Pros and Cons of Having a Smart Home

How would you like to manage your house from the beach? Turning off the lights, answering the person at the door, or locking your door that you forgot to lock when you went out. With smart home, all of these are possible.

A smart home is integrating the IoT (internet of things) into your home systems to control them remotely via a smartphone. This technology provides high-tech functionality in homes that was not possible in the past. This includes automation, voice command, and controlling the lights, temperature, and security systems around the house remotely.

If you’re interested in this innovation, it is crucial to learn its pros and cons and find out if it’s worthwhile to build or transform your house into a smart home.

Here are the pros of a smart home.

1. Convenient. Having a smart home allows operating home systems automatically or remotely with the use of your smartphone. This means that you don’t have to step out from your room or wherever you are to manage elements of your home such as lights, temperature, and appliances. You can either set them to run automatically or control them using your phone. Even when you are away. You can also use voice command when you are at home. For instance, “Google, play music” or “Alexa, lights on”.
2. Safety. Monitoring your home even when you’re out of town can be easily done. You can watch real-time videos captured by your surveillance cameras, receive alerts when a threat is detected, and check your locks and control them through your mobile phone. You can also turn off smart appliances that you forgot to turn off and avoid overheating which can cause fire.
3. Energy efficiency. Setting your lights, thermostat devices, and appliances to function automatically can greatly reduce your energy consumption as it prevents unnecessary energy usage. Also, when you forgot to shut them off, you can immediately turn them off with your fingertips.
4. Accessibility. Smart homes can be a good solution for elderly or disabled people. Since the technology can be run automatically or controlled via voice command or a smartphone, it requires minimal effort to perform a task. For instance, turning off the lights, answering people at the door, locking the door, and doing laundry. Smart surveillance cameras are also helpful in monitoring them while you are in another room or at work.
5. Increase value of your property. Smart homes have higher selling prices than conventional residences. Many people are willing to pay more for houses that have smart technology. Equipped with features such as: automatic lights, door locks, security systems, climate control, and appliances.

On the other hand, here are the cons of a smart home.

1. Expensive. Building smart homes has higher initial investment than traditional houses. Smart devices and appliances are pricier than non-smart devices. Plus the cost of integrating smart systems in your home may require a professional to ensure that all will work smoothly.
2. Power surges. Since this technology relies on electronic devices, voltage may spike unexpectedly. This may result to damage of electrical devices in your home. To avoid this from happening, make sure that your house has a surge protector or install a whole-home surge processor.
3. Compatibility. To make all systems work seamlessly together, you have to make sure that each device is compatible with your choice of smart assistant. There are many smart home technology manufacturers but not all of their products are compatible with every smart assistant. For instant, the August Smart lock is compatible with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, but not with SmartThings.
4. Vulnerability to internet downtime. Many smart home functions will not work without internet connectivity. You can’t control the systems remotely, do a voice command, and have a real-time video monitoring of your house while you’re away. The good thing is some important functions will still work even with no internet connection. For instance, smart locks, smoke alarms, and thermostats. Some smart cameras also can record videos locally while the internet connection is down.

Smart home technology clearly has great advantages for homeowners. It offers a different level of convenience, security, accessibility, and comfort. Plus it lets you save energy which is beneficial for Mother Earth. Like all other things, smart homes also have some drawbacks. Disadvantages that can be mitigated as the technology advances.

Smart homes are the future of living. Sooner or later all of our houses will be integrated with smart technology. Just like how corded telephones become obsolete as we embrace smartphones. I hope you find this article helpful in deciding if it’s worthwhile to invest in a smart home.