Welcome to our Smart Home and Automation category page—the hub for all things smart and convenient that can revolutionise your daily living. Here, you’ll find comprehensive guides, reviews, and the latest news on devices and ecosystems that promise to make your home safer, more efficient, and undeniably more enjoyable.
Smart Home and Automation refers to the network of intelligent devices and systems that connect to the internet and to each other, offering remote control, monitoring, and data collection. From voice-activated lighting to intelligent cooking appliances, this category spans a wide array of products designed to bring ease and automation into your home life.
Whether you’re a tech-savvy early adopter or a homeowner seeking practical solutions for everyday tasks, smart home tech offers a wide range of applications that can genuinely improve your living standards.
Whether you’re just starting your smart home journey or looking to expand your existing setup, our Smart Home and Automation category is rich with expert advice, detailed reviews, and the latest updates to help you make informed decisions. Dive in and discover how smart your home can truly be!
Philips Hue, the smart lighting brand from Signify, has announced several new product launches that aim to provide more flexibility and integration for designing personalized lighting experiences in the home. The products include a unique new wall light with dual beam control, new connectors for the Philips Hue Perifo track lighting system to enable more…
I didn’t have the best experience with Matter when I first used it with the Google Nest WiFi Pro, but since then, there has been a growing number of Matter-enabled devices, and I have switched to Home Assistant for all my smart home needs. The AiDot Linkind represent a perfect example of why Matter is…
Everyone loves a good air fryer; they are cheaper to run than an oven and often produce better results while also being healthier due to the reduced need for oil. I have reviewed some excellent fryers over the past few years, including the Proscenic T21 Smart air fryer, Proscenic T31 and the HYSapientia 25L…
I originally wrote this guide back in November 2021 when energy prices started to soar. Over two years later, things I have not improved much and the cost of living continues to have an impact on most people. With the current cold snap and my recent review of the AENO Seasonal Premium Eco panel heater,…
At CES 2024, Reolink has unveiled its latest home security camera, the Duo 3 PoE. The new dual-lens outdoor camera offers higher resolution and expanded features compared to the previous Duo 2 model. Further Reading Reolink Duo 3 vs Duo 2 PoE Specification Comparison Overview of the Reolink Duo 3 PoE The Duo 3 PoE…
I am a big fan of smart heating, and with the cost of gas and electricity, it has become more important than ever to have greater control over your heating. My home has gas-powered central heating, so I don’t particularly need an electric heater, but this Aeno Premium Eco Smart LED Heater is superb, albeit…
TP-Link is unveiling a range of new products across its Tapo smart home brand at CES 2024 this week. With a focus on whole-home solutions, TP-Link is launching devices for security, access control, cleaning, lighting, energy monitoring and automation. Centralised control with the Tapo Smart HomeBase At the centre of TP-Link’s new product lineup is…
Following on from the announcement of the Aqara Hub M3, which is one of the most advanced smart home hubs on the market with Matter, Thread, and Zigbee support, Aqara has also announced two additional smart home devices at CES 2024. Border Router Plug First to Add Thread Support The headline product launch was Aqara’s…
Consumer electronics company Aqara has announced the upcoming launch of its latest smart home hub, the Hub M3, at CES 2024. The new hub builds on the capabilities of the previous Hub M2 model, which was their first Matetr-enabled hub, and adds support for multiple new connectivity standards, enabling integration with an expanded range of…
At CES 2024, MediaTek, a leading fabless semiconductor company, has announced a new collaboration with Google to develop a multi-radio chipset solution supporting Thread, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and Matter for smart home devices. The chipset aims to enable faster and more reliable connections between devices from different manufacturers and ecosystems. Related Content New Filogic Chipset Combines…
I have previously reviewed the excellent Paulmann Velora Zigbee Smart LED Panel, which is an excellent alternative to the Philips Hue light panels. More recently, I have been checking out the range of Paulmann Zigbee bulbs, which can be integrated into a Philips Hue system just as easily as a normal Hue bulb. I have…
In the increasingly crowded marketplace of robot vacuums, the technologies that power these nifty devices have become more advanced and varied. When it comes to navigation and mapping—key features that differentiate a sophisticated robot vacuum from a glorified dustpan—two technologies seem to stand out: Camera vSLAM and LiDAR Mapping. As someone who has dived deep…