How do Smart Homes function?

Smart homes certainly ease many worries. Those without them often face a constant stream of small concerns. Did I switch off the coffee maker? Did I activate the security alarm? Are the kids focusing on their homework or binge-watching TV?

A smart home allows you to put these worries to rest with just a quick check on your smartphone or tablet. You can link your devices and appliances so they can communicate with each other and with you.

Any energy-powered device in your home can be integrated into your smart network and controlled with a simple command. Whether you issue the command via voice, remote, tablet, or smartphone, your home responds. This includes smart lights, speakers, locks, and thermostats.

When you think of a smart home, you might picture George Jetson and his high-tech futuristic home, or perhaps Bill Gates, who spent over $60 million developing smart home systems [source: New York Magazine]. What was once a luxury for the tech-savvy or the wealthy, smart technology is now incredibly widespread.

What was once a niche market for quirky, hard-to-use products has now evolved into a major consumer trend. Rather than start-ups, established tech giants are now leading the charge in creating new smart home products.

A large part of this transformation is thanks to the staggering success of smartphones and tablet computers. These highly portable devices are now everywhere, and their constant Internet connectivity allows them to control smart home gadgets. It's all part of the Internet of Things.

The Internet of Things refers to the vast network of interconnected objects and devices that can be identified and managed through digital networks. This expanding web of products grows smarter by the day. Every electronic item in your home, from your refrigerator to your furnace, is part of this technological revolution.

Next, we'll explore the technology behind smart homes.

Software and Technology in Smart Homes

Home automation has experienced a turbulent history. Over the years, various tech trends have risen and fallen, but one of the first companies to achieve lasting success is still in operation today.

The foundation of many smart home innovations can be traced back to 1975, when a Scottish company developed X10. X10 enabled compatible devices to communicate over a home's existing electrical wiring. In this setup, all devices act as receivers, while the controls, such as remotes or keypads, function as transmitters. To switch off a lamp in another room, the transmitter sends a coded message that includes:

All of this is designed to occur in under a second, but X10 does have its drawbacks. Communication through electrical lines is not always reliable due to interference from other devices. An X10 device might mistakenly interpret this interference as a command, or it may fail to receive the intended message altogether.

Although X10 devices are still in use, new technologies have emerged to compete for your home networking budget. Instead of relying on power lines, many newer systems utilize radio waves for communication. This is the same principle behind Bluetooth, WiFi, and cellular signals.

On the next page, we will explore the essential products needed to get your smart home up and running.

The Advantages of Smart Homes

Smart homes can simplify life and enhance convenience. Who wouldn't enjoy adjusting the lighting, entertainment, and temperature from the comfort of their couch? Whether you're at work or away on vacation, your smart home will keep you informed about what's happening, and security systems can be designed to provide vital assistance in emergencies. For instance, if there's a fire alarm, not only will you be alerted, but the smart home will also unlock doors, call the fire department, and illuminate a safe path to escape.

Here are a few more impressive smart home features:

Smart homes also offer energy savings. Electric bills decrease when lights automatically switch off in empty rooms, and temperature control can be adjusted depending on who is in the room. One homeowner claimed her heating costs were about one-third lower than a comparable traditional home. Some devices can even monitor the energy usage of appliances and instruct power-hungry ones to consume less.

Smart home technology holds incredible potential for elderly individuals living alone. It could remind them when it's time to take their medication, notify medical facilities if they fall, and track their food intake. For those who may be forgetful, the smart home could handle tasks like turning off water before a tub overflows or switching off the oven if the cook leaves it unattended.

Smart homes may sound impressive, but are they suitable for everyone? On the next page, we'll explore some of the drawbacks of this technology.

A World of Intelligent Products

With the rapid rise of smartphones and tablets, even those who aren't tech-savvy can now easily control smart devices in their homes. And these devices are becoming more abundant every day.

The Nest thermostat integrates WiFi, allowing you to control, schedule, and monitor the temperature of your home, whether you're sitting on the porch or riding in a taxi. Nest learns your habits and adjusts itself to optimize comfort and efficiency. It will inform you of your energy usage, remind you to replace filters, and even tweak its settings to accommodate various heating methods like heat pumps or radiant heaters.

Philips' Hue lights bring concert-style lighting effects into your home. Simply screw these LED bulbs into any standard fixture, install the accompanying app on your phone or tablet, and you can control the lights—turning them on or off, dimming or brightening, and even changing their color. You can program the lights to create unique combinations of color and brightness, controlling up to 50 lights from a single bridge. The more lights you have, the more fun it becomes. However, a starter kit with three bulbs and a bridge costs around $200.

On the next page, you'll discover even more impressive smart home gadgets. With a bit of creativity, you'll realize that nearly any electronic task can be automated.

Efficiency Meets Fun

Belkin's WeMo home automation switches are specifically designed for smartphone users. For about $100, you'll get a smart WeMo switch and a motion detector. Simply plug the switch into an outlet, connect a device like a lamp, heater, or coffee maker, and pair the switch with your phone using Belkin's app. Then, you can control the device remotely, whether you're 1,000 miles away or just lounging in your bed.

Home automation isn't always about expensive gadgets. Some of the most practical smart home tools are actually free.

IFTTT is an easy-to-use service that allows you to set up triggers that prompt specific actions, and it integrates with WeMo. For example, you could place a WeMo motion detector in your bedroom, and when it detects you're awake in the morning, it could trigger the coffee maker to start brewing in the kitchen.

The possibilities for these "if x, then y" actions are only constrained by your imagination. However, setting up these fun automations does take some time, which highlights one of the major challenges of home automation systems.

Many smart home devices require their own proprietary apps. In other words, you could end up installing numerous home automation products and their corresponding apps, only to find yourself overwhelmed as you attempt to manage them all.

The Revolv is a $299 WiFi hub designed to connect with all your other wireless home automation devices. It seeks to consolidate your home automation tools into one app and assists in creating preset functions, all with the goal of achieving a fully automated home.

After setup, you can control all your gadgets through the central Revolv app. Revolv currently works best with Z-Wave, Insteon, and WiFi products, but it is only available for iPhone users at the moment. The company plans to broaden its compatibility to include hundreds of other devices and introduce an Android version as well. Similar hub solutions are available from companies like Insteon and SmartThings.

Keep reading to explore more challenges related to home automation.

Challenges of Smart Homes

For some people, the idea of a smart home might feel like a nightmare, especially for those who aren't comfortable with technology. If you struggle just to change the TV channel with a remote, you might have already stopped reading this.

One major obstacle to installing a smart home system is finding the right balance between its complexity and ease of use. If the system is more frustrating than helpful, it defeats the purpose. When designing your system, consider these key factors:

For these reasons, starting with a simple home network and gradually upgrading as needed might be the most practical approach. Like many emerging technologies, smart homes demand a considerable investment in both time and money, so if you're lacking either, you might prefer to stick with your traditional home setup.

Before making a purchase, it's wise to read product reviews and avoid those that have received poor feedback from users. Many products promise the world but fail to deliver. If you're a smartphone user, look for products that come with a highly-rated app, as some apps are so cumbersome they end up being more of a hassle than a help.

Smart homes also introduce certain security risks. Hackers who manage to breach the network could potentially disable alarm systems and lights, leaving the home exposed to burglary. They might also engage in mischievous behavior, such as turning devices on and off rapidly, which could damage electronics or, in the worst-case scenario, trigger a fire.

Electronics manufacturers are expanding their product lines in hopes that home automation will gain mainstream popularity. With the rise of smartphones and tablets, along with an increasing number of home automation apps, there's a chance the trend will catch on—but the vision of a fully automated home like the Jetsons may still be a long way off.

This delay is largely due to the absence of a universal system for automating all these devices. Without such a standard, many consumers worry they may be spending hundreds or even thousands of dollars on products that could soon become obsolete or incompatible.

Naturally, one might wonder if we really need all this technology. Are we so dependent that we can't manage simple tasks, like flipping a light switch? The silver lining, however, is that with the time saved through home automation, we can focus on other endeavors—perhaps even creating robot housekeepers.