Last year, the term ‘smart home’ became common spread but in 2017 this has already gained more traction with the release of Amazon Echo and Google Home being welcomed by consumers.
Steven Ellwood, managing director of BLT Direct, explains: “People are enjoying the idea of a smart home as it makes life convenient. It feels as if we are living in the future, now, and this is incredibly exciting. However, beyond the novelty hi-tech aspect, the rise in smart homes and the use of smart devices such as lightbulbs could be a huge step forward for making homes much more energy efficient in the future.”
Steven continues: “‘Home assistants’, such as the newly released Google Home and Amazon Echo enable users to adjust the sensors around their home to suit their needs exactly. This includes turning the music to optimum level, locking windows as they leave the house and turning lightbulbs on, off or at different levels of brightness, depending on their mood or the task that is at hand. With this level of control, energy is only required when it is actually needed, rather than wasted unnecessarily. This could be a game changer for the environment.”
Predictions from Business Intelligence, the premium research service from Business Insider, suggest that 193 million smart home devices will be shipped to new users by 2020 – growing from 83 million in 2015. With consumers accepting this hyper-connected upgrade to home life, this could in turn make a positive change to average energy output across the world.
Steven concludes: “The possibilities that mass adoption of smart home technology has for increasing energy efficiency is vast, but consumers must take action now to drive the ‘tipping point’ that is needed. Even without a complete connected home, like that offered by Amazon Echo or Google Home, investing in smart lightbulbs connected by an independent hub can make the simple change, fast.”
