Changing a normal home into a smart one: what are the benefits?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Smart homes are more than just a trend. They improve the quality of your life, delivering wellness, safety, and comfort. Plus, smart homes help you conserve energy, lowering costs and allowing you to embrace an eco-friendly mindset. According to a Statista report, more than 400 million homes will incorporate smart systems by 2025. Smart home technology includes different integrated devices that allow you to control your home, as they are connected to the Internet, which means you can manage them through your smartphone. If you've ever thought about how great it would be to dim lights or adjust the temperature in a room from your device while you're away from home, this can now become your reality! You can turn your home into a smart one by making some changes. We'll teach you how to do that in this blog, but first, let's look at the benefits of smart homes.

 

Smart homes can enhance your lifestyle in many ways

People have different opinions about what an improved quality of life means, and everyone values some aspects above others. However, there are some things most people share in common. For instance, everyone wants to make life more stress-free and convenient. Fortunately, smart home features help you achieve that. Here is how switching to a smart home can benefit your life.

Enhanced comfort

Smart home technology allows you to use voice commands to manage lighting in your home, the temperature of the rooms, and more. AI intelligence makes this possible, enabling smart systems to understand contextual commands. You can change the setting in your space with just the click of a button.

Better safety

If you've ever found yourself locked outside your house when coming back from work, you likely know how unpleasant that situation is! When such a thing happens, you have to contact a locksmith to help you break the lock. But with a smart security system, that is no longer necessary. You can unlock the door through a passcode or a tap on your mobile device. Besides saving time, this also prevents break-ins in your home. Plus, a smart security system can deny unwanted visitors into your home, enhancing security.

Cost efficiency

AI saves money by monitoring your energy consumption. This helps decrease your bills and ensures energy efficiency. Unlike traditional bulbs, energy-efficient LED bulbs resist for a longer time and utilise significantly less power. Similarly, a smart refrigerator helps you manage food waste – and you don't even have to open the fridge to track your food!

Reliability

Smart features can benefit young children, elders, disabled individuals, and those with a health condition. For instance, children or people with immobility can do tasks around the house by relying on voice-enabled technology. Suppose your elderly parents are living with you; they can access lights or the TV from the comfort of a chair or bed.

 

The advantages of a smart home are endless; however, they also have downsides. Security threats equally affect tech developers and users, leading to financial and emotional damage. Data breaches are common in the UK, costing businesses millions of dollars. In 2021 alone, almost 50 organisations reported a cyberattack, stating that they are targeted by hackers at least once a month. But not just businesses are vulnerable to digital threats – anyone can fall victim to them, and you aren't an exception either. Skilled hackers can easily access smart home equipment that works through an Internet connection. Thus, it's essential to be aware of this drawback and safeguard smart appliances with a robust password and encrypt your gadgets when possible. Also, you should connect only reliable devices to your network to reduce the risk of such attacks.

How to make your home smart

Now that you've learned the benefits of a smart home, you likely want to know how to make the switch. Firstly, you need to ensure that your devices are linked to each other via a reliable internet connection. You can use your mobile phone to control the smart systems via this solid wireless network, thus monitoring and controlling your home anytime during the day or night.

 

Here are some changes you can implement to make your home smart.

•  - Install a smart security camera. Restriction to entry isn't enough to ensure the security of your home. Imagine how great it would be to be able to monitor your living space, whether you're at the office or a friend's party. Well, this is actually possible with a smart security camera! This device can send you an alert whenever it detects any suspicious activity at the door or in any room.  
•  - Use smart kitchen appliances. What if the refrigerator suggested what foods to add to your diet? Surprisingly, the IoT makes that possible through smart kitchen appliances that help homeowners cook healthier meals, thus improving their way of living.
•  - Install a smart lock. A smart lock is an excellent replacement for traditional keys and mechanical locks. This keyless technology prevents robbery, ensuring your home is safe even when you're away.
•  - Utilise smart energy-efficient lighting. Switching from traditional lamps to energy-efficient alternatives like LED lamps or fluorescent lamps is another smart feature you can add to your home. The system automatically turns off lights when they aren't used – for example, during the daytime. Adding this feature to your home will reduce your energy bill and enhance the illumination quality, reducing the environmental impact.
•  - Invest in a smart mattress. A smart mattress can eliminate sleep disturbances, providing excellent back support. Their features allow for customised adjustment according to a body shape. They can track breathing patterns and heartbeat rates and improve the quality of your sleep. Smart mattresses come with an integrated app that can give you a detailed report regarding your sleep pattern and history and offer some practical suggestions to help you sleep better.

The bottom line

The evolution of technology has led to the development of smart home devices that ensure security and greater comfort level. These devices offer many benefits and are a worthy investment because they add value to your home and make life much easier.