Can home automation improve Christmas? 4 Tips
With the festive period upon us once more, we ask, can home automation improve Christmas? Before you eat too many mince pies, the answer is yes! There are several ways home automation can make Christmas better:
- Smart lighting can add a festive touch to your home.
- Save energy and money during the holiday season with a smart thermostat.
- Use a smart home security system to give you peace of mind while you’re away.
- A smart assistant can help you play music or holiday movies, set reminders, and answer your Christmas theme questions.
So, can home automation improve Christmas? Yes, and you have four ideas you can try now! Creating a smart home can make your property more comfortable, energy efficient, secure, and convenient.
#1 Add a festive touch to your home with smart lighting
Setting up smart lighting can add a festive touch to your home. There’s a range of options, depending on your budget.
The cheapest is to change your bulbs for smart bulbs, meross offers an exciting range. Most smart bulbs allow you to easily change the colours or intensity of the lights to create the perfect ambience for the holiday season.
You could connect lamps to smart plugs and control them remotely. Another option is to use a DIY home automation system such as Lightwave or Fibaro. Both are affordable, easy to install, and feature rich. You can easily dim lights and set up scenes.
Regardless which option you choose, you’ll be able to control the lighting in your home from your phone or with your voice using a smart assistant. You’ll also be able to create schedules to turn on the holiday lights at certain times of the day. It will look like you’re always home.
Smart lighting is a convenient and energy-efficient way to add some holiday cheer to your home. As you can control the lights from anywhere, you don’t have to worry about turning them on or off manually. So, you don’t have to worry if you left a light on when you’re down the pub!
#2 Save energy and money during the holidays with a smart thermostat
With the cost of living rising, consider installing a smart thermostat, such as the Google Nest Learning Thermostat. They are a superb tool for saving energy and money during the holiday season.
With a smart thermostat, you can easily adjust your home’s temperature from your phone or voice using a smart assistant. So, you can turn down the thermostat when you’re not home. When you’re on your way home, you can turn it back up to ensure your home is toasty for your return!
These devices can help you save on your energy bills, especially if you have a large family gathering at your home during the holidays and you leave the thermostat set at a higher temperature for an extended period of time.
Look for a smart thermostat with smart scheduling and energy reports. These features can help you optimize your energy usage and save even more cash during the holidays.
#3 A smart home security system can give you peace of mind
There are plenty of steps to deter burglars this festive season. Investing in a smart home security system can give you peace of mind while you’re outside your home, regardless of how long you’re away.
Consider buying a smart security camera, video doorbell, or smart door lock. Both allow you to keep an eye on your home from anywhere and receive alerts if there’s any suspicious activity.
With a smart camera, you can set up motion detection alerts to receive a notification if there’s any movement in your home. You can then log into the app and view a live video feed.
A smart doorbell will enable you to see and speak to anyone who comes to your door. You don’t even need to be at home to do this!
Both of these home security elements are particularly useful if you’re travelling around the Christmas period and want to ensure your home is secure.
Protect your home and loved ones during the holiday season by investing in a home automation security system. Even the most basic system will provide peace of mind, and you can’t put a price on that.
#4 Let Alexa or Google Assistant provide the entertainment!
Have some fun this Christmas with your favourite smart assistant. Amazon’s Alexa, Google’s Assistant, and Apple’s Siri can do a wide range of tasks, including playing music, setting reminders, answering questions, and more.
As voice activated tech, you can speak and let them do the work! So you don’t need to find your phone or tablet to use them. They’re magical fun for all the family!
For example, you can ask Alexa or Google Assistant to play your favourite holiday music, set a reminder to buy gifts for your loved ones, or even find out when Hanukkah starts.
On Christmas day, you can ask them to tell you a joke or help find a party game for the whole family. Plus, they can act as a timer, ensuring lunch is cooked to perfection, and you don’t miss the King’s speech at 3 pm.
Your smart assistant can also control other smart devices in your home, such as turning on the lights or adjusting the thermostat. Overall, they can make your holiday season a little less stressful.
So, can home automation improve Christmas?
There are many ways home automation can make Christmas better by making your home more comfortable, energy efficient, secure, and convenient.
It’s best to see any new tech purchases as an investment and not a bit of fun. You might need to spend some time learning about your new devices but when you do, you’ll use them far more effectively and get a better return on your investment.
So, can home automation improve Christmas? Yes, and you now have plenty of ideas of how!