Thursday Deals: Savings on Routers, Speakers and More [UK]
We've passed #humpday and are firmly on our way to the weekend. Here's today's roundup of the best Amazon deals. Prime Member? Order today for delivery by the weekend.
Is a HomeSeer Home Automation Controller Right For You?
You could get a smart home hub to control your smart devices, or you could get a HomeSeer Smart Controller, or "HomeTroller". Let's look at some of the advantages of doing so.
The Coolest Smart Gadgets Compatible With a SmartThings Hub
The SmartThings hub connects wirelessly with hundreds of compatible smart devices, allowing you to monitor, control, and secure your home from anywhere in the world.
5 Easy-to-Setup Smart Home Gadgets for First Timers
Smart home automation sounds awesome in theory, but a lot of folks are hesitant to try it out because the learning curve seems hard. If that describes you: it's easier than you think!
7 Common Smart Home Myths That Simply Aren't True
Smart home devices are no different than most other gadgets -- and there are many misconceptions that people have about them. Let's clear those up!
7 Home Automation Gifts to Surprise Your Geekiest Friends
Scratching your head trying to work out what to get your nerdiest friends and family this Christmas? Perhaps you should get them some smart home automation gear?
I Lived in a Smart Home for 20 Years. Here's What You Should Know.
MakeUseOf spoke with one of our regular readers and commenters, Ben Stutt, of Rock Hill, South Carolina, USA, about his experiences living in a smart home.
Here's How the New SmartThings App Is a Major Step Backwards
A recent update to the SmartThings app demonstrates that the company might be changing course. This sort of tech is certainly changing, but it remains to be seen whether this is for better or worse.
Getting Started with OpenHAB Home Automation on Raspberry Pi
OpenHAB is a mature, open source home automation platform that runs on a variety of hardware and is protocol agnostic, meaning it can connect to nearly any home automation hardware on the market today.
Google Announces New OnHub Multi-Protocol Wireless Router
Google unveiled its answer to the Smart Home market in the form of a Smart Home hub called OnHub, a standard wireless router also capable of the most popular smart home network protocols.
If These 4 Things Happen, Every Home Will Be a Smart Home
In just a few years, smart homes have entered the mainstream consciousness. For the first time in ages, smart homes have a real, mass-market promise. But there's still a long way to go.
Amazon Echo Review and Giveaway
Amazon’s Echo offers a unique integration between voice recognition, personal assistant, home automation controls, and audio playback features for $179.99. Does the Echo break into new ground or can you do better elsewhere?
4 Really Cool Uses For SmartThings Open Closed Sensors
The Open/Closed sensor is intended to monitor doors and gates, but with some creativity it can do much more. Here are ideas to use the device to make your home a little smarter.
Don't Waste Your Time Waiting For These Smart Home Gadgets
There are plenty of smart home products that sound great but simply aren't feasible or have taken too long to develop. Here are a few that you shouldn't waste your time waiting for.
Attention Homeowners: 5 Smart Home Features Worth the Extra Cost
Which smart home features are worth it? Which ones can be safely tossed aside and ignored? Let's take a look at a few that are actually worth the money.
Infrared Everywhere: Extending Harmony Ultimate Remote to Multiple Rooms
The Harmony Ultimate series is a fantastic bit of kit which simplifies the mass of remote controls in your living room, and can be reprogrammed to control anything which works off infrared.
Which Smart Hub for Home Automation Is Best for You?
For a while, people thought of the idea as nothing more than a gimmick, but recent product releases have shown that smart home automation is starting to live up to its promises.