Smart home

I have always thought smart home gadgets are a bit gimmicky, until I broke down and installed a few. I am now a convert as they are not only practical but so convenient they can actually improve your quality of life. For instance, I have a keyless lock in my home so I never worry about carrying around keys that I can lose. If I have friends or family that arrive when I am not there, I can let them in remotely until I show up. It’s great!   HUE is Philips line of smart home products that is all about lighting that can be controlled using your Smartphone or tablet. It brings the Internet of Things to reality and there are so many excellent ways to use HUE lighting products. Let’s explore just a few to give you an idea how they can improve life at home.

If you had any doubts that Google was serious about home automation (not that there was much room for doubt after the company bought Nest Lab, maker of the Nest Learning Thermostat) then the news out of Mountain View today should convince you. Google is buying Dropcam, the maker of high quality streaming video cameras. Your home is about to get a lot smarter.

Fathers aren’t addicted to ties! In fact, most of us love tech more than ties. For example, I am well on my way to having a very smart home. I want to give you a peek into how I’ve outfitted my home. Take a look at some of these smarthome products and you may find the perfect item to give to your dad this year.

There are many reasons you might want a wireless networked camera for your home. The primary attraction is security, of course. Being able to record or get a live view of what’s going on inside or outside your home at any given time makes for peace of mind. Being able to open an app on your smartphone or tablet and pull up a live view —from anywhere and at any time— is even better. The cool thing is you don’t have to invest in having a professional security system  installed or pay monthly monitoring fees. D-Link offers wireless cameras to cover just about any home use scenario. In this post, I review the DCS-2330L Outdoor HD wireless camera and the Cloud Camera 2200 HD Day/Night network camera. Both are from D-Link, both are easily configurable and both offer 720p video on your smartphone, tablet or computer.

Belkin is growing their WeMo Product Line this spring with some exciting new things as well as having recently made some huge updates to their mobile phone app for their light switch. I have several WeMo products in my home and am looking forward to some of the new products. Come check it out!

Wi-Fi is the greatest thing since sliced bread —so long as everything is working the way it should. No ethernet cables strung all around the house (I remember those days) and the ability to use a Wi-Fi enabled device anywhere. At least that’s the promise. The reality is many homes have zones where Wi-Fi is dead or very slow. Building materials like concrete, ceramic and metal can block Wi-Fi signals and decorative items like glass mirrors can deflect them. While one approach to improving Wi-Fi coverage for your home or small business is to install a newer, more powerful router, you can often get just as much of an improvement for a lot less money and fuss by installing a range extender. In this review, I look at the latest such device from D-Link, the DAP-1520 Wireless AC Dual Band Range Extender.

Whether it’s the nice guy telling the guy robbing his house that he has a spider on his shoulder, or radio hosts joking around about their co-hosts eating pizza in-studio, Dropcam has provided us a lot of laughs and cases for its diverse usability over the last few weeks.  Now, you can get your very own Dropcam at Best Buy and start the fun.  Whether you want to use it at home, work or even for the baby, Dropcam’s versatility and light weight makes this an easy go-to for your recording needs.  Click below to read a review of how it all works.

Since we originally visited the Weiser Kevo last fall, it has made its way to store shelves and online at BestBuy.ca, and it’s time to take a little more of an in-depth look at this imaginative device, allowing you to enter your house with just the touch of a finger and the magic of Bluetooth technology.  Is it easy to install?  Easy to program?  How is a home handyman novice like me going to fare with replacing a major lock in the house?  Click on to find out.