There’s no denying that connected smart home accessories are on the rise. Apple’s HomeKit is slowly making an entrance into this space, but for the moment there are a wide variety of accessories available that can make your house a lot cooler. Today we’re taking a look at some of the essential options that have been around for a little while, but are definitely must-haves if you’re into the smart home scene. These devices may not be necessary, but they make things around the house more convenient…
Withings Home
First up we’re taking a look at Withings Home. This is one of the easiest ways to keep an eye on the house while away. Withings Home is a connected security camera that even has Apple Watch integration. Withings Home features a 5MP sensor, wide angle lens, shoots 1080p video, and actually has night vision. You can check in on the camera at any time, anywhere in the world, using its app. As mentioned, you can even pull up a live video feed on Apple Watch. There’s also motion detection, an air quality sensor, and 2-way communication using its microphone and speaker. Withings Home is available for $199.
Philips Hue
Next up: Philips Hue. This is one of my favorite smart home accessories, but it is a bit overpriced. That being said, you’re paying for the quality of product. If you’re not familiar with it, Philips Hue is a system of connected color changing LED bulbs that can be controlled with your smartphone. Philips backs up their bulbs with a two year warranty. I’ve actually had a bulb replaced with Philips and the process was simple. There’s also a good amount of third party integration with Philips Hue such as IFTTT. The Philips Hue starter kit is available for $199 and if you’d like to find out more, check out the video.
Watch our smart home tech video below:
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_wyqnJQFM8]
Pronto
Next up, we’re taking a look at Pronto. This thing will actually turn your smartphone into a universal remote. Pronto is a single unit that’s powered by four AA batteries (which last up to a year) and connects to your smartphone via Bluetooth. This little device has the ability to control virtually any device with an IR receiver such as TVs, set-top boxes, Blu-Ray players, and others. Just set it on a shelf with line of sight to your A/V equipment or use the included IR extension cable to tuck it away.
Pronto works with the free Peel Smart Remote app and will provide customized TV listings, a full guide, and access to multiple remotes within the app. Pronto connects via Bluetooth, but it will allow multiple device connections so everyone in your house can have their own remote with personalized suggestions and favorites. Pronto is available for around $50 and I highly recommend it.
Nest Learning Thermostat
Nest has been around for quite some time now. I’ve had my Nest 2.0 for about 2 years and it has been working flawlessly. With Nest you gain remote smartphone access to the temperature in your house, customized schedules, energy reports, and more. It’s certainly a classic piece of smart home tech in my book. This thermostat will learn your schedule and temperature preferences and automatically come up with an energy efficient schedule to help save you money on electricity. Nest also has an “away mode” which it will kick into when its sensor detects a lack of motion in the house and set the temperature to a customized range. Nest is available for $250, but it will definitely pay for itself over time.
August Smart Lock and Ring Video Doorbell
The last items in this list are August Smart Lock and Ring Video Doorbell. I’ve decided to combine these two because their combination is very useful. Simply having any video doorbell and a smart lock can be handy. We detailed August Smart Lock and Ring Video Doorbell in separate reviews if you’d like to find out more. First off, August integrates with Nest, so when I leave the house, August’s app will suggest setting the A/C to away mode.
Having a smart lock and a video doorbell will easily allow you to identify the person at the door and unlock it to let them in without taking a step. When someone rings the doorbell, a notification will pop up on your smartphone and allow you to see/communicate with the person on the other end. Once identified, you can launch the August app and unlock the door if necessary. Currently, you can pickup the August Smart Lock for $250, while Ring Video Doorbell is available for $199 (or $10 off).
Smart home tech may not be the most affordable accessories, but they are super convenient and some of them will even save you time and money. Check out the video above for a closer look at all of these devices. What kind of smart home tech do you have in your house?
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All in runs ya $1,147.00……better off putting that into a nice vacation and see the beautiful planet vs tricking out your house with colorful LEDs
Great read! Have you checked out any of the Wink products yet? Id like to see your review on those. Also I decided to get the Lyric over the Nest only because I was able to get it on amazon for about $100 dollars cheaper… I have only had the Lyric for about a week and I love it.. And I’m convinced that I will always own a smart thermostat for the rest of my life now. So easy.
Wink is definitely something I’ll be looking into in the future! Thanks!
Besides the hub issue they had, wink is great. I have wink bulbs, relay, recessed lights and it works fantastic. Wish they would support August lock, just because of convenience. But maybe home kit will bring all of that together.
I have a wink set up. Home Depot had a clearance on kwikset smart code lock. So I picked on up with the wink hub and 2 GE smart bulbs ($14 each) so far they have been working great. So great that I picked up another lock and a dimmer switch for the kitchen lights. Wink app is pretty good you can set up robots to do things like when the door is unlocked, turn on the light etc… You can also do this remotely and there is no monthly fee. There is no home kit support yet but they did say that it’s coming. They did have an issue with an update they pushed out to the hub a few weeks ago that almost bricked them. I was able to get customer support (very good) and helped me get the hub working again. So far I’d say I’m really happy with the wink. I’m hoping for an Apple watch app now. Oh yeah wink app can also control the nest and nest protect if you have them
Any rumors of a new updated Nest thermostat? Hate to spend the money on something that hasn’t been updated or dropped in price in 2 yrs.
Look into Ecobee. Better IMO.
The only thing I differ on is the thermostat. I like Ecobee. Same price but has extra sensors that makes the unit work better.
Ecobee 3 is another great choice for the smart thermostat way. With the sensors which you place in rooms like bedroom, kid’s room, etc.
Dom, any idea when home kit will be released? Any chance that it will integrate with the new Apple TV as a hub, which supposed to come out in June at the WWDC.
I have a Ring Video Doorbell and app. It allows you to answer the door to deliveries anywhere in the world and communicate as if showing you are in the house. Not bad for security too. Detects and records front door motion to the app. The motion sensor is heat activated and distance manageable so it doesn’t record everything that goes by. Battery lasts for months as well.
Great video and read. I’ll be checking out some of these. Possible edit of the title above ^^^. Top “6” should be Top “5” unless I’m missing something. Keep up the great work Dom! Look forward to the next one.
I count six. The last entry is two separate items.
Never heard of Withings before. I use both a Canary and a Piper for home security. Both are good and have lots of features. Piper acts as a z-wave hub so I can control lights, electrical outlets and door sensors as well. Looking forward to getting an Ecobee thermostat too. Unlike Nest, it doesn’t have to be installed in an area of high traffic to detect occupancy movement since it also has remote sensors.
Just a heads up for people in the US. Many ultility providers (like the gas company in my area) provide $100 rebates on wi-fi connected thermostats, including the Nest. It’s worth it for $250, but even more so for $150.
I’ve got the Nest, Withings Baby (Predecessor to Withings Home) and Wemo switches, light switches and bulbs.
Withings Baby does much of what Home does but the app is older. I wish they had updated it because it has a lot of the same sensors (temperature, humidity, night vision, talk, etc). So not updating the app just seems lazy or a way to get old users to update to a product that offers little change in functionality. I also wish their IFTTT support was more robust.
Nest is awesome. Has saved us a bit in our energy bill and it’s just so convenient.
Wemo is the ecosystem that I bought into the most. I’m a big fan of the switches (plugs) and light switches. I use the switches to power a space heater during winter (fan during the summer) and a crockpot (to turn it off only). The light switches control our lights outside the house. They’re set to turn off after the sun goes down and it’s nice to be able to turn them on once we are arriving home from a late night.
A bulb is used in my baby’s room where being able to control it remotely and have a dimmer will be priceless! The other ones are used in our living room lamps.
Nest = Loss of privacy
Honeywell > Nest