How to start a smart home with Apple Home

How to Use the Google Home App to Control Your Smart Home Devices? An Exploratory Study on Google’s Smart Home App on the iPhone running iOS 16.5

While you can use the Google Home app or the touchscreen on your smart display to control your smart home devices, the core (and, in my opinion, best) functionality is tied to voice commands. Say, “OK, Google” or “Hey, Google” to kick things off.

I’m curious to see how Matter works with the Google Home app on my iPhone running iOS 16.5. The software update only just went live, so I haven’t had much time to mess around with it. It should make it easier to use smart devices. Despite my feelings about smart displays, I am interested in trying out my Google Nest Hub Max as a Matter hub. I’m also excited to experiment with the refreshed Google Home app a bit more. The updated app on the iPhone makes Google’s platform more appealing.

Anyone who uses a Protect smoke detector along with other devices will likely need either app, which is annoying. I haven’t seen it yet in the latest version of the GOOGLE Home app, but it’s supposed to change soon.

Source: https://www.theverge.com/23744291/google-smart-home-nest-how-to

Wyze Light Bulbs: Smart Lamps and Google Assistant for a Simple, Smart, Automated Home Automation Solution in the Living Room

I think Wyze light bulbs are a great idea for your setup. They’re cheap, work well, and compatible with Google Assistant. I have a combination of their white-light only and color-changing bulbs. All of them are dimmable and have adjustable white-light color temperature, so you can switch between cooler-toned white light during the day when you’re trying to get things done and warmer light in the evening as you wind down.

You may already have a device at home that can work with Google. Look at your device options to see what will work for you.

It is a basic command that saves me time every day, but I use it to handle more than one thing. It probably also means I’m saving money and energy over time because I’m less likely to leave lights on or forget to adjust the thermostat during parts of the day when we need less heat or AC.

The individual commands are good, but the Routines are even better. All routine can be accomplished with one command, including the thermostat, lights, and garage door. For example, if I say, “OK, Google, goodnight,” the voice assistant adjusts my various connected lights for bedtime, as well as the thermostat. It is possible to make schedules with routine so that it is a bit more automated and you don’t need to say “at sunrise” as a prompt.

There are new options for triggering in Routines. It’s a big upgrade to start a routine when a device does something instead of just a voice command. That means you can start an automation when there is a camera in your house, or when lights, smart plugs, or any other compatible device do something.

What if the shades opened in the morning and the lights turned on automatically when I woke up? I was going to go downstairs, and what if my electric kettle started boiling and the smart display in the kitchen showed a news bulletin with no mention of me? Yes, I could schedule some of these things today, but I don’t always get up at the exact same time every day. I could use a voice command, too, but it would be even easier if I didn’t even have to ask Google Assistant to read me the news.

If you have a Chromecast with Google TV, you can view your Google Nest camera or doorbell’s live feed on your TV — and use Google Assistant on the Chromecast remote to play your favorite shows.

The sound quality and resolution of the smart displays are terrible for me but the sound and screen quality of the GOOGLE NEST HUB MAX are great for me. I can easily view my connected products on the display and make adjustments there if I don’t have my phone handy — or use a quick voice command.

I have a bunch of Wyze lights and an old Wyze cam, which I integrate through third-party integrations.

Amazon Alexa: A Voice Service for Keeping You Motivated and Evolving in a Routine and Avoiding Self-Interactions

After testing a lot of voice assistants, including ones with all sorts of products and different commands, I feel that the one that felt more natural was the one from the search engine. It does a great job answering general questions clearly and thoroughly without either misunderstanding me or not knowing the answer.

You can simply use an android phone to command your connected devices if you have one. If you have an iPhone, you can access Google Assistant through the Google Home app. One of their displays or smart speakers can be used in either case.

You’ll find that each of the three big smart home systems can largely perform the same tasks, but Amazon Alexa has at least two perks I can think of that its rivals lack. The first is Hunches, which allows Alexa to proactively control your smart home gadgets based on your previous activity. It is possible that if you forget to power up your robot vacuum, it will be able to run for you when you are at the gym. The feature is not always required to be enabled, and can be done by default on some devices. You have the option to manually set which Hunches you want and what you don’t. It’s great for people who can’t stick to a daily routine.

When I mention Alexa here, I’m specifically referring to the Alexa Voice Service (AVS), which is essentially a cloud-based service that can mimic conversations and perform tasks designated with vocal commands. Amazon describes it as the company’s “voice AI” — when it detects someone saying its wake word (usually “Alexa,” but more on that later), the service will start listening and responding to your demands. You can make it play your music, ask it what the weather will be, and set alarms and timers to make sure you stay on track. Grouping together various actions, such as changing your smart lighting off, can be done in a routine.

One of the most common gripes about Amazon’s platform is how often it ads other features or tries to sell you something. For example, Echo Show devices frequently display homescreen ads, which are almost impossible to remove. Subscribing to Prime doesn’t prevent these from appearing, though it does prevent Alexa from constantly trying to tempt you with Prime-only services.

In fact, those plugs were the only additional devices in my teeny Alexa setup until fairly recently. I have just added a couple of cute Twinkly lights around the place, which I will turn on every evening at sundown, making it the only place I own a few. There are more than one product I want to purchase and put into my smart home, including a Tado smart thermostat and an August wi-fi Smart Lock.

I have a second-gen and a fifth-gen Echo Show 5 in my kitchen, and in my lounge and home office, and a second-genEcho Dot with clock in the bedroom. The alarm clock in my bedroom is an ideal modern alarm clock, and I can use it to view the stream from my security camera or doorbell, as well as video call my friends while I cook. These Echo devices were basically the gateway drug that got me expanding into other smart home integrations. They’re simple and incredibly user-friendly, which makes them a good way to ease yourself into the Amazon ecosystem before fully committing to buying expensive add-ons — you can play around with Alexa’s various skills and routines until you’re comfortable with adding in additional hardware.

There is a perk that you can change. Part of the reason Amazon chose that name (besides the dorky historical nod) is that it claims there aren’t many words with “x” in them, which reduces the likelihood of the voice assistant mistaking random words for its activation phrase. The logic is great, but it is a problem if there is anyone named Alex in your home. You don’t get complete freedom to rename it (it would be far funnier if you could), but you can choose between Amazon, Computer, Echo, or Ziggy. I have a set of computer commands so I can feel like Captain Picard whenever I bark at it.

And there are plenty of skills to play around with — over 100,000, at this point, far more than Google Home Actions and Apple’s user-programmable Shortcuts, each platform’s equivalent feature. Skills are essentially optional preprogrammed apps for your Alexa device that perform specific tasks or fetch information from a particular source. For example, you can install skills that allow you to order from Pizza Hut using your voice or get detailed weather reports from Big Sky, which uses the Dark Sky API. There are lots of goofier skills you can install to play, tell jokes, and change how alexa interacts with you. Most skills are free, though some do require a paid subscription to unlock all of the features, like Big Sky’s $1.60 monthly premium membership.

The adorable $90 echo show 5 is one of the many varieties of the smart display. All that doesn’t include compatible accessories like the Sub or Link Amp. If you have a tight budget, you can still find deals on older, still capable models, if you choose to, and the variety means that you can pick a smart home controller that serves your needs. Apple’s and Google’s offerings can be similarly affordable, but they have far fewer smart speaker offerings by comparison.

Its voice rings through almost every room. It manages my shopping list, listens for when my laundry needs switching over, nags me when it’s time for bed, and even turns on my towel warmer when I go for a shower. The convenience it has provided me has been worth every single penny I have spent on Alexa-compatible plugs and lighting around that place, even if I didn’t intend for it to spiral into a full smart home setup.

The Apple certification program has led to a limited selection and higher prices which can make buying a smart home device difficult. As basic smart devices get more commoditized, a lot of the limitations will fall away. It also means no more looking for HomeKit certification for device makers, as Matter is intrinsically cross-platform.

I hated the Amazon skill system and the Sound quality of the little black puck was terrible, so I started out with an Amazon echo dot. I have a Mini version of the Home. It looked nicer but had invisible touch controls, and the app felt half-finished. I could’ve stopped there, but driven by the sunk cost fallacy, I gave Apple Home a shot.

But there are other things Apple could do better. Improvements to Siri are always welcome, as right now, it often refers me to my phone for certain queries, such as web searches or business information (though other times it gives me the answers I’m seeking through the speaker), and my phone never seems to be aware it’s supposed to be showing me something. Ecobee is the only company that has taken Apple up on the offer, which would be great to see more third parties support Apple’s assistant.

Smart Home Security Cameras and Smart Light Bulbs: What I’ve Learned about HomeSense, Philips Hue, and Eve Energy

I collect information like I used to do, and I enjoy being able to check things out when I am not there. Various sensors have also allowed me to adjust my dampers for the best air distribution and helped me know where to place humidifiers and dehumidifiers for the best result.

You may not need separate humidity or temperature sensors in your home if you have enough HomePods in it, as they are not as accurate as dedicated sensors. They built in alarm recognition so you can be notified of a smoke detector going off when you are out of the house. Those features aren’t unique to HomePods, but having all of them in one device is. Amazon’s speakers can detect sounds like smoke alarms but lack humidity and temperature sensors, but only if you sign up for its cloud-based service, which costs $10 a month.

Smart home security cameras can be a good go-to next, though picking the right one is tricky. Go for one that supports HKSV if you have an iCloud Plus subscription, as that gets you 10 days of video history, the ability to set detection zones, and object recognition for people, animals, vehicles, and even packages. In addition to being able to view camera notifications on your phone and computer, an Apple TV will show picture-in-picture streams from your cameras, which is useful if I have a basement and cannot hear knocks on my door.

For smart plugs, I’ve tried a few, and all have been iffy at one time or another. My Eve Energy smart plugs are the best. Eve’s plugs are not cheap but feel worth it, as they offer a built-in power meter function that tracks how much power is flowing through them, even offering an estimate of what that’ll cost you based on the last week, day, or minute of usage. The Eve app shows how your Thread network is structured, which helps me when I have problems with my Thread devices.

As for smart devices, start small. Smart light bulbs are a great jumping-off point, and I’ve generally had the best experience with Philips Hue, though setup is a little more involved for Hue bulbs than for, say, Nanoleaf’s Essentials A19. Both brands offer bulbs compatible with Apple’s Adaptive Lighting feature, which gradually tunes the warmth of the bulb throughout your day to be cooler or warmer, depending on the time.

Whichever you choose, buying an Apple Home Hub enables you to control your smart home when you’re away and lets you share access with others, provided they have an iPhone. Without a Home Hub, things get less convenient, but you can still add and control smart home products with your Apple devices.

If you are going to buy an Apple Home appliance, you need to start with the Apple Home Hub or a newer Apple TV. If you plan to buy the latest version of the smart speaker, you need to know that it is only good for better sound, and it is only a third of the price. The Apple TV 4K is a powerful TV streaming box that is the best for most people to buy even if you won’t get Thread support as it is reserved for the 128gigabyte version.

Apple’s system has, among the big smart home platforms, also seen perhaps the most enthusiastic support for the new Matter protocol, which is partially based on Apple’s platform and still in its early days. If you have invested in an Apple Home Hub, that is, an Apple TV, or a HomePod, you will know that it is also a Thread border routers. That’s important because Thread is the wireless standard to be used in many inexpensive smart home devices going forward. An introductory guide has been published by our own Jennifer Tuohy.

Second is being so locked into the company’s ecosystem that you benefit from its strict requirements for Apple Home-compatible devices. HomeKit provides features like facial recognition and the ability to control devices locally, as well as encrypting cloud video storage and use of Apple Photos library, all of which meet those requirements. Compliance with Apple strictures has resulted in a limited product choice, which is a double-edged sword.

Source: https://www.theverge.com/23751656/apple-home-smart-devices-gadgets-homepod-mini

A Simple Way to Start a Smart Home? Is It Worth It? Living in a House with a Misplaced Light Switch

So what to do? Well, I could spend a bunch of money I didn’t have to hire someone to move it, try to do it myself and accidentally burn my house down with a bad wiring job, or take the plunge on a smart home. I got started on smartening my house after taking the path of least resistance.

My smart home journey began, like so many others, with a poorly placed light switch. The switch that illuminated the kitchen was in the laundry room on the other side of our house, meaning it was difficult for us to get to it. I hated the light switch.