Build November_2016

Build Magazine 5 Smart Home Revolution A new study by appliance repair network Go-Assist .co.uk reveals that 29 per cent of the UK adult population would consider purchasing at least one smart home device in 2017. However, recent figures fromDeloitte state that just three per cent of households currently have smart home devices installed, up from two per cent the year before. These figures are slightly below PwC’s figures, which estimate that five per cent of homes are using smart technology. The most well-known smart home product is NEST, a thermostat that learns an individual householder’s habits and controls the heating, allowing for complex personalisation and automation. The device uses Wi-Fi to connect to an enabled mobile phone, giving complete access to the home’s temperature no matter where the user is. NEST, the poster child of the industry, was acquired for $3.2 billion (£2.6 million) by Google in 2014. However, earlier this year, the founder Tony Fadell stepped down after disappointing sales over the last 24 months. Similar products have joined the market to rival NEST. These include British Gas’ HIVE and the Honeywell Lyric, a thermostat which tracks your location via a mobile phone and turns on the heating or air-conditioning depending on the homeowner’s distance from the house. Home security is another popular area which smart devices are tackling. Sentri, which is less expensive than a traditional security system and does not require professional installation, provides a 360-degree-view camera, which allows one to view their house remotely via their phone. There’s also Canary, a small home security camera device which includes a siren to chase away thieves. Goji takes this one step further, acting as a lock for the front door, sending photos of visitors to the phone, and even giving temporary access if the user is away. Handling all these devices from many different apps can become complicated and problematic. To solve this, Amazon has created Echo, a voice-activated device which allows complete universal control; plus, it plays certain music depending on the user’s mood. In the latest Apple IOS updates, iPhones now include the ‘home’ button, designed to be the hub for connecting and controlling your smart home devices. This is undoubtedly the way the future is taking our homes. From heating that turns on automatically when we’re within two miles of the house, to front doors that only open when a recognised face appears, people now have the opportunity to turn their regular homes into cutting-edge smart homes. Contact James Holden [email protected] 0203 642 0131