Consumers are weighing the benefits of 'smart' homes

There are all kinds of gadgets on store shelves now for automating your home. Using a smartphone, you can adjust the thermostat, turn up the heat and turn on the lights before you get out of bed.
With all those choices – and more – it seems we're most impressed with just one part of the “smart” home product catalogs: security systems.
That detail comes from a report by Mooresville-based Lowe’s home improvement store, which collected opinions from more than 2,000 people last year for its Smart Home Survey.
Sixty-two percent of those surveyed ranked security and home monitoring as the top benefit of smart-home technology.
Half of the respondents said their homes would be more secure with access to features such as locks that can be set remotely. Forty-six percent said they would want to monitor their property when they are away from home.
So while retailers are pushing to get technology onto their shelves to give us more conveniences and energy savings, many consumers are still deciding.
You probably can guess why there might be cautious excitement for the broader range of products. Cost is one reason.
For home monitoring, these consumers are less excited about systems that call for a monthly fee, according to the survey.
I’ve got to agree. I’ve been looking for a new security system for months to get around the bills that just keep going up. I just want a reliable, basic setup, maybe the type you install yourself.
I’ll keep trolling the aisles to find something that works. I’m sure I’ll have plenty of company as I do.

Karen’s blog: http://homelifeclt.blogspot.com; on Twitter @sullivan_kms

Some retailers will focus on home automation for holidays

We know we'll see tinsel and bows go up in about six weeks as retailers set up for the holidays. You probably wouldn't have guessed that gadgets for home automation also would be a focus of the festivities.
Wireless and remote controls for your home ultimately are expected to be such a big market that retailers want us to think about them whenever we're focused on making the house more efficient and organized.
These are systems that let us use a smartphone, computer or tablet to turn on the lights, adjust the thermostat and unlock the doors.
Apple is said to be working on a system called HomeKit. Microsoft has Insteon for its retail locations, one of which is expanding at SouthPark mall.
Lowe's started selling Iris systems in 500 retail stores in 2012. Today you can find Iris at all 1,750 locations, said Jaclyn Pardini, a spokesperson at the company’s headquarters here. Displays are in each store to help customers understand what these systems can do.
“This is still very new to consumers,” Pardini said.
Last year the company offered Iris deals for black Friday. A whole-house water shutoff system is coming in October, the official start of the store’s holiday season. With the new product, you'll be in control if your pipes burst while you're having Thanksgiving dinner far from home.
Karen’s blog: http://homelifeclt.blogspot.com; on Twitter @sullivan_kms

Lock up some funding for Habitat

Buying new locks and door hardware for your home can also support Habitat for Humanity’s international work.
Yale Locks & Hardware is donating 10 percent of sales from online orders to Habitat, which builds and renovates homes for qualifying families based on their income and other requirements.
Shoppers get a 10 percent discount on the New Haven, Conn.-based company’s products when they use the program code (HFH14) through Oct. 21.
The pictures on the program website (www.yale2you.com//Other/HFH.aspx) are a reminder that the ideal of a safe, secure home is a starkly different vision depending on which side of the door locks you find yourself standing.
For some, safe and secure means having your family and your belongings protected by an alarm system, perhaps one controlled from a smartphone or computer. At the other end of the spectrum are people who can hardly imagine ever owning a home that would be considered safe and secure, much less one equipped with automated locks that open and close without keys. Habitat has made ownership possible for more than 4 million people.
Yale has partnered with Habitat for 13 years and provided more than $14 million worth of interior and exterior door locks so far for Habitat in North America. This additional effort will reach further.
“This new campaign will help raise additional funding vital to Habitat’s mission to create safe, affordable housing in partnership with low-income families around the world,” Colleen Finn, an exec for Habitat for Humanity International, said in a statement.

Karen’s blog: http://homelifeclt.blogspot.com; on Twitter @sullivan_kms

Smart homes aren't just for the luxury market

You date yourself by admitting you were an adult by the time you sent your first text message.
Now, it seems coming home to a dark house, a chilly living room and cold stove will soon make you a cultural relic.
Generation automation is here.
Researchers predict that 50 million buildings globally – the majority of them residential – will be equipped for automation by 2018, according to a report from On World, a technology research firm.
“In the past three to four years, we’ve seen a huge change in the number smart homes,” said Mareca Hatler, On World’s research director. “It used to be pretty much a luxury market.”
With costs dropping, consumers are buying automation to control energy use, lighting, security and entertainment systems, On World says in its “Smart Building Set” forecast.
Annual shipments of wireless gadgets are expected to increase by more than 600 percent over the next five years, the report predicts.
Getting home late tonight? Adjust the thermostat to save a few dollars.
Wi-Fi and Bluetooth will still be popular for in-home networks. ZigBee, Z-Wave and EnOcean are also names to watch for entertainment, fitness, medical and monitoring tools.
When the doorbell rings, live video on your smartphone lets you see who is outside. Tap the screen to unlock the door. Yes, your keys are headed to the time capsule, too.

Sullivan: homelifeclt.blogspot.com and @sullivan_obs on Twitter