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The Maturing Smart Home Industry of 2020
Five Key Takeaways From the Z-Wave 2020 State of the Ecosystem Report By Mitchell Klein In 2020, technology has reached a point of maturity; adoption and consumer education have begun to see consistent growth, particularly with mainstream and new-totechnology consumers. Smart home technology has become pervasive in the way we all live our lives. We reach to digital assistants to help us complete tasks, smart security cameras and systems are a large part of our culture, and technology that was once considered to be reserved for the wealthy or tech-savvy experts is now found on the shelves in large sections of “big-box” stores and wide swaths of the internet. This year, the entire global supply chain has seen an impact from COVID-19, including the smart home and consumer technology market. Even though we’ve seen factories begin to reopen, products are still facing major delays in making their way to sellers and consumers. The entire logistics cycle has been impacted, and that is likely to have an impact on sales to an extent for some companies. But retail sales at big-box stores like Best Buy and Home Depot have remained quite strong amid socialdistancing, as many homeowners have opted for home projects. The integrator and installer community have also faced challenges in relation to the pandemic, with many reporting that business has slowed down and they’ve faced challenges in relation to not being able to get face-to-face install time. One thing is for certain: The smart home, as well as pretty much every other industry, is facing unforeseen challenges in 2020. But there are still opportunities for growth and places for everyone in the industry – manufacturers, integrators, developers, retailers, and others – to contribute to building a better smart home experience for consumers and end-users. In our recently-released 2020 Z-Wave State of the Ecosystem Report, we examined smart
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Residential Tech Today | Aug-Oct 2020
home and connected technology – from both within and outside of the home – and explored the smart home landscape as it exists today, current and future trends, data compiled, and new opportunities with an emphasis on the role Z-Wave technology plays in the advancement of the industry.
their experience with their smart home. Smart doorbells and other security devices have seen a growing popularity in recent years and smart water sensors are seeing growing interest in part to new incentives from home insurance carriers.
1. Z-Wave Smart Home Categories Primed for Growth In the report, we highlight current figures as well as projected growth for the Z-Wave ecosystem. We compiled data around the top-10 Z-Wave smart home categories primed for growth, according to ABI Research, who found that Z-Wave all-in-one devices, smart doorbells, and water sensors, are the top three categories predicted to grow the most through 2025.
2. Smart Home Growth Remains Strong in International Markets While the smart home has seen consistent, year-on-year growth in North America, it is in international markets that we expect to see some of the strongest opportunities for growth. In the same data from ABI Research, it was found that the regions most primed for growth through 2025 were in Latin America and the EMEA regions. In Europe, strong economic growth, increased investment, and interest in solutions like smart lighting and water from public utilities, and rapid urbanization are all contributing to this anticipated growth.
All-in-one devices refer to smart devices with hubs built in, i.e. a smart security system or display that also functions as a gateway, which supports the desire for ease of use and installation that consumers cite as important to
In Latin America, the reasons behind growth include increased investment from highly populated countries like Mexico and Brazil in IoT and smart cities initiatives and policies, as well as projected economic growth.
Here are five key takeaways from the report:
