One of the most frequent requests we get from our custom home clients is how to incorporate smart home technology into their home building project. As Google, Amazon, and other companies refine and add to their voice activated smart home systems, other companies continue to develop new products to make daily living more convenient.
Here are some considerations when planning smart home features from the ground up.
Network
You’ll need to do some research on the best network to power your smart home ecosystem. High bandwidth wifi networks are not the best for overall smart home connectivity, as they draw too much power. Bluetooth works well at short distances, is secure, and is being developed as a preferred way to create a “mesh network” in the home that lets your smart system components communicate with each other.
Hub
Once you have decided on the base network, you have the option of choosing a hub, or the “brain” of your sentient custom home. The hub is command central, where each smart appliance gets its marching orders. There are lots of options, from Samsung, Amazon, Google, and other companies, and most will work with any smart appliance and brand of smartphone. The hub acts as a kind of universal remote control that lets you automate all of your gadgets, even the Bluetooth connected slow cooker or robovacuum that you would not normally be able to control via your smartphone. Your hub might also have voice activation features such as Alexa or Siri that can give you hands-free assistance to change the room’s temperature or lighting.
Appliances
From basic home theater features to smart refrigerators that let you know if the milk jug is low, the variety of smart home appliances keeps growing. Some of the most popular gadgets for homeowners are security cameras, video doorbells, smart thermostats, and smoke detector systems.
Thinking about your daily life and the automation you will use the most will help you incorporate smart home features into your custom home design. We are happy to answer any questions you might have, and share our experiences with past projects. Give us a call!