The new and improved automated\smart home would never have been possible without the introduction of the electric 12v actuators, something which allowed for automation to be more easily accessible to more people, as these actuators are easily made and replaced. The electric actuator is better even than other kinds of actuators, in that it is quiet, quicker, and lasts for longer without needing to be replaced or maintained.
While many people dream about having the perfect connected smart home, it is a lot more difficult than it seems. The set-up can be complicated, the installation process can be a nightmare, and aside from that, choosing which gadgets are to be part of the smart house is something which can be its own brand of nightmare.
There are a lot of gadgets out there for home automation, and deciding which ones to get can be confusing. It all depends on what you want, whether that is lighting, heating, electronics of any kind, security systems, voice control systems, plant care, animal care. This article will look at some of the more popular gadgets for home automation, to help people decide what they want.
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Parrot Flower Power Wireless Plant Monitor
This is perhaps one of the lesser-known pieces of home automation, but it is very useful for anybody who has a lot of houseplants and also goes away for long periods of time. This device monitors the plants and the conditions surrounding them. When this is put into the earth near or beside the plants it’s supposed to be monitoring, it can keep track of sunlight. The temperature levels, the moisture of the earth, and whether or not the earth needs fertilizer, among other things. This automation can send alerts to the mobile device it is slaved to, letting the homeowner know that their plants need water or fertilizer, or something else.
Sonos
These are just one of the many types of wireless speakers out there, though it is the most popular – Sonos can be put in many different rooms, attached to the homeowner’s mobile device with an app, and then used to play and control music throughout the house. The beauty of the automation equipment is that you can control the music from anywhere in the house. The system for wireless music can be quite expensive, but so long as you expand slowly – unless you can afford to buy enough wireless speakers all in one go for your entire house – it shouldn’t cost too much.
Samsung SmartThings
One problem that a lot of people can end up dealing with when the use home automation is having lots of different apps to control them all. Now that home automation can be controlled remotely, it means that everything is now attached to a mobile device. Samsung SmartThings is something which can bring order to chaos and help your home automation to go back to making your life easier by providing an app which can control everything from one place. SmartThings can control many types of automation systems, from lights to security cameras, and while there is a range of products which are specific to Samsung, SmartThings can help you to control other forms of home automation too.
Drop Kitchen Scale
The latest in kitchen automation includes a new type of kitchen scale as well as the more widely-commented on fridges and coffee makers. This scale functions as an everyday kitchen scale, but also gives the homeowner direct access to recipes and cooking directions if needed. What is particularly useful about the scale is that is can work with the recipe that is being looked up, and automatically adjust the ingredient amounts for the weight it has on it at the time. Being able to use this scale is very useful to anybody who is learning to cook or bake, as they can be guided through the directions as they work, and it is also useful for experienced bakers, as it keeps them right on the ingredient amounts.
Kohler Moxie Showerhead
This piece of automation is an unusual one, but it is quite well-represented. It is a showerhead which comes with a speaker so that people can continue to listen to music while in the shower. If you are a bathroom baritone, you can finally have accompaniment without fear! The speaker is removable, so it can be taken off the showerhead if it needs charged, and put back when the charging is done. The speaker can also be used in other rooms and works by using Bluetooth to connect to a mobile device to stream the music you want to play.
LIFX
Smart lights and light bulbs are quite often the first time people use home automation of any kind. Using smart bulbs means that they can be controlled remotely, from a mobile device, that they can be used in patterns of light, or that they can put on and off as part of a daily routine which suits the homeowner.
