In this age where technology surrounds us, it’s not surprising that smart home devices are popular in the market. Smart home devices make tedious tasks simple with just one tap from the smartphones you carry around in your pocket.
The problem is, with its wide variety and prices, it can be overwhelming to choose and buy a gadget for your home. Luckily for budding smart homeowners, a lot of cheaper smart home devices are beginning to appear in the marketplace. This list features five such affordable smart home devices that will make your life easier.
#1 PHILIPS HUE WHITE A19 STARTER KIT
Leaving your lights on when they’re not needed can end up being a pain once the bills get delivered. Most people experienced returning to their homes and discovering that they’ve left a lamp on in the bedroom throughout the day because they were in a hurry to leave that morning.
Philips Hue makes it possible to control any lights in your home wherever you are in the world. Whether you need to turn off your lights after forgetting to do so before leaving work or turn them on to make it seem someone’s home, it’s possible with one tap on your phone.
It’s also possible to turn on and off the lights at a pre-set time. If you want to, each room can be even set to light up at different times.
Have you ever had to force yourself out of bed after realizing you forgot to turn off the lights in the kitchen or bathroom? It won’t be a problem anymore with these smart lights. Since you can control the lights through your phone, you don’t have to worry about accidentally leaving them on all night.
#2 WYZE CAM
Approximately 4,800 burglaries happen every day in the United States alone. Installing a security system would alleviate any feeling of worry and paranoia over leaving your home and valuables vulnerable whenever you’re not there.
With smart technology, you can improve your security system, and you don’t even have to spend much on it. In just $30, you can afford the smart home surveillance camera, Wyze Cam which might look small and cute, but this camera shouldn’t be underestimated.
Wyze Cam can capture high-definition 1080p video. It also has motion detection sensors which can also give you easy access to your footage. Because of the embedded motion sensors in it, you can limit the amount of unnecessary recordings you have. There’s no need to look through hours of video with no relevant action to find the 15-minute clip you need.
Besides, it reduces the amount of unnecessary footage, you can also easily access the video in a lot of ways. You can look in your surveillance camera feed on a smartphone while away from home, and receive updates through a smartphone app when it detects motion, sounds, or alarms.
Unlike its competitors such as the Amazon Cloud Cam and the Nest Cam Indoor, the Wyze Cam can tilt or show a different part in the room with its 120-degree viewing angle, 360-degree horizontal panning, and 93-degree vertical tilting abilities.
#3 AUGUST SMART PRO-LOCK + CONNECT
Another way to give yourself a peace of mind when you’re away from home is to strengthen your home’s defenses, keeping all your entrances closed and locked. Installing a high-quality smart lock such as the August Smart Pro Lock + Connect would ensure that your house is safe and secure.
August Smart Pro Lock + Connect is affordable and has several features that are worth your every penny. The door can be locked and unlocked through your smartphone, wherever you are in the world.
Your smartphone can also serve as your key. This smart lock can know when you arrive and automatically unlocks the door as you approach, so you won’t have to fumble through your pockets or bag to find your keys ever again.
Its Activity Feed could also help you keep track of who’s coming and going at your doorstep, giving you notifications when the door opens and closes and who arrived or left.
You can also grant digital access to your family and friends with just your phone, so there won’t be any hassle with duplicating keys or worried about them being lost or stolen.
This smart lock is also the only one where you can check the status of your door whether its securely closed and locked.
#4 iROBOT ROOMBA 690
Everyone wants a clean home, but no one likes cleaning. In today’s time, where people are always moving and living in busy schedules, a task as tedious, exhausting and time consuming as cleaning can be a hassle. Investing in a device such as robotic vacuum cleaners saves a lot of time and effort as it does all the work by itself and requires little to no supervision.
The iRobot Roomba 690 can seamlessly navigate around the clutter and under the furniture. It uses a 3-Stage Cleaning system to clean everything from small particles to large debris on your carpets and hard floors.
As it’s a smart device, it’s possible to control and schedule cleanings through your mobile without having to schedule on the Roomba itself or through a clunky remote control while being around it. You can do all of this even if you’re not at home.
This smart vacuum cleaner is also compatible with Amazon Alexa devices. By using your voice, you can start, stop, or dock the robot.
#5 ECHO DOT
Nothing can make your life easier other than a virtual assistant. Virtual assistants such as Amazon Alexa can be asked to run errands from setting up your calendar, call your family and friends, to controlling your smart home products with just your voice. But most of the speakers used as gateways for these voice assistants can cost a lot.
The Echo Dot is an affordable speaker for assistant Alexa. While less expensive products can have a lower quality than the costlier ones, Echo Dot doesn’t possess the same problem. It still has the same abilities as any speaker. It can hear your voice across the room even in noise-filled surroundings or even while there’s music playing. The best part is that it’s cheaper!
Conclusion:
Smart home devices can provide great assistance in making our day-to-day lives more comfortable and smoother. But shopping for these devices can be challenging especially for inexperienced buyers since there are a wide variety of brands and stores to choose from.
Fortunately, lots of online reviews and tech blogs are available to narrow down your selection. Reading these reviews would be helpful at times when you need to decide which devices best suits you.
Before buying these gadgets, carefully think about your purchase and make sure that you don’t impulsively buy one just because it was flashy and cool. Remember that these devices are supposed to be there to help you on a daily basis so you should choose one that would fit in with your home and lifestyle.
