Brief
For this module I’ve been assigned to design an intuitive and futuristic smart home ecosystem. This project requires me to consider the challenges of multi-device control, user privacy, and personalisation.
I’ll be conducting some research into smart homes, some of the smart home devices available in our current society.
Research
A smart home is a home with connected devices that automate and control various household devices, such as lighting, security, heating, entertainment, and appliances. These devices are typically controlled via a central hub, smartphone apps, voice assistants, or automation rules that are set on smartphones. Smart homes use IOT (Internet of Things) due to their ability to connect with other devices via WIFI/ Bluetooth, some smart homes use AI for convenience.
- Alexa uses voice recognition to understand commands/requests and sends them to Amazon’s cloud for processing, all this happens in milliseconds. The AI assistant works with many smart devices and supports automations. It has a strong 3rd party connection thanks to IOT. The issues that come along with device is that the set up is problematic and it has streaming issues. Some people are concerned that the device is constantly listening; this violates their privacy, I believe Amazon made it that way so they can gather data on their users for suggestions. Besides this they are very susceptible to hacking.
- Google Home uses the google assistant voice control and automation to control smart devices, with this users can control their smart home devices like thermostats, plugs, lights, and more via voice command or the Google Home app. Users can set up automated tasks. The issues with Google Home is that the voice commands sometimes isn't responsive due to misinterpreting commands/ questions. There is a privacy invasion issue as well, people can request for your information by simply asking the Google Assistant.
- Apple HomeKit is mainly compatible with the Apple ecosystem and has a huge focus on privacy and security. This device is more limited towards third party devices because it’s integrated with their own ecosystem. This device just like the rest can also control and automate home accessories like lights, locks, and thermostats; users can access security footage as well.
- SmartThings by Samsung is a smart home hub that works with a wide range of IOT devices unlike Apple’s HomeKit device. It is a central hub app that controls smart devices, and sets automations and routines, this makes it one of the most flexible smart home platforms available. It works with many third party devices. Users can use voice commands with SmartThings by connecting voice assistants like Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa to the SmartThings app; it can also be controlled via Samsung Smart TVs, Galaxy Watches, and the Samsung Family Hub refrigerator. Thanks to this SmartThings has a wide reach and can do a lot of things that the other smart homes devices do. The downside to this hub is that non tech savvy people may find the set up complicating, another downside is that Samsung has replaced the hardware with software instead making it rely on third party devices instead; in my opinion that’s not an issue because it allows for a wide range of combability.
Key research
Many smart home devices are made by different companies, and they don’t always connect well with each other. This can make it frustrating to set up a smart home where everything works smoothly. A new standard called Matter is trying to fix this, but not all companies fully support it yet, so problems still exist.
Matter is a new standard designed to help smart home devices from different brands work together seamlessly. By creating a common language for these devices, Matter aims to eliminate compatibility issues, allowing users to mix and match products without worrying about connectivity problems. This means you could control various smart devices through a single app or voice assistant, regardless of the manufacturer. However, as of now, not all companies have fully adopted Matter, so some compatibility challenges still exist.
Matter will be better in 2025 — say the people who make it
Matter is designed to allow smart home devices to function without an internet connection. It enables devices to communicate directly over local networks like Wi-Fi or Thread. This means you can control your smart devices even if your internet is down, as long as your local network is operational.
Apple now lets you add Matter devices to Apple Home without a hub
Things that can be controlled in a smart home