WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT SMART HOME TECH

Interviewed for a piece by Leanne Potts for the Zillow Learning Center on what people need to know about smat home tech, what benefits there are, and how to get started.

“While ‘smart home’ is a concept that’s been around for a decade, new technology has made it more common,” says Mark Benson, head of SmartThings, Samsung’s home automation company.

“Consumers are reimagining their homes and thinking about them as places of relaxation, safety and now work,” Benson says. “People want more from their homes, and smart home technology and home automation are helping them make their homes better. That has led to a rapid adoption of smart home tech in just the last few years.”

“In my house, we have some automation through the SmartThings app that shuts the house down at night,” Benson says. “We call it ‘Good night.’ So, when we’re going to bed, we can just say, ‘Alexa, Good night,’ and the home automation turns off the lights and locks the door.”

“Installing smart lighting is as easy as putting in a smart light bulb and downloading an app to run it,” Benson says. “You can get a lot of energy savings from turning off lights when no one is in the room,” he says. “You can also set the right mood for watching a movie without going around and hitting every light switch in the room.” You can use smart lights indoors or outdoors, so you can easily control lights on the porch, in the living room or in your bedroom by touching a screen or speaking to a voice assistant.

“Smart thermostats use sensors to detect when you’re home, and they only run the HVAC when you are there,” Benson says. “They can save you a lot of money on your energy bill.”