Tag: hue

Easy Smarthome Devices to Increase Your Homes Value

From smart thermostats to automated lighting and everything in between, there’s no question that innovative, Internet-enabled technology can make a home more fun, convenient and safe. What you may not know, however, is that it also represents a potentially valuable investment. Im going to take a$7000 investment to smart home upgrade to increase my homes value by $25000. Lets look at how I spent it and what value it brings.

Appliances

I started with replacing the refrigerator and stove, with smart appliances.

for a combined $4300 I installed the Samsung Family Hub 2.0 wifi enabled fridge and the Self-Cleaning Slide-In Gas Convection Range both in stainless steel of course. considering I was going to have to spend $2000 anyway on these appliance the extra money to purchase the smart appliance is well worth it for the wow factor alone.

Samsung Family Hub 2.0 Refrigerator

The Samsung Smart Fridge is really cool, looks great, creates shopping lists and lets me see inside from anywhere with 3 built-in cameras. It also set expiration notifications to make sure everything is fresh. Plus it has Bixby built in for a digital voice assistant right in the kitchen, I’ve always wanted to talk to my refrigerator.

Samsung Self-Cleaning Slide-In Gas Convection Range

The stove looks like something you would see in a professionals kitchen, its no joke. There are cooking options with the intuitive guiding light controls. This lets you program your favorite recipes, plus easily control temperature and time settings. Wi-Fi connection gives you real-time alerts and control the cooktop and oven remotely. You just have to download the app for iOS or Android devices.

I was able to get both devices with a bundle package at best buy, factoring the money I was going to spend anyways im only out ($2130)

Lighting

Next step set the mood, for 3 main light switched I installed the Brilliant Smart Panel. With the digital touch screen or simple verbal commands, this switch can control your homes lights, air conditioning, intercom system, video surveillance, music and has a built in camera and even the ability to make video calls.

I replaced all light bulbs with Phillips Hue Smart Lighting, this will allow the lights to be controlled from the 3 smart-panels, with the color bulbs setting different lighting and the colored light strips in the kitchen.

This has added a great wow factor, adding in the Sonos speakers already through out the house. I can set music and lighting with just a shout. ($1000)

Little Things

The Smart Panel for Brilliant can control a lot of smart devices, so I upgrade my thermostat to the Nest, a Smart lock from August, Skydrop 8-Zone Smart Sprinkler Controller, Smart Security Video system from Nest with a video doorbell and an Amazon Eco Show for Alexa integration with all the new devices. ($1500)

Bathrooms

This home has 2 bathrooms so I’ve updated both toilets to the Smart 1 Piece by OVE. Little expensive, but a heated seat, warm bidet water, and air drying features are a big sell for small price. This looks great and comes with a remote control. You can adjust the power and temperature right from your remote.

I also updated the 2 shower-heads and added the Moen U Shower Smart Home Connected Bathroom Controller. The Moen U integrates smart temperature control, timers and also an app. You can even pre-time your morning shower, walk yourself to the bathroom and it turns on automatically as soon as it senses your presence!

I have effectively updated my home and prepped it for sale. With these little upgrade I have moved my home from the bottom end of its appraisal to the top by making it a cutting edge smart-home and increasing my value and netting me an extra $18, 000 after the sale.

February 17, 2021
SmartHome Automation and the 5 Gadgets you Need

We all have dreamed of the day when in George Jetson style all the devices in your life could connect to the internet. No im just talking about computers and smartphones, but everything: clocks, speakers, lights, door bells, cameras, windows, window blinds, hot water heaters, appliances, cooking utensils. All of it. Then we need those devices to communicate to each other, send you information, and take your commands. It’s not science fiction or a crazy 60’s cartoon, it’s the Internet of Things (IoT) and SmartHome Automation, and it’s glorious.

SmartHome Automation is exactly what it sounds like: digitally enabling everything from window shades to pet feeders—with a simple push of a button or a shout of your voice. Some activities, like setting up a lamp to turn on and off at your whim, are really cheap and easy. Then we have things like advanced surveillance cameras that are a bit trickier and require a more serious investment of time and money.

Lets take a Look at some of the latest and greatest in home automation.

1. iCamera Keep Pro

The iCamera Keep Pro from iSmartAlarm ($199.99) is a full-featured home security camera that not only works as a standalone device, but can be incorporated into an iSmartAlarm DIY security system. The camera is full of useful features including a powerful 1080p image sensor, motion and sound detection, mechanical pan and tilt, time-lapse and event-triggered video recording, and a motion-tracking feature that allows the camera to follow a person around the room. Throw in free cloud storage, an SD card slot for local storage, and support for IFTTT integration, and you’ve got a killer indoor security cam.

2.Phillips HUE

One thing that you might want to do as soon as you decide to make your home a smart home is switch out the light bulbs – something easier said than done considering how many different options out there. Of them all, however, we think the best smart light bulbs are Philips Hue range of smart bulbs.

If you opt for Philips Hue bulbs, you will need to get the Philips Bridge, which is kind of like a hub for your lights. The advantage, however, is reliability, and the fact that the system is compatible with a range of different standards and home control systems including Apple HomeKit, Nest and Samsung SmartThings.

3. iHome ISP5 Control Smart Plug

While there are great smart replacements for many devices, a much simpler option is simply using connected plugs in your power outlets. Doing so will give any device that plugs into a power outlet basic smart features like the ability to turn the device on and off, or the ability to monitor the device’s power usage.

There are quite a few smart plugs out there (seriously, so many), but the best is the iHome ISP5 Control Smart Plug. It’s Wi-Fi enabled, and works with HomeKit, Nest and Wink – so it should play nice with your other smart home devices.

4. The Wink Hub 2

One device to rule them all, the Wink Hub 2 works with devices that use Z-Wave, Zigbee, Lutron Clear Connect, Kidde, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi. It is also for the future. That includes just about everything in the smart home spectrum, from Philips Hue lighting and the Netgear Arlo camera, to Google Home. It’s the most reliable, widely supported hub we’ve tested.

5.Haiku Home L Series 52-inch Indoor/Outdoor WiFi Enabled White Ceiling Fan with LED Light

This smart ceiling fan is compatible with Alexa for a fully voice-controlled cooling system. It has been specially tested to ensure that it won’t rattle, click, or wobble and features an integrated LED light. Easily control settings via the included remote or mobile app. Add in a smart Thermostat and just tell your house what temperature it should be. Nice.

The Final SmartHome Automation Thought

We have gone over and over this a dozen times, SmartHome Automation functionality is the kitchen remodel of the 21st century. All these devices are relatively inexpensive but can really boost the value of your home. Besides the value they can great increase your enjoyment by making your life easier and much more relaxing. Try not to relax with the Hues orange glow light setting after supper, I dare you.

July 11, 2018
Easy Smarthome Devices to Increase Your Homes Value

From smart thermostats to automated lighting and everything in between, there’s no question that innovative, Internet-enabled technology can make a home more fun, convenient and safe. What you may not know, however, is that it also represents a potentially valuable investment. Im going to take a$7000 investment to smart home upgrade to increase my homes value by $25000. Lets look at how I spent it and what value it brings.

Appliances

I started with replacing the refrigerator and stove, with smart appliances.

for a combined $4300 I installed the Samsung Family Hub 2.0 wifi enabled fridge and the Self-Cleaning Slide-In Gas Convection Range both in stainless steel of course. considering I was going to have to spend $2000 anyway on these appliance the extra money to purchase the smart appliance is well worth it for the wow factor alone.

Samsung Family Hub 2.0 Refrigerator

The Samsung Smart Fridge is really cool, looks great, creates shopping lists and lets me see inside from anywhere with 3 built-in cameras. It also set expiration notifications to make sure everything is fresh. Plus it has Bixby built in for a digital voice assistant right in the kitchen, I’ve always wanted to talk to my refrigerator.

Samsung Self-Cleaning Slide-In Gas Convection Range

The stove looks like something you would see in a professionals kitchen, its no joke. There are cooking options with the intuitive guiding light controls. This lets you program your favorite recipes, plus easily control temperature and time settings. Wi-Fi connection gives you real-time alerts and control the cooktop and oven remotely. You just have to download the app for iOS or Android devices.

I was able to get both devices with a bundle package at best buy, factoring the money I was going to spend anyways im only out ($2130)

Lighting

Next step set the mood, for 3 main light switched I installed the Brilliant Smart Panel. With the digital touch screen or simple verbal commands, this switch can control your homes lights, air conditioning, intercom system, video surveillance, music and has a built in camera and even the ability to make video calls.

I replaced all light bulbs with Phillips Hue Smart Lighting, this will allow the lights to be controlled from the 3 smart-panels, with the color bulbs setting different lighting and the colored light strips in the kitchen.

This has added a great wow factor, adding in the Sonos speakers already through out the house. I can set music and lighting with just a shout. ($1000)

Little Things

The Smart Panel for Brilliant can control a lot of smart devices, so I upgrade my thermostat to the Nest, a Smart lock from August, Skydrop 8-Zone Smart Sprinkler Controller, Smart Security Video system from Nest with a video doorbell and an Amazon Eco Show for Alexa integration with all the new devices. ($1500)

Bathrooms

This home has 2 bathrooms so I’ve updated both toilets to the Smart 1 Piece by OVE. Little expensive, but a heated seat, warm bidet water, and air drying features are a big sell for small price. This looks great and comes with a remote control. You can adjust the power and temperature right from your remote.

I also updated the 2 shower-heads and added the Moen U Shower Smart Home Connected Bathroom Controller. The Moen U integrates smart temperature control, timers and also an app. You can even pre-time your morning shower, walk yourself to the bathroom and it turns on automatically as soon as it senses your presence!

I have effectively updated my home and prepped it for sale. With these little upgrade I have moved my home from the bottom end of its appraisal to the top by making it a cutting edge smart-home and increasing my value and netting me an extra $18, 000 after the sale.

February 24, 2018
Phillips Hue is Lighting up Our Homes.
The Good
- Smart bulb with LED color changing technology
- 16 Million different color variations
- Easy set-up and user friendly app
The Bad
- $199.99 for a pack of four light bulbs can be costly
- The bulbs are known to make a somewhat loud humming noise
- the larger bulbs may not fit in some enclosed light fixtures
The Conclusion

These are excellent quality bulbs aside from being significantly less bright than their incandescent counterparts, but are still bright enough to light up a room. Of course, being as expensive as they are, it’s hard to stomach using more than one in a room. There’s no voice or motion control, no built-in automated control other than alarms, and no physical remotes or switches available. Without any of this, these are extremely limited in their capabilities. and therefore hard to recommend at this price. If all you need is basic colored lighting, that’s the way to go. But Phillips has the ability to do something great here and it’s off to a good start so far. If you’re into the mood lighting and need the color varieties, then this is the option for you.

Smart Bulbs.

Originally launched in 2012, the Phillips Hue lighting system has made progress and suffered setbacks. with a very impressive lighting system many are hooked. The basic light kit that comes with four light bulbs and a control bridge. It is incredibly simple to set up. Connect the bridge to your Wi-fi and swap out the new bulbs and you’re up and running. The range of colors you can get is amazing, and the ability to set timers from your iPhone is a nice touch. Set them to gradually turn on in the morning with an alarm clock, turn off when you leave for work, and on again in the evenings. With a set up like this, you don’t really have to worry about turning the lights on and off, except at bed time. By adding these lights into your lifestyle, you might be able to sleep better, relax more, and even save on the electricity bill. But a big downside to the system is the price. at $199.00 for the starter pack, it seems pricey for four light bulbs. Maybe once Phillips get down the road a bit, the prices will drop. I hope…

Final Thoughts

The highly controllable lighting system works well and is easy to set up. Being able to easily program your lights to come on, go off, or brighten and fade is just wonderful. Having control of the color of light can so drastically affect the mood in a room or an entire home. A highlight is the fade function. It really seems to slowly lull you into a peaceful state, ready to go to sleep. The cons for now are it’s still pricey and the Hue application for your phone or tablet is basic. Additionally when you are away from home, the app is even more limited. If Phillips plans to address these issues in the near future, you can see a lot more of these popping up in homes.
January 17, 2018