SmartZone

'Tis the season to be jolly and we're spreading the joy with our own take on the 12 Days of Christmas. Each day we will feature a different aspect of home automation and integrating all the devices in a home which turn it into a smart home. On the 2nd day of a Smart Home Christmas, we bring 2 Smart Thermostats.

'Tis the season to be jolly and we're spreading the joy with our own take on the 12 Days of Christmas. Each day we will feature a different aspect of home automation and integrating all the devices in a home which turn it into a smart home. Today, we start it all off with the brain of any intelligent home, the universal hub.

There is plenty of talk today about the smart home. It's been discussed and reported in all forms of media, but for the most part only in generalities. An interview done by Bloomberg television discusses potential applications and predicted impact the industry will have on society with the CEO of Green Peak. Check out the video after the break.

Anyone who is now or in the past has researched home automation knows that it can be an intimidating subject. There's a lot to learn about and an overwhelming number of options from which to choose. The learning curve is made to seem even steeper thanks to the variety of terms it is marketed under by the companies offering it. Whether a brand pitches their products as a Connected home, intelligent home, digital home, or the Internet of things we want to help you understand that they all are just another name for home automation.

There's no doubting the great potential for controlling devices with the myriad of available options. But, it's still a new concept to most people. Any new product carries a steep learning curve until people have had enough time to familiarize themselves with it. Seemingly the companies offering the new product each have their own take on how best to market the product to customers. They coin their own unique terms and phrases to entice potential buyers interest.

Home Automation, it's a term most of us have heard. But, do you really know what it means and how it can benefit you? Even if you're confident you know the answers, you may be surprised by how much there is to grasp on the topic. That's why we want to share with you an excellent infographic which the folks over at My Alarm Center have created for an introduction to the smart home. Check out the full article to see it.

There are plenty of light bulbs on the market today which bill themselves as being smart. They connect wirelessly to your network via WiFi or Z-wave empowering you to control your lighting with a smartphone and to schedule the time of day when they should turn on or off. But there's a new bulb on the horizon that may make all other smart lights look dumb by comparison. Stack Lighting is upping the ante with their  Alba LED light bulb. Check out the video and more details by clicking read more for the full article.

There are many home automation options available to you today. Some are rather limited in their capabilities offering a single task solution (think a thermostat or door lock), while others allow you to take command of nearly everything in your home or even multiple homes. With so many choices and variations available many people find themselves overwhelmed and confused.

The best way of simplifying your search is understanding what you want to get out of a home control system and focusing on the options which best match your needs. Here are 5 questions to which you need to know the answers. Knowing them will help guide you to the right home automation system.

Logitech's making a splash into the home automation market with its newest Harmony Smart Control remote control lineup. While the remotes and smartphone applications carry the same look and feel from last years models, this years products come with the added bonus of extending their control capabilities beyond your home entertainment center and/or home theater equipment. But fear not existing owners as you can gain the same capabilities the new devices offer.