New Jersey residents, here’s some great news! If you did not already know this, then let us be the first ones to tell you that turning your home or apartment, or living space into a smart one is quite easier to do so than you would’ve thought. All it requires is having stable internet connectivity – which let’s be honest, who doesn’t have that?
The internet is one of the major resources that we rely on, on a day-to-day basis. All means of communication are now online, via video calls and even regular audio calls. Work pertaining to the office and school-related work is also conducted online – conference calls, uploading homework, doing research, all that. So if you were ever thinking of converting your living space into a smart home, in New Jersey here’s how you can do it!
Install a Smart Thermostat
You would be better off replacing your regular thermostat with a smart one instead. A smart thermostat would instantly make your home eligible to be referred to as a smart home. Why? That’s because these devices automate your home’s central air conditioning and heating system.
A smart thermostat when installed in place of your regular one, is controllable through its associated mobile application. So yes, that means you can control your home’s smart thermostat with your smartphone, even if that means you aren’t physically present in the house! Cool right? What’s even cooler is that most smart thermostats are compatible with voice assistants like Alexa and Google Assistant – along with remote control, you can have voice-enabled control!
But the automation feature isn’t all that you get with a device like smart thermostats. They’re great for energy efficiency purposes too. Features like remote access to the device, and the ability to switch it on or off whenever and from wherever can help you cut back on those heating and cooling bills every month.
Use Smart LED Bulbs
Smart LED bulbs are a game changer. Given that they are LED bulbs, automatically means they consume less energy in general than an ordinary light bulb. And what’s even better is that they don’t require any sort of professional to come in for installation. These smart LED bulbs just have to be screwed in place of your ordinary ones.
Each bulb is individually controllable through your smartphone or via voice-enabled control if synced to a voice assistant. However, you can install a hub to have collective control should you plan to install several smart LED bulbs around your home. So how are these bulbs any different from ordinary ones other than being pricier?
Well, Smart LED Bulbs firstly as we already mentioned, can be switched on or off through their mobile applications from wherever you may be, and of course through voice-enabled commands too. These bulbs have the ability to adjust brightness levels according to your preferences. While some smart LED bulbs also offer more colors that you can change to should you want to set a completely different vibe.
But they’re not just great for the automation feature that quite literally makes your home seem smart, they are also good for energy-saving purposes and security too. You can switch your lights off if you forgot to on your way out, as opposed to racking up a hefty electric bill because of your carelessness. And as for security, you can switch on certain lights in your home after sunset while you’re away from home, just to make it seem like someone’s home.
What Else Can You Install In Your Home?
While Smart Thermostats and Smart Lighting are the initial steps in making your home smart, there are more devices that you can install to further expand on your smart home concept.
Smart Smoke Detectors
These are much more efficient than your ordinary smoke detectors since they can pick up on anything from fast burning to smoldering fires, and even carbon monoxide leaks within your home – sending you real-time alerts to your mobile phones while also sounding the alarm back home.
Smart Speakers
These devices feature built-in voice assistants, which make for a great accessory in further automating your home allowing you to control connected devices with simple voice commands.
Smart Door Locks
Perfect for providing a keyless and tamperproof method of entry into your home, smart door locks can be unlocked with personalized passcodes and your personal smartphones or other device-specific means. Some devices also use phone location tracking to automatically lock themselves while you’re on your way out and unlock as you arrive home.
What’s A Smart Home Really About?
When switching your lifestyle from having an ordinary home to a Smart Home, you can enjoy the automation and smart features that you probably once thought were expensive or unattainable. A smart home is usually one that has a combination of smart devices installed around. For example, most devices are easy to install and set up by yourselves, while all of them feature their own mobile applications for access and settings of the devices themselves.
You can find many more smart devices under the Smart Home catalog right here at www.firstenergyhome.com.