Smart Homes

1. Smart home for everyone

Home automation has long been considered the exclusive domain of the unimaginably rich. Urban myths about Bill Gates' automated mansion were circulated less than a decade back. But, now, technology has developed so much so that anyone can afford to automate their houses, customized to individual needs and budgets.

2. What is a smart home

• A Smart Home is a house, condominium, or apartment that has devices for controlling security, lighting, temperature and humidity, irrigation, multi-media, surveillance, and many other functions.  
• In a Smart Home the devices can be controlled remotely by Internet connected smartphones, computers, and tablets. And programs can automate the function of the devices around your home for you. 
• A smart home may have some or all of these components. While more advanced smart homes also contain devices for monitoring and controlling energy usage to help make them as energy efficient as possible. 

3. Why smart homes

1. Energy savings
2. Cost savings
3. Security/surveillance
4. Convenience/automation
5. Health monitoring/tracking

4. Different aspects of a smart home

# Home automation

Automatic and electronic control of household features, in-home activity and appliance. Home theater system. Open doors, windows, blinds, curtains, and other motorized entry/exit components, like garage door. Smart locks controlled remotely

# Climate control

HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) control by wi-fi thermostats.

# Wireless lighting

Turn lights on or off from any desired location

# Energy management

Monitor weekly and monthly energy usage through home automation programs and software. adjust their smart energy intake to effectively save time and money while being eco-friendly

# Home security

A home security system is made up of sensors and controllers. Home security equipment may include fire and carbon monoxide detectors. Smart home residents are able to remotely arm or disarm their wireless home security system by phone or computer

5. Examples of smart home devices

Smart bulbs

• Different modes of lighting and save energy. 
• Bulbs connected to Wi-Fi network, and lighting control from smartphone
• Mood based lighting and program the bulbs for day and night hours. Using apps IFTTT and Llama, lights turn off automatically as you leave home.
• HUB or BRIDGE hardwired to the Wifi router

Phillips Hue Starter Kit

Phillips Hue Starter kit: Click here to see details

Smart speakers

• Multiple speakers can connect to Sonos network and the hub can even be connected to your network
• Each new speaker acts like a node in a mesh to connect the next one.
• Once connected them to the Internet, they can also be directly connected to supported streaming services, and play music from the Internet without using your phone.
• Multitasking facility. Bridge required for wireless control. Direct connection also possible

SONOS, LG Music flow and Phillips spotify are manufacturing smart speakers

Sonos Voice Controlled Smart Speaker

Sonos All-new One - Voice Controlled Smart Speaker with Amazon Alexa Built In (Black). Click here to see details

Smart locks

• Keyless entry is another technology that is picking up pace now. Smart locks let you enter your home with a Bluetooth sensor or NFC tags. Some of these even let you unlock your home using the Internet, so you can let a friend in if they're at your door even if you're out. And they have kept the traditional keys as well, just in case your smartphone's battery juice runs out.
• These locks provide great security features as well, because you can be notified as soon as anyone unlocks the door. You can provide remote access to the guests for some specific time, you can even leave notes for them

Kwikset Kevo, Okidokeys, Noke are manufacturing smart locks

Kwikset Kevo (2nd Gen) Touch-to-Open Bluetooth Smart Lock in Satin Nickel. Click to here see details

Home security

• Basic parts of smart security pack are motion sensors, contact sensors which would notify you when a specific window or door is opened or closed, and a smart camera keeping track of the home. The camera stream is available on smartphone
• Some of the higher end products (Netatmo Camera) have face recognition software to recognize family members and send out an alert only if it spots a stranger.
• iSmartAlarm. This is a modular and customizable system. You can add cameras, remote tags to track your kids or pets as they come and go, motion sensors and contact sensors that can be added to your windows, and even smart switches that can be scheduled with an app on your smartphone, to turn the different appliances in your house on and off, remotely.
• iSmartAlarm - Rs. 14,000 (A basic setup, with cameras and hub including shipping)

Smart television

• You could of course get a smart TV, but you can add smarts to your existing TV even more easily, simply by buying something like Google Chromecast or Apple TV.  With these devices, you can stream videos from your phone or tablet, or control your TV through a smart home hub.
• The Chromecast is the best value-for-money option here. This tiny stick allows you to cast content from multiple devices to your TV. If you want to see a video from your phone on your TV, or your family wants to see pictures of your last trip, ChromeCast is your go-to device. It allows you to stream from your Android, iOS, Mac, Windows or Chromebook. It merely costs Rs.2,999.
• Apps like YouTube also run using your Wi-Fi connection, and your guests can also connect to the Chromecast without connecting to the router, with a newly added guest mode. All these features together make Chromecast the easiest way to smarten up your TV.

Smart home hub

• The ideal solution would be if all these different systems could be interconnected.
• Smart home hub help you connect the bulbs, locks, speakers, and everything else in your house.
• One of the coolest hubs is the Homey - this home automation system can connect to your lights, TV, Sonos and other smart devices, and it can also act as a universal remote that controls all devices in the room that use infra-red remotes.
• Another alternative is SmartThings which supports a huge range of connected products such as Sonos speakers, GE Sensors and Dropcam, and has IFTTT integration.
• Wink Hub is a cheaper solution with some limitations but suits well for your basic needs. It is very easy to set up and use. And the hub itself costs only $80 (approximately Rs. 5,000) plus shipping
• The Wink meets all your needs but it lacks a proper display to tell you what's happening, and the Wink only has an app interface - you can't control it through a Web interface. However, it works with devices like Philips smart LEDs, and can connect to devices that support Wi-Fi, Z-Wave, ZigBee, and more. The Wink is also adding support for more devices that will make it more useful over time.

Additional gadgets

• These are just some of the basic gadgets you can start your smart home dream with. You can add devices like the Nest Thermostat if you have central heating or air-conditioning in your home, but most Indian houses don't have use for such a product yet.
• The Amazon Echo is one of the cool examples - it's like Siri, for your home. This could connect with other smart devices in your house as the new hub, in just the way that voice assistants like Siri and Cortana help you to use your phone's different functions.
• Other devices are even more unusual, such as,  the Kolibree intelligent toothbrush to smart baby bottles like the Baby Glgl, shown at CES 2015. These aren't things that are either ready for the consumer or practical beyond exhibitions, and considering how expensive most devices in this field are right now, it's probably best not to be too much of an early adopter either.
• But these prices are going to come down in a year or two, so we recommend picking and choosing and laying the foundation for your smart home.