Smart Home Installation Provides Numerous Benefits
October 25th, 2020
In today’s technology-driven society, it is no surprise that smart homes are increasing in popularity. Consumer Technology Association recently ran a survey that reported 69% of U.S. households own a minimum of one smart device. Smart homes sparked the interest of many people in movies and TV shows for decades, but it took a while before it became a reality. The sky is the limit for the possibilities of what a smart home can achieve today. Additionally, a smart home installation has numerous benefits to homeowners.
At Synergy Integrated Systems, every home automation installation involves only the highest quality and most reliable smart device options. Customer satisfaction is of the utmost importance to us. We always want our clients to have a smart house they love, can proudly call home, and feel safe and comfortable living in every single day.
History Behind Smart Homes
Hollywood-Inspired Idea
Smart homes really started out in the imagination stage and quickly captured everyone’s attention in TV shows and movies. They have been a hot topic in the entertainment industry for many years.
Who remembers the old animated series The Jetsons? If you do, then you probably remember that amazing house they had that controlled and did basically everything for them! The show originally aired in 1962, long before smart homes were so commonplace, or even a reality for homeowners.
The Disney Channel even released a movie in 1999 called Smart House. That was still long before the technology was readily available and mainstream. The movie showcased a house that could pull off almost any task, from providing food in a replicator-type format to cleaning anything off the carpet with a system that basically sucked up any trash on the floors. While both would be amazing features, the technology is not quite there yet. However, the movie did portray components that are now common smart home features, such as, lighting control and an AI-powered smart assistant. These are some of the many possible smart home uses that we’ll discuss later in this article.
Smart Devices Lead to Smart Houses
Since a smart house is an extraordinarily complex system, it makes sense that it got its start from the launch of smart devices. An engineer at Westinghouse developed the ECHO IV, which stands for Electronic Computing Home Operator, in the 1960s. Many consider this creation to be the first smart home device. It had the capability to turn appliances on and off and control the thermostat.
From there, smart devices made many advances over the years. It wasn’t until the 1980s though, that smart devices were regularly on the market and affordable. At that time, devices like programmable thermostats and motion-sensor lighting fixtures were just becoming popular. These devices paved the way for smart houses.
National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), originally known as the American Association of Home Builders, coined the term ‘smart house’ in 1984. Since then, the smart home installation is increasingly popular among homeowners.
Home Automation System Components
Smart home technology continually makes advancements every day. There is now a comprehensive collection of home automation system components. You might be asking, “What is smart home installation?” It is a process that involves installing a home automation system of integrated smart devices that can monitor and control various aspects of your home. Usually these devices operate with a touch of a button or even vocal commands.
There are many ways to utilize home automation systems. From changing your thermostat to controlling your lights, virtually every system or powered device in your home is programmable. You are able to control these systems remotely from your smartphone, any hand-held device, laptop or wall panel. Here are a few of the more popular items that you can control when you have a smart house:
- HVAC
- Lighting
- Security
- Shading
- Audio
- Electronics
- Communication
- AI-powered smart assistant
- Regulate energy consumption
- Appliances
HVAC
No one likes getting up from a comfortable position, especially at night, to adjust the thermostat. A smart thermostat eliminates that need, as it is programmable to adjust to certain temperatures at various points of the day or night. Many smart thermostats even adjust based on your heating and cooling habits and when you are or are not home.
Lighting
Even when you are not home you can control your lighting with home automation systems. Smart lights are not only convenient, but a great safety and security future. Homeowners can set lights to come on at certain times with smart lighting, even when they are traveling. A smart bulb can control dimming to save money on energy costs. Forget to turn off a light in another room? Do not worry, you can easily turn it off without even getting up with smart lighting.
Security
A smart lock allows users to lock or unlock a door with a push of a button in their home security system. This eliminates the worry of wondering if you forgot to lock the door or not. In today’s fast-paced and uncertain world, it is reassuring to have these security features right at your fingertips no matter where you are in the world.
There is also an additional security aspect with alarms, from a smoke detector or CO2 alarm to actual security alarms. Smart devices can alert homeowners about a tripped alarm, even if they are not home or while they are sleeping. A smart doorbell with a doorbell camera is an increasingly popular device installed in smart houses. It allows people to see who is at their door before even going to the door, or while they are away from home. These are so reliable that local authorities even use this footage in burglary cases.
Shading
A crucial component of a comfortable lifestyle at home is shading. Shades provide relief from the beating sun and keep glares off computer and TV screens. Automated shading allows for easy control of shades. Shading provides an easy and effective way to reduce heating and cooling costs as well.
Audio
Whether it is playing music or utilizing a surround system for a movie, a smart home audio system can do both and much more. A user can easily adjust the volume of a smart speaker, often with voice control.
Electronics
Tie in a television, computer, or tablet to a home automation system to sync up all your work, music, and more. Every electronic device in the house will turn on with one button or one verbal command. This task also utilizes a smart plug.
Communication
A smart intercom system allows occupants to communicate from and to virtually any room in the house. Need someone to bring you something from downstairs and you are not able to leave the room? This smart home installation capability allows you to do just that without any hassle.
AI-Powered Smart Assistant
All the components listed above are great on their own, but an AI-powered smart assistant truly integrates them all and makes life significantly easier on everyone in the home. AI technology is the future of smart homes and has endless capabilities. It learns your patterns and behaviors. For example, it can open the garage door as you enter the garage from inside the house. Or it can start a playlist of music you enjoy at a time of day you typically listen to music.
Regulate Energy Consumption
From lowering shades, turning off lights in rooms not in use, scheduling the outdoor sprinkler system and regulating the thermostat, a smart house will regulate energy consumption when programmed to do so. This will not only help the environment, but save you money on water, power, and gas bills.
Appliances
Imagine telling your oven to preheat from the living room. This simple act saves you time. Have you ever been in bed and suddenly wondered if you forgot to turn an appliance off? In a smart home, you can turn it off without even getting out of bed. Set the smart coffee maker to start brewing at a certain time, and it will be ready for you upon waking up.
Smart Home Installation Benefits
There are numerous benefits to installing a smart home. Those include:
- Security
- Ease of Programming
- Energy & Cost Savings
- Open-Source Access
- Peace-of-Mind
- Increased Home Value
- Time Savings for Homeowner
Security
A security system is a necessity for all homeowners in today’s chaotic world. It assures homeowners that they are safe while they sleep at night and that their important possessions are safe while they are away. Smart security systems take professional monitoring to the next level by providing that comfort right to a smartphone or tablet. It is easy to monitor a security camera from an easy-to-use control panel. Homeowners can activate a door lock with the push of a button – no matter where they are, at home or on vacation.
Ease of Programming
Most smart homes and devices integrate with the owner’s phone or tablet. This means no matter where they are, they can access their smart home and its features anywhere in the world.
Energy and Cost Savings
The many components listed above provide ways to save energy at home, which in turn saves money. As humans we have a natural tendency to not monitor our habits, like our preferred heating and cooling trends, but a smart house will do that for us. It takes the guesswork out of saving money through easy steps, like turning off lights in a room when no one is using it.
Open-Source Access
There are numerous benefits to open source access. The biggest is that the system is completely customizable for any need or desire. A homeowner can pick and choose exactly which features and devices are important to them when creating their smart home, then the coding can match those ongoing needs. At Synergy, we provide all our customers with the non-compiled code of the system programming. This means you have numerous options for repairs or enhancements in the future, whether you use us or another home automation company. Of course, we work hard to provide the best customer service possible, so that you will return to us when you want future enhancements to your system!
Peace-of-Mind
No longer worry about whether you forgot to lock the doors or if you will have access to the security of your house, when you head out of town for a vacation. If a motion sensor goes off, it will immediately alert you and your security company. Smart home services provide peace-of-mind due to these and many other factors.
Increased Home Value
Every homeowner’s goal is to increase the value of their home. A smart home installation is a great way to do just that. As mentioned earlier, 69% of homes already have some type of smart device, so not having one would put you at a disadvantage when it comes time to sell. Taking it up a step from a device or two to a complete smart house easily increases your home’s resale value.
Time Savings for Homeowner
We may not realize the amount of time that we spend controlling our many home systems. Adjusting thermostats, turning lights on and off, turning the garden sprinkler on and off, setting the alarm system every night and determining what music to turn on and when…and then forgetting to turn off that sprinkler and the alarm can be very time-consuming! With all of the jobs that we are juggling in a household these days, saving a bit of time to make our lives a bit easier is a welcome change. In a house with many family members on different schedules, any way that we can save time and effort is worth a small investment.
Why Choose Synergy Integrated Systems
At Synergy Integrated Systems, our goal for every smart home installation customer is to design the smart house of their dreams. We want nothing more than to provide the latest lifestyle option of a smart home system that allows for less worry and more pleasure in their lives.
From exceptional customer service to installing only the highest quality devices, we provide only the best to every customer. Our stellar online reviews speak for themselves and showcase us as the smart home pro in the Raleigh area. From design to installation and even wiring, we will be with you every step of the way.
Get Started Today
We offer free consultations to provide guidance and customized quotes for every home automation project. Do not wait any longer. Call us today at 919-324-3592 to request your free consultation and begin planning the installation of your dream smart home. We will discuss every aspect of the smart home automation project during your consultation, from installation to specific smart home products that best fit your needs. Of course, we always work within your budget and can guide you to the products that will benefit your family most. These systems allow for expansion as your needs change and grow.
