Home automation is transforming how we live and operate in our homes. By connecting various smart devices in our homes – and more and more appliances are integrating smart technology – we’re able to manage things in our home like lighting, sound, temperature and, of course, security. In doing so, home automation offers convenience, security and energy efficiency. This short guide will help you know where to start when building automation into your home.
Chances are you’ve used or seen usage of artificial intelligence (AI) to navigate things like playing music, making purchases, doing searches or creating a calendar event. Things like Alexa, Siri and Gemini already do a lot on our phone, computers or other devices. Now imagine them integrating with your home to set mood lighting, lock and unlock doors and let you know how many eggs are in your fridge? More and more home appliances and devices are created to integrate with AI, giving users a personal assistant to manage the home. Some devices are even able to learn your routines so they can perform certain procedures without being told.
But where to start?
Start with research. Find out what the best platforms are to integrate multiple devices. Read reviews and consumer reports. It’s an important decision and commitment. Whichever one you choose has to be able to integrate with your phone and hub (usually a physical piece of hardware that is voice-controlled) and most people have those 2 items already in their homes.
According to The Verge, here are some questions to ask when selecting home automation:
- Which smartphone do you use?
- Which devices do you already own?
- Which is your favorite voice assistant?
- Which features do you want?
Still unsure? Tekin Systems can give you a more customized recommendation based on your individual needs.
Once you select your home automation system, the next step is installation and setup. This can be a pretty daunting task if you wanted to try doing it yourself. Here we recommend you get pros to do the installation. Tekin Systems can make sure everything is connected and communicating properly so that you can control everything either through the voice-controlled hub or smartphone.
While the up-front cost to get compatible devices and appliances can get pricey, home automation is growing more and more affordable as it becomes a more standardized feature. There are plenty of cost savings possible in being able to make sure lights are turned off when no one is present, thermostats are set based on attendance, and security systems can be activated even after you’ve left for vacation. Once installed, you might wonder how you were able to function without it.