7 genius new gadgets to make your home smarter
Maybe it’s time we updated the “your home is your castle” idea for the modern technology age. With new smart-home gadgets, your home can now be your futuristic sci-fi space station.
We can talk to our home tech, control the environment, watch over our rooms, and hand the chores off to robots. The smart home is getting brainier all the time.
It’s an exciting time for gadget lovers and anybody who enjoys embracing the evolution of home technology.
Here are seven clever smart-home gadgets that will bring your house a lot closer to the Jetsons’ lifestyle we’ve all been longing for.
If you want to buy any of them, just use the buttons we provided for your convenience.
1. Eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11S
This robotic vacuum might have a long name, but it’s even longer on features. This bot is the latest entry in Anker’s (famed for their battery-powered gadgets) well-reviewed Eufy consumer line of household goods. A super-slim design helps it slip under furniture and it manages to both improve suction power and vacuum more quietly than its predecessors. Anker’s battery expertise means it can clean your floors for up to 100 minutes and it’s a bargain compared to some of the more expensive brands.
2. Control Your Garage Door Opener with Your Smartphone
Need to let someone in your garage while you’re not home? Maybe your kids are locked out and can’t remember your pass code. You can monitor, open and close your garage door from anywhere with your smartphone. The Chamberlain MYQ-G0201 MyQ also allows you to receive alerts/notifications on your smartphone when your garage door opens and closes. It works with most brands of garage door openers made after 1993, and the compatible MyQ smartphone App is available for Apple and Android devices.
(Bonus: Which Amazon Echo is right for you? Click here to find out.)
3. Bond
You can make your old ceiling fan smart with Bond, a gadget that works with smartphones, Amazon Alexa, and Google Home Assistant. Yes, that means you can tell Alexa to turn your ceiling fan off and on without having to reach for a remote or pull on chains. The catch is that Bond uses infrared or RF signals and only works with ceiling fans that use a remote control.
4. Rachio WiFi Smart Lawn Sprinkler Controller
Who says smart-home tech has to stay inside the house? The Rachio WiFi Smart Lawn Sprinkler Controller extends its magic to your front or backyard.
Now in its second generation, this controller is compatible with Alexa and Google Home, and also works with a custom app that lets you manage your lawn from your smartphone. It can even automatically adjust the watering schedule based on local weather, which is great for when you’re away on vacation. You can get either an 8-zone or 16-zone version.
5. PicoBrew PICO Model C
You love homemade craft beer, but you don’t want to do it all by yourself. That’s where the PicoBrew PICO Model C beer-brewing appliance comes in.
This smart gadget lets you fine-tune your brews, which you can make from kits bought from Pico. It brews 5 liters of beer at a time and handles most of the hard work for you, so you can let it do its thing and then enjoy your fresh beer when it’s done. Pico calls it “an automated craft brewery.”
6. August Smart Lock Pro
August’s latest Smart Lock Pro lets you monitor your door, lock and unlock it, and control access without having to change out your old deadbolt. The lock even tracks whether or not it is securely closed.
You can check the activity log from anywhere using your phone and talk to your lock using Alexa, Siri, or Google Home. What really makes this feel like a sci-fi gadget is that it can recognize your phone as you approach and open the door or lock it behind you when you leave.
7. Nest Learning Thermostat
Nest first changed the game for thermostats when it came out in 2011, but the company has been steadily updating and upgrading the devices since then. The latest version (third generation) will still help you control your heating and cooling, but it also features a better display and it handily integrates with Amazon Alexa for voice control.
Dump your dim bulbs
The future of lighting is here, you just might need a nudge to upgrade.
Click here to learn why your next light bulbs should be smart bulbs.
Tags: Amazon, Android, Apple, battery, Google, upgrades
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