can potentially save you hundreds of dollars on your heating and cooling bills. Some smart thermostats are learning thermostats, which means they pay attention to your habits and patterns and adjust accordingly. If you turn down the thermostat at a certain time every night, it “learns” to turn the heat down on its own at 9:00.
A smart thermostat also pairs with your phone, so when the GPS on your phone moves away from home, it will change heat or air conditioning to a more energy-efficient temperature. If you’re home earlier than usual – or because you’ve been away from home for a long time – you can too adjust temperature from your smartphone, so you can step into a nice and warm or nice and cool home.
2.) Smart deadbolt
No more fumbling with keys when your hands are full. The smart door lock pairs with your smartphone to automatically unlock when you reach the door. If you don’t have a compatible smartphone, they can also be paired with the key fob. Some smart locks even work with bluetooth and traditional locks, so you can get the best of all worlds.
Best of all, they can be programmed on the fly to grant access to others with compatible smartphones. Need to let the neighbors water your plants while you’re away? They can gain access with their smartphone and you can quickly reprogram the door lock to deny access once you get home. Any exes moving on? Instead of having to replace all your door locks, simply reprogram them to deny access to that one person.
3.) Smart doorbell and camera
With smart doorbell and a camera, you don’t have to be at home to see who’s at the door. The video feed will stream directly to your smartphone, so you can see who’s at your door even if you’re not there. When the doorbell rings in the morning, you don’t have to get out of bed to see who’s at the door to decide whether you want to answer it or not. Some smart doorbells even come with audio equipment so you can talk to whoever is at the door without having to open the door, even when you’re not home.
Best of all, video is also recordable so if someone at your door scares you or gives you bad vibes, you have a recorded image to send to the authorities or to alert neighbors. Some smart doorbells also have motion detectors so you can record someone lurking around your home even if the doorbell doesn’t ring.
Turning your home into a smart home no longer has to break the bank and you don’t even have to own your own home to do it. Most hardware can be quickly installed and uninstalled in under an hour, so you can take it with you when you go.
Of course, if you buy a for sale by owner home, you can permanently install your smart home technology and additional technology can even increase the value of your home when you sell it to someone else. Smart technology can not only save you a lot of money, it can make a number of tasks more convenient and make your home more secure and secure.
