So you’re ready to embrace technology, and start integrating it into your home. But there’s some thoughts that are acting as a roadblock: Do you have to rebuild your home? Will it require hours upon hours of digesting volumes of instruction manuals to learn how to use the automation features? Will it be financially out of reach? Slow down there! We’ve put together some answers for you with this quick list of Questions to Ask When Considering Smart Home Automation.
So What IS Home Automation?
Home automation systems are typically used to control lighting, heating, ventilation, air conditioning, appliances, communication systems, entertainment and home security devices to improve convenience, comfort, energy efficiency and security. Devices are connected through a home network to allow remote access through a personal computer, smartphone or tablet. Home automation also refers to home control and smart or connected home technology
What Do You Want in Home Automation?
As with most purchases that affect your lifestyle, it’s important to clearly define how you’ll benefit from your purchase. With a home automation system, your primary considering is deciding what part of your life you want to enhance or simplify. Home automation systems are designed to provide convenience and efficiency to all aspects of your home including your home theater, multi-room music, lighting, heating and cooling, and security systems. You can also think about your priorities in terms of effortless entertainment, comfort and convenience, or peace of mind.
Where Should You Begin?
Your home doesn’t need to be fully automated for you to enjoy the benefits and convenience of home automation technology. Home Automation is modular, so you can start small and add other features over time. A commonplace that many people choose to start with is the home theater. Companies like Savant offer a single remote that delivers a one of a kind entertainment and automation experience that you can apply to all areas of your home. It gives you the ability to control all of the audio and video components and lights, and works with the devices you already own.
Is Your Wi-Fi reliable?
The majority of smart lighting, security camera, door locks and thermostat products operate on Wi-Fi. While these smart devices don’t monopolize a lot of bandwidth needed for video or data streaming, you will need to make sure you have range from any point of your home. Make sure you have a strong enough network connection to control your devices from wherever you are in your home.
Will Home Automation Technology Be Difficult to Understand?
You do not need to be a computer scientist to understand and use home automation to its full potential. The control mechanisms are all in the form of intuitive and easy-to-use keypads, touch screens, remotes, and TV screen menus. There are also navigation applications for iPhones, iPods, and Web browsers.
Will Home Automation Be More Costly to Use?
Home automation systems are designed to reduce energy consumption by giving you more control over your lighting and temperature control devices. Often we waste energy by leaving lights on in unoccupied rooms and leaving the thermostat up when we leave the house. Smart home technology can help to eliminate this waste by activating the lights and thermostat only when you need them and turning things off if you forget.
Will Home Automation Be a Major Lifestyle Adjustment?
As mentioned earlier, home automation is modular so you can ease into automation one room at a time. For example, you might want to start with a home theater system, which includes automating the theater equipment and lighting system in your theater room. Since you can control all the components and room lights with a single remote, your movie viewing experience will be much simpler. From there you can expand your system to other parts of your house.