Creating a Connected Home: Easy Upgrades for Everyday Comfort

Nowadays, you’re spoilt for choice when it comes to finding an easy-to-install smart device.

Many of these devices can be set up in minutes and instantly transform your ‘dumb’ living quarters into a connected smart space.

These smart gadgets typically connect via your WIFI router or a Bluetooth connection, and bring next-level convenience and comfort to your home.

Below, we take a look at a few of the best of these easy-to-install smart devices.

The Brains of the Operation

It’s a good idea to have a central hub to control your smart tech.

This adds an extra layer of convenience to your smart device ecosystem and lets you control a range of devices from a central hub or app, often by simply speaking a command or request: “Alexa, turn down the lights,” or “Siri, give me the weather for today,” for example.

The three most popular smart hubs are:

• Amazon Alexa: Many Echo devices – especially the Echo Plus or Echo Show – can act as a smart hub for connected Amazon-compatible devices. Alexa is also a good option if you opt for Zigbee-compatible smart tech or if your gadgets feature Matter support, as it can talk to them, too.
• Apple HomeKit: Fans of Apple devices can control their devices using HomeKit, an application that can be run on a host of devices, like Apple TV, HomePod, or iPad, giving the user remote access to all the Apple devices on their network. Consider adding a free-standing iPad stand from Vidabox to mount and secure your device.
• Google Nest: Nest Hub acts as a Google-powered command centre for all the connected Android devices on your network.

Plug In, Turn On

Smart plugs are a super-convenient way of upgrading any dumb device you have around your home.

Plug in a non-smart device to a network-connected socket, and you instantly have control over its basic functionality at your fingertips.

Smart plugs are also a godsend when you’re away from home.

For example, attach your house lights to a smart plug when you’re out and simply set the associated app to trigger the plug at certain times of the day, and hey presto, the lights in your home will kick in while you’re out, giving the impression the property is occupied.

Wireless Sound  

It’s music to the ears of most music fans when they hear that trailing wires and bulky speakers are a thing of the past. 

Your AV Online store is packed to the rafters with smart speakers and soundbars that are not just smart, but discreet and portable to boot.

This means they won’t take up space like old-school speakers used to do, and you can take the speaker with you around the home.

The latest generation of smart speaker technology is also capable of cleverly picking up on subtle cues from its environment by bouncing sound waves off the surrounding walls.

This means the sound is crystal clear and tailored to the acoustics of your living space. 

Light Up Your Life

Plugging dumb lights into a smart plug is a quick and easy way to upgrade your home’s illumination.

However, if you want to take control of things like the hue of your lights or their brightness, you will need something a little smarter.

That’s where smart light bulbs come in.

Bulbs can be fitted into a standard lamp or light fixture, and once connected to a compatible smart device, you gain access to a whole new world of funky colour schemes, brightness levels, and lighting themes.

The Future 

The devices mentioned above are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to domestic smart gadgetry.

Once you’ve got comfortable with some of the simpler smart tech we’ve mentioned, you might want to venture to the next level of domestic smart technology.

A brave new world of AI-powered smart tech awaits you – from adaptive thermostat systems capable of learning your heating habits to robot vacuum cleaners packed with smarts that allow them to recognise obstacles and floor types to give your floors optimal suction.