TRANSLATING TECH

Smart home systems

Robert L. Thompson

Venture into the tech department at Target or any Best Buy, and you’ll quickly be bombarded with signs, displays and screens promoting the latest in smart home automation. As with most tech purchases, the list of features can quickly overwhelm; and a sentiment of “Nevermind, this is too difficult,” can set in. Don’t give up! In this article, Growing Bolder will highlight the top reasons to take the leap and buy a smart home system (or if you’re feeling generous, maybe gift one) and how those features can positively impact your life.

Staying connected

Human connection and socialization have been proven time and again to be one of the most important factors in our overall health and wellbeing. Many of the latest smart home technologies include video conferencing capabilities that allow you to reach out seamlessly to family and friends to see their smiles even from hundreds of miles away.

Note: Many of the smart home systems require an additional product to allow for video calling. Amazon’s Echo Show has video calling capabilities integrated, while a Google Home system requires the purchase of their Nest Hub for this feature.

Quick answers

Ever find yourself in the middle of cooking a meal trying to figure out how many tablespoons are in an eighth of a cup? Well, all you have to do is ask! Smart home technology, such as Alexa and Google Home, come fully integrated with voice recognition software that allows you to ask any question out loud without putting down the spatula! This feature also allows you to ask about recent news stories, trivia questions, history or even lyrics to a song — and nearly anything else you can imagine.

You: “Hey Alexa! How many tablespoons are in an eighth of a cup?” Alexa: “1/8 cups is 2 tablespoons”

Reminders

In today’s busy world, we all have trouble keeping track of our schedules, remembering important dates, keeping our shopping lists in order and just generally organizing our lives. You can now put down that piece of paper, or throw away last year’s calendar, and turn no further than your smart home hub. All of the major tech brands offer solutions for adding items to your calendar, setting reminders or keeping track of lists. Simply by calling out your request, “Siri, please remind me of Aunt Mary’s birthday on January 19,” your system will make note and remind you. Most smart home systems integrate with an app on your smartphone, which allows you to add items to shopping lists, your calendar or set reminders verbally. This feature is also a great tool to help ensure you’re taking your medications on time.

Safety and security

Increasingly more people are living alone, and technologies, such as smart home systems, can give them and their families extra peace of mind. Products, such as Amazon’s Echo, allow you to call emergency services by simply calling out to your device and giving a verbal instruction, creating an extra layer of safety when a phone is out of reach. Many of these smart home systems also offer full integration into security systems, cameras and lights throughout your home, inside and out. Most offer features that will alert you to motion detection and doors or windows opening. Additional features include controlling your lights when you are, or are not, home.

“Google Home, turn on the lights in the backyard.”

Music, music, music

Listening to some of your favorite songs from years past has been proven to be one of the strongest memory recall devices ever. Hearing a lyric can make you feel like you’re standing back in that gymnasium dancing with your first love, driving down the highway with the windows down or laughing with a best friend as you watch the sun set. Smart home systems can make those memories as close as a simple command, “Google, play ‘Satisfaction.’” With a subscription to Apple Music, Spotify or many other music services, you can create endless hours of dancing in your kitchen listening to the soundtrack of your life and sharing those great memories with friends and family.

“Siri, play Fleetwood Mac.”

Illustrations: pressureUA via Getty Images Photo: Luis Alvarez via Getty Images