Smart Hubs

We’ve already covered the amazing features of Amazon Echo’s smart assistant Alexa in “25 Top Things You Can Do With Amazon Echo’s Alexa”. But, there’s a lot more you can do with your Echo device. Be it the tall original or the new chunky Echo Dot that is taking consumer’s homes by storm, these boxes have a lot of power to help drive your smart home and manage your digital … [Read more...] about 12 Tips to Maximize your First Amazon Echo Device

Trying to look distinct in a market full of either very bland or overly techy products, the eZLO Smart Home Z-Wave Hub is a recent design with pleasant clam shell design, if they had clam shells in the movie Tron. Developed by a startup team of engineers, with a background in online security, this is their gateway product into the smart home world, and seems like rather a … [Read more...] about Everything You Need to Know About The Ezlo Smart Home Z-Wave Hub

Home automation hubs allow you to control and manage different connected devices easily.  Instead of launching different mobile apps to control your smart bulb, locks, blinds and all your other smart devices, you can just control the hub. You also have the option to create rules or use recipes that would make your different devices work together in a way that suits your … [Read more...] about One IS Better: Wink vs Smarthings in 2022

The smart home market is rapidly changing and along with it is the market for smart home controllers and protocols. While many have expected the market to consolidate, in many ways the opposite has occurred. There are myriad options to consider. Some are better, some are worse. They are all different. The following is a step-by-step guide to navigating the smart home … [Read more...] about The Best Smart Hubs on the Market – Top Smart Controllers

There is a lot to like about the second-generation Amazon Echo. First, Amazon dressed it up rather than make it look like a plastic tumbler.  Then, aside from the all-silver Echo, you can now choose from three fabric coverings (heather gray fabric, sandstone fabric, and charcoal fabric) and two wood-like finishes (walnut and oak).  But the most significant selling points for … [Read more...] about The Best Amazon Echo Alternatives – Can Anyone Compete?

Imagine coming home from a long day at work.  You walk through the door, turn on your lights, play relaxing music, and get updated on today’s news and tomorrow’s weather forecast without lifting a finger and using only your voice. With Amazon Echo and Google Home, that is very possible.  You can issue out voice commands and get the job done without needing to do … [Read more...] about Amazon Echo vs Google Home – Which is the Better Device?

Let’s face it, the first generations of smart home products really haven’t been that smart. Most have required a degree of technical knowledge or understanding to get things working, and a degree in patience when they don’t. As smart home technology matures, it is now at the level where those tricky tasks, like pairing devices and troubleshooting, should be getting easier. … [Read more...] about The Wink Hub 2 Review – Heralds Smart Home Evolution to Smarter Homes

Google and Amazon have now entered the home networking market with both companies releasing their version of a home automation device. Amazon calls their device the Echo and Google tagged their product as the Google OnHub, both devices are a step towards much bigger developments to come. Both have the ability to do a number of things ranging from providing music and … [Read more...] about Comparing the Amazon Echo vs Google OnHub – Which is Better?

Only just hitting the market, the VeraPlus is the latest in the growing line of Vera Z Wave controller devices for your smart home device. An upgrade to the VeraEdge, it provides wider compatibility with more smart devices and gets a performance upgrade to run faster under heavy load in larger homes. Is it a straight upgrade choice for existing Vera control users, or are the … [Read more...] about VeraPlus Smart Home Controller Review: Is it Right for You?

The success of Amazon’s Echo smart home and music playing device, even though the company hasn’t given out sales figures, has driven the company to release new cheaper models, to expand its smart home play. The new Echo Dot and Amazon Tap make the Alexa voice control experience more portable and reduce the startup cost. While Apple and Microsoft fudge about with weak devices … [Read more...] about Review: Checking Out the Amazon Echo Dot