Our homes are getting more sophisticated in terms of technology, but all of that is for naught if it ends up making our lives more complicated as well. Smart home devices are meant to help take some loads off our minds and free up small bits of time here and there. Those few minutes might seem almost inconsequential on their own, but when taken together, they give us more freedom to schedule our days around the more important things in life, like spending time with family, friends, and pets. Of course, there’s a wide variety of such devices and appliances available these days, almost too many for us to keep up with. To help with the overwhelming task of selecting the right products, we’ve compiled a list of ten of the best-designed smart home accessories that can help you live life more productively and more enjoyably.
1. Philips Screeneo U5
Living smarter doesn’t just mean being smart about productivity. It also means being smart about the way we relax and enjoy life, particularly through entertainment. TVs have gotten smarter these days, but their basic design hasn’t changed much, especially in how they eat up so much space. That is why some homeowners have switched to smart projectors instead, especially ultra short throw projectors like the new Philips Screeneo U5 that removes the stress of setting up a high-quality entertainment system that doesn’t take up space when not in use.
All you really need to do is to put the Screeneo U5 11 to 16 inches from a wall and then let the smart projector do its magic. It can automatically set up the right configuration so you can jump right into enjoying a good flick with its brighter and more vibrant 4K UHD projection. It doesn’t slack off when it comes to audio either, so you can immerse yourself in the content you love, pushing away the worries of life even for just a few hours.
2. Apple HomePod 2
If you’re going to have more than just one smart home device in your home, you’d probably want to have a single, convenient place to control them from. While there might be a few smart home platforms in existence, most devices support Apple Home, which means that the 2nd-gen Apple HomePod is one of the best smart home hubs available today. What makes it even better is that it is future-proof and compatible with an even wider range of smart devices, thanks to its support for the budding Matter smart home standard.
Admittedly, the 2nd-gen HomePod looks a lot like the first-ever HomePod, but that’s also because it’s a well-loved design that’s known to work. Looks can be deceiving, of course, because everything inside has been upgraded. That means that not only is the HomePod 2 a great smart home hub, it’s also a great speaker that now supports Spatial Audio for that 5.1-channel home theater effect with a single speaker.
3. Bird Buddy
Bird watching is an underrated and unappreciated hobby, mostly because of how time-consuming it is to wait for the right bird to come at the right time. It would probably be more efficient if you just let the bird come to you and just be notified when that happens, rather than going out of your way to search for these feathered visitors. That’s pretty much the idea behind Bird Buddy, a smart bird feeder that also turns you into a smarter bird watcher.
Bird Buddy entices your flying neighbors with snacks that they can enjoy in peace, so it’s a win-win situation for both birds and humans. Once a bird flies into place, it detects its presence and sends you a notification on your phone, where you can view a live feed of the bird without disrupting its natural behavior. Bird Buddy can even use AI to identify the type of bird so that you can record different kinds, almost like Pokemon. And you don’t have to waste time at home waiting for those notifications since you can carry the Bird Buddy mobile app with you anywhere you go.
Click Here to Buy Now: Starting from $199 $249 (20% off).
4. Flic 2 Smart Button
While controlling smart devices from a mobile app can be convenient and flexible, it isn’t always the smartest nor the fastest way to do things if it involves multiple taps or actions. There’s always this dream of pushing a single button that does everything you need at a given moment without trying so hard. That’s the dream that the Flic 2 makes real with a single button that can do almost anything you can imagine, as long as there’s a service that supports it.
Flic 2 connects to over a dozen smart services, including Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, IFTTT, and more, so that you can map a single push of a button to a single action or a routine that triggers a series of actions. Those can include dimming the lights, starting the coffee machine, sending a message, or ordering supplies. Since it connects to your smartphone, you can even clip it on your clothes or bag and take it with you wherever you go, expanding your smart home into your smart world.
Click Here to Buy Now: $169.99 $189.96 ($20 off).
5. SwitchBot Curtain Rod 2
Smart devices often try to be a jack of all trades to cater to different people and different use cases. You might, however, sometimes want something that does one thing but does it so well that you might even forget that it’s there. That’s the kind of experience that the SwitchBot Curtain Rod 2 brings to the table, turning any old curtain into a smart one in a way that almost makes you think you bought a real smart curtain from the very beginning.
Like any of SwitchBot’s smart products, the Curtain Rod 2 is actually a small robot that attaches to and moves along any conventional curtain rod, which means it can drag the curtain along with it. The robot can be controlled by almost any means, from app to voice command to scheduled times. You can even give it a physical nudge by moving the curtain by hand, and it will move along in that direction, giving you the satisfaction of manually opening or closing curtains but with less work.
Click Here to Buy Now: $99 (Use coupon code ’10TRY’ to get 10% off when you buy 2 products).
6. Tempest Personal Weather System
Many of us might have become accustomed to checking the weather every morning, especially those of us that need to commute almost every day. It’s not an exact science, though, and the results that you get might be completely different, especially if you live quite a distance from the nearest weather station. Fortunately, it’s now possible to have your own personal weather station at home with more accurate and more meaningful information thanks to the Tempest personal weather system.
Unlike most smart home devices, Tempest stands outside to get accurate and real-time weather data as it happens within your vicinity rather than having to rely on a weather station miles and miles away. It can, of course, also tell other smart home devices what to do under certain conditions, so the smart sprinklers won’t turn on when it’s raining, or the smart garage door will close down when it’s too windy. The device is also solar-powered, so you won’t have to worry about your electricity bill spiking up either.
Click Here to Buy Now: $329 (Buy 2 at $575 and save $80).
7. Ecobee Smart Thermostat
Knowing the weather or environment at home is great but means nothing if you can’t be smart about changing that situation for the better. Knowing the right time and amount to heat or cool the house inside is just as important, especially since it saves up money in the long run. You’d need a smart thermostat for that, and Ecobee is not only one of the most established brands in that market, it also has one of the most aesthetic products as well.
The Ecobee Smart Thermostat has all the bells and whistles you’d expect and then some. It can, for example, also monitor air quality so that you can take steps to make sure you’re breathing in clean air. What makes this Ecobee product even more appealing is its handsome looks that easily reminds you of an Apple product, like a large Apple Watch mounted on a wall. It can even show something similar to Siri’s animation when controlling it by voice, giving you an interesting visual while interacting with the device.
Click Here to Buy Now: $249.99
8. SwitchBot Lock
When upgrading your home to be smarter, you often find yourself having to buy new products and replace old ones. That might be fine for smart lighting or even thermostats, but some parts of your house might not be so easy to change. Door locks are one such category of home fixtures that would require a lot of effort and money to upgrade to a smart lock. Fortunately, SwitchBot’s Lock device makes it possible to have a smarter door lock using the very same lock you already have on your door.
Just like most of SwitchBot’s products, the Lock simply installs on your door and attaches to your existing door lock, making a regular mechanism smarter in a snap. You can control the lock remotely through a variety of channels, from voice control to Bluetooth to NFC tags to, of course, physical keys. Not only do you save time opening the door exactly when you need to, you also save both time and money when installing this smart door lock without having to change anything on your door.
Click Here to Buy Now: $99.99 (Use coupon code ’10TRY’ to get 10% off when you buy 2 products).
9. Click and Grow
We probably pay way too much attention to the technological aspects of a smart home, but living smarter doesn’t always involve self-dimming lights, robot vacuum cleaners, and watchful security cameras. It also means living a healthy lifestyle, which is also one area where smart home devices can help with. Eating healthy food, especially vegetables, can sometimes be a chore when you consider all the work and money spent keeping your stocks filled. Fortunately, you can also grow your own green leafy treats, and the Click and Grow offers a smart way to do so.
Growing plants indoors has become quite fashionable these days, but Click and Grow smart planter hits multiple birds with one stone. Its patented tray system ensures you have a continuous harvest of greens every week, but its clean, minimalist design also adds to your home’s ambiance in the process. It’s a smart and beautiful way to give your smart home a splash of green while also ensuring you won’t run out of fresh veggies anytime soon.
Click Here to Buy Now: $599 $729.95 ($130 off).
10. NordicTrack Vault Home Gym
Everyone wants to stay healthy and in good shape, but those people can also think of dozens of excuses not to hit the gym. Admittedly, that’s not a viable option for everyone, but breaking a sweat by yourself at home doesn’t always feel as effective, especially when you don’t really know what you should be doing. If you need guidance beyond just home fitness machines, you might want to also have the wisdom of experts at your service. The Vault brings all of these together into your home, delivering a personal fitness system that fits inside a mirror.
It’s almost too easy to dismiss The Vault as a regular fitness mirror because that is exactly half of what it offers. You have immediate visual feedback that compares your form with that of an expert, and it also gives you access to world-class trainers demonstrating different training styles. The Vault, however, is also a literal vault that contains the accessories you need for a complete workout, including dumbbells, kettlebells, resistance bands, and more. It’s a true home gym system that happens to look nothing like a home gym, bringing a touch of elegance to the room when you’re not doing exercises.
Click Here to Buy Now: Starting from $699 $1499 ($800 off).
