What Makes Devices smart?
A smart device is a device that we use in our daily lives at home or work that has the ability to receive and send commands and data over the internet. Smart switches can send and receive commands to turn on and off over the internet. Smart devices can receive commands both from a person and other devices. For instance, a window sensor can send a command for the lights to turn on, this is called an automation which we will cover later in this article. A smart home is a home that has embraced the use of these devices in that many devices and appliances can communicate with each other and be operated remotely Smart device industry is so big with many tech companies like google with Nest products operating on google home app, Amazon, Xiaomi, Phillips with the Hue bulbs, emastiff with security sensors and so many companies, we can never exhaust the list.
First thing that makes a device smart is its ability to send and receive commands. Smart devices do not have to be operated directly with physical buttons. With smart home applications like google home, or smart home operating systems like Control4, and hubs, they can be controlled remotely. At Tommie's we mostly use Tuya application through which you can do virtually anything. You can receive a doorphone call through the smart intercomm, lock your doors (check smart locks), adjust temperature, water your garden and do many other things.
The second very critical ability checking status of your home. You are able to know that your front door was unlocked at noon, your lights are on, the smoke sensor is beeping or a person was detected near your car. This makes those devices really useful, ability to to receive data from them to anywhere you are in the world. Our H-type smart security system for instance can alert you of open door when leaving a home (check it out here).
What is an Automation?
An automation is when you set the devices in your smart home eco-system to behave a certain way that gives you convenience. Have you ever woken up feeling so hot and opened your windows, or turned on your fan. In s smart home, you could simply instruct the temperature sensor to turn on your fan once the temperature exceeds a certain point. This is what we call an automation. You could set your lights to turn on at only 20% brightness when there is motion past midnight. You could instruct your systems to turn off all devices and power to all devices once there is no one in the home, (the smart systems can know when no one using tricks like when the wifi is not connected to any phone).
What are Routines?
Routines are rules you give your devices to operate on. They are basically schedules. You can schedule your lights to turn on at 10% by 6 Pm, increase to 30% by 6:30 pm increase to 70% by 7pm and start reducing again by 10 Pm. This is a routine. Fortunately most smart device manufacturer make them able to achieve a very wide range of characteristics. For example simple smart bulbs can change from warm light, to cool white light, to any color and any brightness. Therefore, you can easily instruct the light to turn to red light at 30% brightness on a Sunday evening.
What are the challenges of smart homes?
Just as Hayes says in his article. Smart homes will create a steep learning curve if you are not tech savvy. Besides the fact that they cost a lot more than conventional devices, smart devices may need maintenance. A smart home will require a smart home technician that will cost a little more than the other technicians to maintain and run a smart home.
Installing A smart Home In Kenya
Well while smart technologies are common in other countries especially western and Asian countries, in Kenya it is quite new. As installers we have the job to let the market first know that those technologies exist even before we try to sell it. This means the challenges smart homes industry faces in Kenya are wider. First many people fail to recognize the benefits they will have for spending a little more in systems. Even when it comes to security, most people will prefer physical barriers and electric fences and fail to understand how a home security kit may enhance home security. It is a fact that we face more security challenges than some countries with high adoption rates of smart security systems but we fall behind in adoption. Ironically, smart security systems are among the cheapest smart homes systems. And actually, you would rather know of an incident happening in real time at your home to help reduce the damage.
We have a low purchasing power that makes smart homes companies, tommie's inclusive, struggling to find ways to lower the cost of smart homes systems. Which we are excelling at but find difficulty to convince homeowners, real estate companies and property developers that they need this. As we continue to push up the adoption rates, smart homes technology is not a concept anymore but a reality that we are living in today.