The Best Ways to Control All Your Smarthome Devices

In recent years, we have seen a steady growth of smarthome gadgets that allow you to control numerous things, for example, heating, air conditioning, lighting, surveillance from almost anywhere. According to International Data Corporation (IDC), the shipments of the smarthome device globally is expected to reach 1.39 billion in 2023. Today, smarthomes are not a reserve for tech experts only.

But as the market grows, so does the number of manufacturers building devices. That means, if you have several tools, you will need to install an app to control each of them. Therefore, you may find yourself dealing with an equal number of apps daily on your smartphone or tablet, which can be frustrating. Rest easy because we’ve compiled a couple of tips to help you control all your smarthome devices with less stress.

Connect Them to a Voice Assistant

Perhaps the easiest way to control your smarthome gadget doesn’t even require physical interaction with an app. Welcome to the world of voice assisted-devices. Voice assistants have become widely popular. According to Statista, there are approximately 3.25 billion digital voice assistants in use on gadgets worldwide. They can perform a variety of tasks, including playing personalized music, providing users with information, and controlling other connected devices. Examples include Google Assistant, Siri, or Alexa voice assistants.

Of course, you can access either one of these on your mobile phone or tablet. However, it’s best to buy a voice assistant device for this purpose alone. Some popular brands include Apple HomePod, Google Nest, and Amazon Echo. These devices allow users to link most smart gadgets with the voice assistant. So, instead of touching your phone to control something, you simply voice out your commands. If, for example, you have a smart lighting system connected to the voice assistant, you can say “turn the living room lights on” or “turn of the lights in the kitchen” instead of going to your phone and opening the specific app that controls the lights. As technology gets more advanced, you can expect them to do a lot more than they are doing now.

Use a Hub

If you feel that controlling the different smarthome apps from your phone is exhausting, you might want to get yourself a smarthome hub. These devices will simplify everything for you. From the hub’s application, you can operate several intelligent devices. For instance, you can change the temperature on your thermostat, lock your doors, switch off lights, etc. all from a single interface.

These hubs are designed to do a lot more. One of these functions is integrating various home gadgets so that they can do multiple complicated tasks. You can also connect your hub to a remote controller and assign some functions to buttons. Make sure you check what products a particular hub is compatible with before you buy it.

Control Your Devices from a Single Application

Using a single application is an excellent way of controlling your smarthome. It is especially essential if other people in your family have access to your smarthome devices. See, if each person is always unsure about the various application controls. Let us say the lights at the living space of your home or the smart plug-ins, then it is effortless for them to abandon the endeavor altogether.

On your part, in case you do not remember what application locks your doors, you will have to spend much time trying all apps. The things are bound to get even dire if you have to adjust seldom-used options such as timers, routines, or scenes.

Nonetheless, if you perform all smarthome device functions using one application, you remove any confusion from the endeavor. The average house will not require sophisticated routines. Therefore, Google Home or Alexa will work great as your single application. It is an excellent approach since the controls for all of your gadgets are in an only place.

Note, you have to ensure that your devices can work with your voice assistant. Presently, there are several in the market. But if you have Google Home or Alexa speakers, you need to check if they can work with your smarthome devices.

You Can Opt for Apple

If you like Apple, HomeKit (works with over 30 different smarthome products) and Home app will come in handy. But even with that said, it is imperative to ensure that your gadgets have HomeKit support. Apple Watch support is one of the standout benefits of using HomeKit. Moreover, it offers exceptional safety thanks to relying on cloud security. Lastly, depending on the hardware you use, you can gain more control over your devices. Consequently, some of your instructions will be executed faster than when using Google Home or Alexa.

If you possess a smart hub, the good thing about them is that they come with applications with dashboards for controlling your gadgets. However, the downside is that you cannot manage all features, for example, routines using the app.

All told, you have to note that “single app control” is not a “single app install.” You have to install a specific app for your smarthome appliance and then set it up. After that, you proceed to link it to your single-application solution, such as Google Home, HomeKit, or Alexa.

Get a Tablet for Your Smart Devices Only

Using a dedicated tablet is another excellent way of controlling your smarthome appliances. By using a tablet for this purpose solely, you are at more liberty to customize the home screen to suit your smarthome control needs. You can put all of your smarthome applications on the home screen and even create shortcuts/ widgets for various purposes.

Need help building your own smart home? Check out the Smart Home 101 video below from Tech with Brett:

Covered above are some of the best ways of controlling your smarthome devices. But even with that said, the solution you settle on should allow for a straightforward setup process and easy management. After all, your objective is to find a way that makes things easy for you.