The whole concept of smart home automation means that you can control the operation of home appliances every day with the tip of just your finger. In turn, you get better energy conversion, affordable lighting solutions, and optimum usage of energy. Also, home automation means that you have control over managing your home security as well as centralized home entertainment and more. If you were subscribed to the Xfinity home services, you’d have access to monitoring the security cameras, managing LED smart lighting, controlling the thermostat, etc. all from your smartphone.
Given how quickly smart home technology is growing, it makes sense that a large number of people talk about it. While some consider the impact smart home technology will have on the capacity of human beings to perform things manually, others discuss more semantic topics such as how the term automation relates to other modern-day terms. In the case that you are part of the latter group, it is time for you to rejoice as we will be discussing extensively smart home automation relates to the phenomenon – the internet of things.
Connection Between the Internet of Things and Smart Home Technology
As the name suggests, the internet of things (IoT) refers to being connected to the internet. However, in most scenarios, it is referred to as communication between smart devices without needing any human interaction. For instance, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, etc. can be used as a central hub that controls lighting, sound system, TV, thermostat, etc. In such a case, you can also add a smart home controller that monitors and regulates all the smart devices, directly from an app downloaded on your phone.
Applications of IoT and Smart Home Technology
Considered one of the major inventions of the 21st century, there is no doubt that the internet of things has been quite impactful, and that too in smart home technology. Following are some of the examples where the internet of things is applied to smart home technology;
Smart Home. The internet of things has changed the lives of homeowners for the good; no longer do they have to fret over whether they turned the stove off on their way out. Smart digital assistants are combined with smart appliances around your home to streamline your lives in such a way that the stove will be turned off if it is not being used.
Smart Security. The methods of home security have become so advanced because of the internet of things technology that you can have access to CCTV footage on your smartphone. You can also manage the settings of your home security system from your smartphone. If there are motion sensors placed around your home, you will be notified of any suspicious activities and sent an alert on your smartphone.
Even doorbells and locks can be considered smart home appliances. Doorbells are integrated with a camera and you can see from your smartphone who is ringing the doorbell. Also, you don’t need keys for locking up anymore, you can control and manage your locks from your smartphone as well.
Smart Thermostats. As a homeowner, you can save on energy costs by controlling and managing your home’s heating or cooling right from your smartphone device. No matter where you are, whether grocery store or on your way home, you can turn your thermostat on because you’re almost home or turn it off because you forgot to turn it off before leaving.
With thermostats, you can manage and control the temperatures of different areas of your home and customize them as well. You don’t need to worry about making manual temperature adjustments if you use the scheduling feature to create a custom thermostat schedule.
Smart Appliances. Even the appliances are turning smarter. In the markets, you will now find that there are washing machines, dryers, refrigerators, microwave ovens, etc. that can now be controlled with the help of voice assistants.
The aforementioned are just a few examples of how smart home technology can be applied with the help of internet of things technology. In retrospect, there will be hundreds of functionalities that are capable of these two combined, challenging the limits of how far technology can go to allow home comfort.
Final Thoughts
Although having a smart home will help to save energy and money both, the benefits are much more than that. A smart home integrates all smart devices and appliances together to be managed under a unified home automation system. This technology along with the coverage of the internet of things (IoT) aims to provide a seamless and convenient home experience. This mainly streamlines controlling and managing the multiple aspects of your home and allows saving a vast amount of time and increased peace of mind.
