They control your appliances by being connected to your Wi-Fi. You can then use apps on your smartphone to control them. The type of smart devices you buy depends on what you want to do. Here are some ideas:

Utilities
If you have a smart meter you can tell at a glance how much energy each of your appliances is using and how much it costs. It will enable you to pinpoint areas of high energy use so that you can make cuts that will save you money. Other devices can be used for your heating. You can control your heating from an app on your phone. This means you can turn your heating on and off or with some devices you can control the temperature. The great thing about smart heating is that you can change your heating settings while you’re away from home. For example, if your heating is always timed to come on at 5 pm, but you know you won’t be home at 10 pm, you can change the timer. The heating will then come on at 9 pm instead of 5 pm, saving you 4 hours of heating costs. Controlling your lights is another benefit of having a smart home. If you’re on holiday you can make sure there are lights on in your home every night that you’re away. Or, you can use it to make sure the lights are on when you get home from work, or they are all off when you go to bed.

Kitchen Appliances
If you want to control your kitchen appliances while you’re away from home, or you’re elsewhere at home, look for cookers, dishwashers and washing machines with smart capabilities. Some you will need to combine with a cloud-based voice device or a mobile app. If your appliance has connectivity you will be able to tell your device what you want it to do. Some appliances have safety features so if they are
left on and unattended for a certain amount of time, they will switch themselves off.

Pets
Do you want to keep an eye on your furry friends while you’re out? You can buy a camera with audio which will send real-time images to your phone. Some devices dispense pet treats and have two-way audio, so you can hear and speak to your pets. There are also devices with night vision if you want to see your pets when it’s dark.

At the Front Door
A smart doorbell will let you know through your smartphone if anyone rings your doorbell. If you’re not at home, you can answer it through the smart device. If it’s someone you don’t know this will give you added security as the caller won’t know whether you’re at home or not. It will also mean you can pop out if you’re expecting a delivery. You can tell the delivery driver where to leave your parcel.