Smart Home Tech for 2019

Smart Home Tech For 2019

Smart Home Technology has recently exploded into various markets and can now be found in almost all homes in one way or another.

We've rounded up a list of the top, industry recommended home tech to take your smart home to the next level this year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Smart Speaker

Amazon Echo (2nd Gen)

 

The second-generation Echo is smaller and more attractive than the original. Plus, you can change its skins to match your decor. Inside, the new Echo does all the same things the original does: control smart home gadgets,  connect to other smart home hubs, read you audiobooks, check the weather, and even let you purchase things online just by using your voice. And, as a speaker, it sounds pretty good, too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Security Camera

Netgear Arlo Q

 

The Arlo Q's 1080p camera boasts excellent quality video, both day and night, has great motion detection, and a flexible scheduling feature. Best of all, though, is that you get a week's worth of video storage for free.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Smart Thermostat

Ecobee 4

 

The Ecobee4 has everything we liked about its predecessor, the Ecobee3, such as a slick touchscreen interface and a remote sensor that helps ensure all the rooms of your house are getting heated or cooled properly. But the newest version also has Alexa built in, so you don't need an Echo or an Echo Dot to control your other smart home devices, ask for the weather, or do anything else you can do with Amazon's voice assistant.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Smart Light Bulb

Philips Hue White A19 Starter Kit

 

Philips Hue White starter kit includes two bulbs and a hub to connect them to other smart home devices. While you can't change these bulbs' colors, you can adjust their brightness (up to 800 lumens), and add up to 50 to a single hub. Philips' bulbs also work with a wide range of smart home systems, including Alexa, Apple HomeKit, IFTTT, Google Home, and Nest. 

Philips also has an app, Philips Hue Sync, which lets users synchronize their smart bulbs with multimedia content on their Mac or Windows PC. For example, you can set your lights to flash and change color in time with music, video and movies being played on your computer.  Users can also modify the color schemes and themes to suit their tastes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Video Doorbell

Nest Hello

 

Nest's device has the best video we've yet seen from a video doorbell cam; its microphone and speaker were excellent, too. Nest's camera can recognize faces, and even announce them when they come to your door. While it needs a hardwired connection, it continuously records video, so you'll never miss an event. You can also set up specific zones, so you'll only be notified when a person or object appears in that area of the frame. While you'll need to subscribe to the Nest Aware service (starting at $5/month) to get all of its features, they're worth it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Smart Plug

TP-LINK Hs105

 

A simple, and inexpensive way to make any device "smart," you can control the power going to the TP-Link HS105 plug from your smartphone, wherever you are. We liked that TP-Link's Kasa app also lets you create a schedule to turn the plug on and off, and has an "Away" mode that will turn your devices on to make it look like you're home. It can also be linked to other smart home devices, such as Alexa and Google Home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Smoke/Carbon Monoxide Detector

Nest Protect

 

Not only does the Nest Protect detect smoke and carbon monoxide, but its sensors are designed to pick up both slow- and fast-burning fires. Plus, the Protect will tell you in which room the fire is located, and can be linked to other smart home devices, so that it can automatically turn on your Philips Hue lights in the event of an emergency.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Smart Lock

August Smart Lock Pro

 

We like August's Smart Lock Pro for its ease of installation, features that let you know if your door is ajar, and deep integration with other smart home devices, from Alexa to HomeKit to Google Home, not to mention August's DoorBell Cam.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Smart Home Hub

Samsung Smartthings

 

If you have a wide variety of smart home gadgets, you'll need a central system to integrate and control them all. While it has its imperfections, we found the Samsung SmartThings hub to be the best of the lot. It works with a wide range of devices and now has Wi-Fi built in, so you don't need to plug it into your router; this makes it easier to place in your house for the best connection to all your smart home devices.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Smart Garage Door Opener

Chamberlain MyQ Garage

 

Searching or reaching for that elusive garage door opener remote while trying to navigate a dark suburban street, toppled garbage cans or your kids' toys – or your kids – often proves awkward and dangerous. Chamberlain's garage door opener lets you tap your device's screen to open or close your garage from anywhere. Soon, the company also plans to add geofencing capabilities so it can sense when you're near your driveway to automatically open and, when your car is safely ensconced inside, close your existing garage door. MyQ can control nearly every garage door opener from all the major brands manufactured after 1993.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Robot Vacuum

Samsung Powerbot R7070

 

It's not easy keeping a house clean, but the Samsung Powerbot R7070 can certainly help. In our tests, this midpriced robot vacuum was one of the best at picking up pet hair and getting the food scraps in the corners. It's easy to schedule, works with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, and features one of the most user-friendly dustbins of the vacuums we tested.