Smart TVs are capable of tracking user data, including viewing habits and app usage, which can lead to personalized advertising and content recommendations. Users may prefer to limit this tracking to protect their privacy.
The plugs let you add smart controls to devices like lamps, fans, chargers, coffee makers, and heaters. All you need is plug one into an outlet and connect it to your Wi-Fi network, and you can automate whatever's attached using the Kasa app on your phone.
After some investigation, I found that Home Assistant has an integration with Node-RED - a graphical tool for manipulating data and event streams. It could probably satisfy most of my needs. But from time to time I remember that I'm a professional software developer, working with event streams for many years, and for this kind of problem there's nothing better than math (and Scala's type system, which supports it very well).
The best alarm clocks present an alternative vision for your morning wake up routine: less grating, more considerate, and aesthetically pleasing. For this list, we opted for privileged looks and throwback features over Bluetooth capability and USB ports, resulting in an assortment of beautifully designed analog and digital alarm clocks that cover the basics—a snooze button, a backlight, and dimmer—without going full 21st century.
All of the appliances and systems are brand-new: the HVAC, the lighting, the entertainment. Touch screens of various shapes and sizes control this, that, and the other. Rows of programmable buttons sit where traditional light switches would normally be. The kitchen even has outlets designed to rise up from the countertop when you need them, and slide away when you don't.
Originally developed by Nest (before the Google acquisition), Thread has existed since 2011. Devised as a power-efficient mesh networking technology for internet-of-things (IoT) products, Thread gathered pace after the 2014 formation of the Thread Group, which develops the technology and drives its adoption as an industry standard. Founding members like ARM, Samsung, Google, and Qualcomm have been joined by Apple, Amazon, and many other big companies over the years.
A floodlight security camera is a great way to add light and video surveillance to your property, and they work extremely well for dark areas. They can serve like motion-activated lights when you or your family are taking out the trash, adding safety and convenience to your property. The addition of a security camera enables you to receive alerts about intruders, record video events that you can review later, and drop in and check on the videofeed whenever you like from wherever you are.
Matter, the smart home connectivity protocol that revolutionized the IoT world, has done wonders to bridge the interoperability gaps between brands. For various reasons, however, Matter hasn't completely solved the problem of incompatibility in the smart home. IoT company Copilot.cx aims to change that by giving users access to different brands' devices with a single mobile app. Copilot.cx has introduced Copilot Star, a platform that enables manufacturers to builda branded app based on a single framework, connecting smart home devices running on different platforms.
They do nothing to save you power Scam "power saving" devices are rampant online. These devices plug into an outlet and promise to "improve the use of energy," "extend the life of electrical equipment," and even "avoid illegal electrical waste." Sounds great, right? Also: This USB power meter I tested is shockingly accurate - especially for how cheap it is Well, despite the bold claims and the sticker on the front of the unit, they are too good to be true.
On the hunt for new smart plugs to upgrade your home automation? One of our favorite picks, the Meross MSS110 Smart Plug Mini, is currently marked down on Amazon. The two pack is discounted from $34 to $27, and the four pack is down to $34 from its usual price of $52. These plugs help add smart functionality to otherwise dumb devices around your home, like lamps or fans, so they can be included in your routines.
The base $4,299 E10 system starts with one Power Module and one battery that can keep a few individual appliances running, and scale up to power an entire home. The 110.2-pound inverter is good for a steady 7.68kW output (or 10kW for 90 minutes). It can produce up to 28.8kW (120 LRA) peak when fitted with a single 6kWh battery, or 37.2kW (155 LRA) when configured with two or more batteries - enough to start a 5-ton air conditioner.
Ring has launched a new tool that can tell you if a video clip captured by its camera has been altered or not. The company says that every video downloaded from Ring starting in December 2025 going forward will come with a digital security seal. "Think of it like the tamper-evident seal on a medicine bottle," it explained. Its new tool, called Ring Verify, can tell you if a video has been altered in any way.
