Source: Al Twitty/Realty Biz News
Smart homes first started when labor-saving machines were introduced to our society. From the 1900s, it’s been self-contained electric or gas powered home appliances such as washing machines, refrigerators, or dryers. With the introduction of the X10 in 1975, everything home related started becoming much more technological. Today, the idea of a smart home has come a long way with residences equipped with technology that allows for easy connectivity, monitoring and controlling, either from a central device or remotely. Moreover, the smart characteristics of a home today both boost home energy efficiency as well as the over-all value of the home.
Smart home technology provides homeowners the convenience to adjust or control things with much less effort. For example, homeowners can now schedule appliances to function at certain times of the day. When the family goes on vacation, lights or the television can be scheduled to turn on at specific times in order to give an impression that people are home, which could be an excellent way to deter burglars.
“People can choose to buy individual home-gadgets and use them separately via their own, individual apps and devices. Many homeowners, however, choose to have the entire home automation system set up. Smart home automation systems, such as those offered by the market leader ABB, in fact, are taking the front seat when it comes to home technology and design. Let’s have a look at some other trends to watch out for in 2017.
IoT and Smart Home Tech
Homeowners should be looking forward to the further development of the Internet of Things (IoT), the very service that enables the easy interconnectedness of home appliances and technology. With major companies realizing the need for single, seamless user-experience technologies, there will be some major developments and advancements that will make it much easier to control and adjust home technology and appliances with the use of the Internet. Some of these will include Nest, heated driveways and smart fridges, which will, with time, only become more affordable.
Daylight Harvesting
With increased energy costs, why not make use of the sun’s energy to make the home smart? In fact, daylight harvesting maximizes natural light to increase the productivity and efficiency levels of the home. Some of these are motorized shades that can be integrated into a smart home automation system and work in such a way that the space uses less artificial light on sunny days, and more artificial light on cloudy ones. These are also effective in protecting furniture from UV rays. They can be controlled with Apple/android apps or with a remote control.
Automated Gardens
The gardens will also become automated to enable controlling the outside of your home. For example, the sprinkler system will be able to be programmed to recognize when it is raining so that it functions accordingly. It will also be able to detect levels of humidity and soil type, for example. This can also be remotely controlled and monitored so even when homeowners are away, the garden or the lawn can be kept in a good condition. Gardeners will love this aspect in particular.
Futuristic Pools
A pool is a rather expensive investment. One has to have the right climate and the space for it. But if you can afford this luxury, a few pool trends will be making splashes by the next year. Various types, such as infinity pools or rooftop pools, are predicted to be one of the 2017 hits. Apart form these, waterfalls, grottos and natural-looking pool spaces are ready to be introduced as well.
Kitchen Appliances
Most new kitchen appliances will have the option of using the phone/tablet app to control them. This will make many things faster and more efficient, saving us energy as well as time. You will be able to tap your phone’s screen a couple of times and set your coffee brewer on while you’re still half asleep in your bed. Cooking a roast will eliminate the temperature checks from the procedure and will be as simple as pressing on a few buttons to secure a perfect cooking time and temperature.
Smart home systems will continue to advance as long as technology does too. Soon enough, all homes will be equipped with highly-advanced technologies that will make maintenance and home functions much easier and more convenient. Everything will be programmed and controlled in ways that will suit every homeowner’s personal lifestyle and schedule.
