Upgrading Your Home to a Smart Home

Published on: 26 November 2018 Last Updated on: 13 December 2021

It seems like a thing of the future; something reminiscent of sci-fi films set on spaceships, complete with large, omniscient motherboard computers. But having a smart home controlled by virtual voice command technology is very much a thing of the present. With the release of Apple’s Siri technology in 2011, the virtual assistant game was changed. The ability to give commands verbally to an in-device personality, Siri, opened the door for easier, more productive living. Now with Amazon and Google joining the race, and other companies following suit, there’s suddenly a whole heap of new virtual assistant options.

Moving away from purely phone/tablet based assistants, the market now includes home-based alternatives. Google Home or Amazon’s Echo (complete with assistant Alexa) allows users to turn their space into “smart homes”, wherein with a simple verbal command, they can instruct their assistant to perform all kinds of tasks around the home, such as turning lights on and off.

There are also some things you should be careful about. According to Lendi smart home can be targeted by hackers since the whole house is connected via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.

Some of the best things include While upgrading Smart Home:

Controlling lights
Changing a home’s temperature
Playing music
Opening/closing garage doors

There are loads more options you can choose from, and third-party capabilities you can put in place (Amazon’s Alexa can perform over 10,000 tasks!), like creating lighting sensors, or scheduling changes to your lights, alarms, and thermostat.

Virtual voice assistants also signal a massive change in the lives of people living with disabilities or illness. The chance to utilise voice commands to perform everyday tasks removes the barrier that mobility issues and physical impairment create. For able-bodied people, virtual assistants are a cool new way to increase productivity and promote convenience. Consider then the massive improvement this technology can make in the lives of people living and thriving with disabilities. The extra support can be life-changing. All in all, another point scored for the virtual assistants’ pros list.

So, the basic gist is that having your house properly set up as a smart home is awesome and opens you up to a heap of benefits. However, setting the system up can be confusing.

You’ll largely need to consider two things:

Choosing your assistant:

The main players that hold the monopoly on the smart home/virtual assistant market are Amazon’s Alexa, Apple’s Siri, and Google’s Assistant. They all have their pros and cons, and your choosing which one suits you best is ultimately a matter of personal preference. They all offer easy-to-use voice commands, but there are several different things to consider when deciding on an assistant:

Price
Capabilities (what can you do/control?)
Compatibility with Android or Apple products
Ease of set-up (how long and difficult is it to get running?)
Ease of use (Is it perceptive and easy to talk to?)
Assistant’s intelligence (How easily and well it can answer questions.)

Choose your hardware:

After deciding on your virtual assistant, you’ll need physical hardware to support it. Each different assistant offers different options, like the Amazon Echo. They too have their pros and cons. There are also different models of each hardware device, so there are multiple cost, sound and utility options. Your hardware largely depends on which assistant you choose, so that will also narrow down your options.

The last important thing to think about when considering the purchase of a virtual voice assistant is your internet’s performance. If you’re having to use your phone’s personal hotspot at home because your connection is slow and temperamental, perhaps think about changing your home internet’s carrier or plan. You’ll need to choose a reliable broadband connection to run and use your assisting device, and you may need to research bandwidth, and how this affects how well your devices stream content and perform commands.

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8 Smart House Upgrades that are Totally Worth the Money

Looking to add a little resale value to your house? Choose wisely! Some house upgrades are worth it, but not all of them are a great investment. Smart house upgrade is essential for your lovely home. Upgrade your home the right way. Increase the value of your home with smart upgrades that return your money and then some! Different ways Smart House Upgrades can make things easier for you. 8 Smart House Upgrades that Pay Off Here are some of the best ways to upgrade your home and increase the resale value. These 8 ideas are totally worth the money! 1. Clean, Fresh Paint: When a buyer walks in, they want to see bright, clean rooms. Your paint has a lot to do with how the sunlight affects a room. A fresh paint job can brighten any room in the house. You don't necessarily need to go neutral, but your choice in paint colors can affect your potential buyer's feelings about your house. If you're not selling just yet, the right colors can also help lighten your own mood. Choose a palette that you like. But, don't stop there. Make sure it compliments your home's age, style, and architecture. Check out these ideas for a modern look! 2. Modernize the Kitchen: Look at the age of your appliances and countertops. Are they in poor repair or stained? If so, you should consider replacing them. Here's a list of kitchen upgrades that you can benefit from. Newer, energy efficient appliances Countertops that suit the space Refinish cabinets Tile backsplash Sink upgrades Accent paint Save some cash! Check out dent and scratch or discontinued appliances. Discontinued tile can be used to make an attractive backsplash, too. You can get huge savings from buying these options. Look for ways to accent and offset countertops and cabinets in your kitchen for a more modern look. Check out paint pallets that give your kitchen a pop of color and make your cabinets stand out. 3. Programmable Thermostat: This is such a simple upgrade, but it gives your house a modern feel. Programmable thermostats are affordable and easy to install. Many are also easy to manage from your phone! An added bonus for installing a programmable thermostat is instant energy savings on your electric bill! 4. Upgrade Bathrooms: Ugly bathrooms can send a potential buyer out the door. Check out your bathrooms for any of these problems and fix them! Stained toilet bowls and seats Leaky faucets Outdated fixtures Old tile and paint Evidence of flooding Damaged cabinetry You can easily and affordably upgrade a bathroom by switching out any old fixtures and lighting. But, making sure the bathroom is clean and in good working order is a priority. 5. Landscaping: Ever heard of curb appeal? This house upgrade is a must. The first look a buyer has as they walk to your front door can influence their opinion about the whole house! Walk outside and check your landscaping, in the front and the back of your home. Consider these upgrades for landscaping your home. In the front: Clean, groomed lawn Flowers and shrubs that are trimmed Trees that cut back and look nice A walkway that invites people to come in In the back: A patio or deck for entertaining Trees and flowers for privacy and color Fences in good repair Clean, groomed lawn A small gardening area Your landscaping matters in the value of your property. It should be well maintained and easy to upkeep. Good landscaping invites you to come out and enjoy the outdoors! 6. Install Solar Panels: Nothing is more attractive to a potential buyer than the idea of their new home saving them money. If you've already installed solar panels, then you've given them a step up in that direction. Solar power is a responsible energy choice and it will save you money in the long run. That's good for you while you live in your home. It's great for potential buyers, too. Your new buyer will instantly save on energy costs. You've already made the investment for them! This increases the value of your home and makes the buyer more willing to pay the price you are asking. 7. New Flooring: You've got fresh paint and clean rooms, but your flooring is filthy and worn. That won't work when you sell your home. Take a look at high traffic areas, carpets, and tiles. Is anything stained, worn or broken? If so, you need to replace it. Look for neutral carpet colors. You want any type of furniture or paint to work well with your choice. Avoid white or extremely pale colors because they are so hard to maintain. If you are replacing only one room of carpet, try to make it closely match what is already in the house. Nothing looks worse than mismatched carpet. Tile can be a really affordable upgrade. It should be easy to maintain, durable and neutral. Make sure stone tile doesn't have a lot of nooks and crannies for dirt to hide. You can even get a tile that looks like wood! Take a look at options in your hardware store. Save yourself some cash! If you are replacing a whole house of carpet or tile, try to find discontinued items at your local hardware store. They may be cheaper but are still good quality and new. Another way to save is to learn to install flooring yourself. There are plenty of books at your local library and YouTube videos to teach you how. 8. Basement Improvements: Paying outright to have the basement turned into a high-class lounge might not pay off. However, putting in the time and effort to fix up and finish off your existing basement can have an amazing return on investment. If your basement is unfinished, check it out for these problems. Cracks in walls or floors Wood damage to the supporting structure Leaks and flooding damage Excessive clutter For already finished basements, here are some things to think about. Patch damaged walls and repaint Paint the ceiling bright white Replace all light bulbs Install more lighting to brighten the room Remove excess, unused furniture Go with a traditional theme Fix any problems you find and clear out the clutter. A man cave or game room may be exciting for you, but tame down your theme if it's over the top. Your potential buyer wants to see open, clean space. Let them imagine how they might use it. Upgrade Your Home, Today: If you really want to increase the resale value of your home, pick one or more house upgrades on this list. The money you invest will be worth it. Check out these interesting articles about home and garden topics! Read Also: Smart Fun Gardening: How To Take Care Of A Money Tree Why Renting A Duplex House May Be Right For You

Top 5 Reasons Why You Should Service Your Air Conditioner Regularly

Air conditioners are an essential part of our lives. Whether it be for home use or office use, they serve an important purpose. They allow us to sleep peacefully, if we stay in sweltering climatic conditions, or improve productivity, by moderating temperature levels at work. Air conditioners are not cheap. Meaning, they require considerable investments, especially if you are going to industry-leading products. As a consumer, it is important to ensure that the air conditioner is always functioning at its optimal best-levels. This is where regular servicing of the air conditioner becomes important and necessary. In this article, we speak to the Pristine air conditioning cleaning service and ask them about five reasons why you should service your air conditioner regularly. List of Top 5 Reasons why you should Service your Air Conditioner regularly 1. Keeps your family and employees safe from infections- The basic function of an air conditioner is moderating the flow of air in an enclosed area. However, if the machine is not serviced properly, molds and other impurities might start developing in the filters. This is where regular servicing of the air conditioner will allow you to ensure that the impurities, which can cause harm to your family members are removed. 2. Helps in saving electricity costs- While there are several models of air conditioners, which specify the amount of energy consumption, the same holds true for new condition models which are working at their highest levels of efficiency. Over a period, machines become inefficient and their parts wear out. You need to service them to replace those electricity draining parts from the machine. 3. Improves the life of the Air Conditioner- Poorly maintained air conditioners will get worn out and become inefficient after a few years. Well-maintained machines work even after a decade. As air conditioners are pretty expensive, this is not something, you would want to invest in every couple of years. Small regular servicing, at six-month intervals, can help in extending the life of the machines in a major way. 4. Improved quality of air- One of the major reasons why servicing helps is because it improves the quality of air coming from the machine. You will also see benefits like lower sounds and machine noises coming from the air conditioner. We have different age groups living in a household, from the very young to the very old. Air quality is important, given the times we are living in right now. 5. Removes chances of breakdowns- Regularly servicing the air conditioner can be compared to the maintenance of a car. If you ignore it for a very long time, a time will come when you will have to exchange a very expensive part. This is the exact same problem homeowners face, who ignore servicing their air conditioners. They have to shell out a good deal of money to replace a part, which got corroded or damaged for lack of regular servicing. Can you Service the Air Conditioner Yourself or should you Hire an Expert? According to the experts over at Pristine air conditioner cleaning service, there are some things, which people can do on their own. This involves opening up the vent, taking the filter out, running it under a tap, tapping it dry, and reinstalling it. In other words, cleaning the air conditioner filter is pretty simple. However, cleaning the machine, the vents, checking on the power lines, and assessing the compression gas levels within the system requires expert guidance and care. In addition, there is the risk of injury if you try to do things yourself, and which you are not familiar with. Experts help you eliminate fears of injury or some other malfunctions, which you might inadvertently do when cleaning the system, yourself. Rather than thinking that outside experts will cost me a lot of money, you should start thinking that they would save you a lot of money. The Final Word There are a ton of benefits that come with regularly servicing your air conditioner. You can keep your family safe from viruses and infections, along with ensuring they get pollution and dust-free air in the safe confines of your home. By working with an expert for your servicing needs, you can be sure that the air conditioner will serve you in an inexpensive and efficient fashion for a very long period of time. Read Also: AC Repair Austin: Tips on How to Choose an AC Unit How To Save Money On Your Air Conditioning Costs This Summer

Furniture that Defines Comfort

Furniture is something that is bought for the maximum comfort and beauty of your home. If you are possessing your own home, then you must have some good set of furniture which can define comfort and ease. If you are looking for such furniture, then you can visit the urban ladder to buy a beautiful set of furniture. There is no need to copy the style of others as you can have something unique when you will visit this online furniture store. Some of the furniture that is there which causes trouble and people suffer some of the health issues. They consult medicos, where they recommend changing the furniture that the house because they are not comfortable. How to choose comfortable furniture? When you are going to buy furniture for your house, then you should keep in mind that they should be comfortable and relaxing. If these qualities are not there in the furniture, then you are going to waste your money by buying a worthless sofa. Here are some of the qualities of comfortable furniture. Design of the furniture The design of the furniture should be not much complex and it should be of the normal type. Complex and heavily designed furniture looks good, but they are really hard to handle. The material used in the furniture Materials used in the furniture should be of good quality. Cheap and bad materials can cause severe health problems like back, neck, and leg pain. Buy a piece of good furniture which is made up of quality material for maximum comfort. Shape and size of the furniture Some of the people buy furniture which fills their room and there is hardly any space in the room for any other activity. So, buyers are advised to buy according to the size of their room otherwise this can cause mental discomfort. These are some of the points which should be considered while you are going to buy a piece of furniture for your comfort and ease. Which furniture you should buy for your comfort? If you are going to buy a piece of furniture for your comfort, then you should be a little critical as there are many of them. You can buy a sofa, rocking chair, study chair, etc. for your comfort. Some of the users feel comfortable when they buy drawers, tv showcases and other furniture items for their home. Some of them buy racks for their kitchen. Everybody has their ways of being comfortable in terms of furniture. Some of the furniture which one can buy are defined here. The urban ladder also offers a wide collection of teapots, coffee tables, and tea tables. Sofas The best furniture item which one can buy is a sofa. The sofa is one of the most favorite items for the majority of users when they are going to buy a piece of furniture. For maximum comfort and ease, buy a super glossy sofa and place it in your drawing room. Rocking chair The rocking chair can be placed in the living room and can be used by those who are fond of reading before sleeping. While rocking on the chair, you can get ready for your bed. This furniture item is possessed by almost all people. Sleeper sofa One can buy sleeper sofas for their maximum comfort as these sofas can be converted into beds at the time of night. A sleeper sofa is available in different sizes and qualities. One can buy according to their need. Buy any of these sofas for the best results. You can buy them from any of the online stores at the best rate. You can also check for some other furniture item which suits you as there are many of them available at the furniture store. Why one should not use irregular and uncomfortable furniture? Generally, it is not advised to use furniture which is uncomfortable and has been disfigured. Such a furniture set causes the problem to those who are using it for a long period. Health problems can also occur to the users like severe aches in backs, joints, legs, hands and neck joints. If you have detected that your furniture is no more comfortable, then you should replace it immediately, as one should not stake their health with such minor things. When an individual uses a sofa or chair to sit or sleep, then the posture of their body should be natural and balanced. Irregular sofas didn’t allow you to sit or sleep comfortably, and as a result, aches would happen. That’s why one should stop using uncomfortable and irregular furniture if they are using it. Comfortable furniture should be bought if you are planning to have a new one. Investing money in something good is smartness. Some of the users pay a heavy price only for show-off. Such things would not serve the purpose. So, if you are fed up with your old furniture and planning to buy a piece of new furniture, then you must buy something comfortable and cozy. Read Also: Top Secrets That Slash Your Kitchen Remodeling Bill in Half We Buy Houses Companies Saving Homeowners From Foreclosure

Upgrading Your Home to a Smart Home

Some of the best things include While upgrading Smart Home:

Choosing your assistant:

Choose your hardware:

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Las Vegas Electricians Share Fun Lighting Ideas for Your Home

Content Rally

Content Rally wrapped around an online publication where you can publish your own intellectuals. It is a publishing platform designed to make great stories by content creators. This is your era, your place to be online. So come forward share your views, thoughts and ideas via Content Rally.

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8 Smart House Upgrades that are Totally Worth the Money

Top 5 Reasons Why You Should Service Your Air Conditioner Regularly

Furniture that Defines Comfort

Upgrading Your Home to a Smart Home

Some of the best things include While upgrading Smart Home:

Choosing your assistant:

Choose your hardware:

Share this Article

How Cleaning Helps Us Feel Better and Why We Don’t Do It

Las Vegas Electricians Share Fun Lighting Ideas for Your Home

Content Rally wrapped around an online publication where you can publish your own intellectuals. It is a publishing platform designed to make great stories by content creators. This is your era, your place to be online. So come forward share your views, thoughts and ideas via Content Rally.

Leave a Reply

Popular

Follow Us

Recent

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