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Techonomist Take
By Maimun Ur Rashid Mustafa
CONTROLLING
YOUR CASTLE –
TOMORROW’S
SMART
HOMES
Your home is your domain and as
technology advances, you want to
reign supreme as its monarch. Real
estate infrastructure is developing
immensely with the latest technology
that leverages the here-and-how, and
up-and-coming IoT solutions. Welcome
to the dawn of the smart home!
Smart Home Fundamentals
‘Smart homes’ refer to an arrangement of a residential
location where appliances and devices can be
automatically controlled from anywhere via a mobile
device and the internet. Every appliance in a smart home
is connected to each other via the internet, allowing the
user to remotely control functions such as home security,
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December 2021
temperature, lights, home cinema and more. In
essence, a smart home is a context-aware
residential space and more an experience than
just a mere infrastructure.
Devices in a smart home are interconnected and
can be reached using a single central point. This
can range from a smartphone to a game console.
All smart devices in a network can be managed
by a single automated system, installed on a
mobile (or any other web-connected) device.
When linked, services such as smart locks, smart
security systems, and all smart gadgets become
part of the Internet of Things (IoT) technology,
which is a network of electronic devices that can
gather and share date.
Utopian Dream
To visualize the future smart home, imagine the
moment you step into your car from work. When
you are minutes away from arriving at your
house your car GPS detects your location to
signal your smart watch, which in turn
communicates with the home thermostat. Based
on your body temperature, the home air
conditioners adjust the temperature for
maximizing your comfort while the lights turn
on with the right amount of brightness. Doors
open and close automatically as you go to your
shower where a perfectly warm or cold shower
awaits you. With minimal interaction your home
comprehends your needs and makes intelligent
decisions accordingly.
Connected World
Currently there are already at least 7 billion
connected IoT devices, as per the data of
market-research company, IoT Analytics.
According to Swedish research firm Berg Insight,
63 million American homes will fall under the
“smart” category within 2022 and this will
encompass everything ranging from connected
light bulbs to home security cameras. However,
in the years to come, the change from utilizing
our voices to completely immersive experiences
in the IoT awaits this growing real estate
phenomenon.
According to advisory firm ABI Research,
consumers will spend $123 billion on IoT gear by
2021. Research firm IDC estimates that in
addition to internet-connected televisions,
producers are putting their R&D and marketing
funds into home-monitoring and security
gadgets to claim 22.6% of the smart-home
market share by 2023. Smart speakers and
lighting equipment are slightly behind, at 15.4%
and 11.8% respectively
Savings All the Way
Smart homes may help you save on energy costs
by controlling device wake times. IoT devices
may be put to sleep and reawakened with the
right commands, and thus reduce overall power
consumption, and lower electricity bills. A few
gadgets are capable of tracking how much
energy each appliance consumes and issuing
commands to the energy-hogs to consume less
power.
Household Heaven
Ongoing developments in the robotics arena can offer support
with household chores and lifestyle improvement. Smart
vacuum cleaners like iRobot’s Roomba makes household
cleanup tasks easier. On the other hand, products like the
Aibo, a robotic dog for children, provide a technological
alternative to owning a pet. Looking beyond, robotic-furniture
company, Ori Living is collaborating with Ikea on furniture
that change based on your requirements such as getting the
bed out of the way when you need to work on your desk, or
concealing your closet at mealtimes. Nvidia is developing a
smart robotic arm that can do everything from cutting
vegetables to assisting with cleanup.
Healthier Pastures cameras and sensors implanted
Health applications will drive a significant portion of the
smart-home market growth over the next decade. For instance,
in refrigerators can suggest more
nutritious substitutes if people
are reaching for unhealthy
options regularly. Similar tech
check if they have taken their
can support senior citizens to
prescriptions from their
medicine cabinets. Additionally,
sensors in toilets have the
potential to check for signs of
any potential health conditions
by diagnosing human waste.
Finally, households will have
health sensors on the premises,
to analyze and alert
homeowners about water
sanitation, pest infestation, air
condition, and so forth.
Exponential Intelligence
Vital to all of this is the vast amount of data that smart homes
can and will collect for analysis. As artificial intelligence
progresses, the smartest homes will better understand their
occupants, ultimately preempting their needs with minimal or
no human interaction.
Smart Devices vs. Smart Systems
To understand what the top offerings in the smart home
market are, we must first take a look at some terminology. A
'smart system' is essentially what you talk to when you want
something to happen. Alexa and Google Assistant are
examples of smart systems. They are command centers that
manages your various items. On the other hand, a 'smart
device' is an individual product that communicates with the
smart system. Amazon Echo and Philips Hue are examples of
smart devices.
Let us take a look at some of the top smart home gadgets and
systems, so you can determine which is best for you.
Best Smart Home Systems
When looking to buy a smart-home system,
you should consider reading user reviews
online, as well as understand the integration
process. While the customers’ opinions will
tell you if the technology is high-quality or
not, the information about the integration
process will tell you how many items you can
really connect to your system.
While analyzing integrations, remember to
look into the smart devices you currently Best Smart Kitchen
own and check whether they are compatible
with the system. The most effective smart
home systems nowadays are driven by
cutting-edge technology and provide a Appliance
multitude of third-party integration options.
Your smart home experiences will be much
The Brava Oven is one of the
most innovative smart ovens in
more enjoyable if all your gadgets are
connected properly, function well, and are
the market. It can prepare food
simple to use. in ten various ways, has
numerous automated cooking
Here are the 3 major smart home systems in
settings for both ingredients
the market today:
cameras that let you monitor
2. Google Assistant
1. Amazon Alexa and meals, and has built-in
the preparation of your food on
3. Samsung SmartThings Hub
your smartphone.
Best Smart Speaker:
Amazon Echo (fourth generation) is Causes for Concern
undoubtedly at the forefront for a gadget
The threat of hackers and
that can meet your everyday demands at a cybersecurity concerns become
reasonable price. Echo is still the countertop
more critical to consider as
sovereign, thanks to its aesthetic design, every device that is connected to
excellent sound output, and action prediction
the internet is a potential target for criminals. It is alarming to
features. think that some with a few keystrokes can open our locks,
view into our rooms, and steal our most private data. A series
Best Smart Light of distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) assaults carried out by
the Mirai malware in October 2016 left much of the internet
The Philips lighting kit offers 16 million
colors, with 50,000 white hues, helping users inaccessible on the U.S. east coast. The malware exploited
unprotected entry points of smart devices such as cameras,
set the perfect ambience. The Philips Hue DVRs, and routers, and built its own botnet to execute
bulb lets you control the intensity, as well as
the color of your lights. large-scale network attacks. Due to such attacks, there are
many who are opposed to smart home systems. According to a
Best Smart Plug survey conducted by NTT Data, 73 percent of customers are
worried about compromising their privacy because of the
The ConnectSense Smart Outlet 2 may not be
the smallest smart plug on the market, but it smart gadgets in their homes.
provides separate controls for two outlets,
has a convenient USB charging connection, Building Ahead
and keeps you updated on how much power Nevertheless, in today’s world, both industrial and commercial
each outlet is consuming. infrastructure are being equipped with IoT technology, which
is powered by Power over Ethernet (PoE). With that in mind, it
is no wonder that residential infrastructure is next on the list.
Best Home Security System You are more likely than not to end up in a connected home
SimpliSafe’s quick and easy installation and one day, whether you mean to or not. Why not take the first
easy to understand DIY home security system step to your future home today?
is outstanding. It comes with a complete set
of functions, security cameras and a brilliant The Writer is the CEO of MCFG and the Executive Director of Global Chamber
mix of battery-powered sensors. Dhaka. He can be reached at maimun@globalchamber.org