Congratulations on surviving another holiday season!
If you got a lot of money and gift cards as presents – either because you’re really picky or your family is pretty lazy – you might be wondering what to do with all that spending power. Well, if you have any interest in home automation, you can take advantage of post-holiday, end-of-the-year sales to stock your house with the latest tech.
Whatever amount of money you’re willing to commit, there is a nice selection of products you can choose from:
Big Spender – 100% Committed
You’re ready to convert your house to a smart building, or you already have and now you just want to add some of the latest and greatest products that are on the market now.
If you were an early adopter of the smart home assistant speakers, it’s probably time to upgrade. Your holiday money can be spent to buy additional units, upgrade to a unit that includes a video screen, or to even completely swap brands.
When these devices first came out, Amazon was the only brand available; now Google has a regular and mini unit, and Apple’s first unit is due out in the beginning of 2018. While standard units are fairly affordable, the Amazon version with a screen, and the forthcoming Apple version, have a price tag in the $200 and $300 range.
Willing to Spend Some – 65% Committed
Maybe you already have the big pieces, the hub, the motherboard, but you want to get some smart home accessories. There are plenty of products that can connect with smart hubs, but a few middle-of-the-road products that are perfect post-holiday buys include smart thermostats and video doorbells.
These two items are relatively easy to install – but might require some effort. Like I said, middle-of-the-road here. Smart thermostats are a great investment because they can help you save money in the long run, throughout the year. There are a few brands to choose from, too, and you might even be able to work with your energy company to get a discount on the purchase of a smart thermostat. Video doorbells made a pretty big splash in 2017, as a product that adds security to your home while offering some fun ways to goof off.
Just Want to Get Started – 30% Committed
If you’re not really sure that you trust all this smart home technology, but want to see what it’s all about, there are several products that you can invest in that won’t leave you with a $0 balance on those gift cards.
You can score a basic smart lock for around $100, or you can opt to ease in really slowly with low commitment by picking up a couple of smart home plugs. The plugs run around $30 each, so you can stock up on a few to test out smart home technology – and if you decide that you like the convenience, you can slowly work to build your smart home throughout the year.
