SMART HOME STARTER KIT

February 21, 2019

By Neil Schmidt

DO YOU HAVE A SMARTHOME?

Do you have:

Amazon Alexa Dot or Echo ?

Ring Video Doorbell?

Home video camera?

Any other controllable “IoT” device in your home?

If yes, you have some form of smart­home

MY PRESENTATION

Some “Smart­Home” basics

Devices available

First steps

Expanding/building

Conclusions

SOME BASICS

A smart-home is a house that is equipped with lighting, heating, and other “IoT” devices that can be remotely controlled

It can be controlled by smartphones, mobile touch screens, voice assistants and/or automation

A smart­home can provide comfort, security, energy efficiency and convenience

SMART HOME ADVANTAGES

� Convenience by managing all devices from one place

� Flexibility, i.e., ability to seamlessly integrate new

devices

� Home Security with alerts to problems in your home

� Remotely Control home functions away from home

� Increased Energy Efficiency through energy

management

� Home Management Insights by analyzing habits &

behaviors

SOME SPECIFIC EXAMPLES

Cameras can track your home's exterior even if it's pitch­black outside

Thermostats can be controlled from your bed, the airport, anywhere your smartphone has a signal

LED lights let you program color and brightness from your phone.

Motion sensors can send an alert when motion around your house, and can even tell the difference between pets and burglars

Smartphone integration lets you turn lights and appliances on or off from your mobile device or smart hub

Door locks and garage doors can opened remotely or automatically as you approach

Auto alerts from your security system will immediately go to your smartphone, so you instantly know if there's a problem at home.

COMMERCIAL SYSTEMS

Many commercial smart home systems available:

ADTProtect Your HomeLifeSHIELDProtectAmericaFrontpointVivint

Commercial systems are expensive with monthly fees

You can now easily Do­It­Yourself (DIY) with no monthly fees

SMART HOME COMMUNICATION

Smart home devices use several different communication techniques (protocols)

X-10 – Granddaddy of home automation protocols via PLC (1970’s)

Insteon – Improved communication via PLC & wireless (2005)

� Wi-Fi – Primary smart home communication protocol

� BLE – Bluetooth Low Energy

� Z-Wave – Low power mesh network

� ZigBee – Low power mesh network (similar to Z­Wave)

IMPORTANCE OF WIFI

Smart homes use Wi­Fi for basic communication

and control

“Wi­Fi is crappy in most homes and crappy Wi­Fi

means crappy performance for smart home

gadgets.” (Amazon after purchasing Eero)

Before you consider setting up a smart home, make

sure your Wi­Fi is rock solid, i.e., doesn’t lock­up

SOME SMART HOME DEVICES

HUBS & BRIDGES

Most smart home systems primarily use Wi­Fi for communication

Several smart devices, especially sensors and actuators, can’t communicate directly with your Wi­Fi (they use one of the other protocols)

“Hub” or “Bridge” act as a translator between different protocols.

Why is this important?When buying devices, you need to check if a hub isrequired (Another item to purchase, i.e., ~$45)

SMART HOME DEVICES

Philips Hue: White ($12)

Color ($45)

Bridge ($43)

Kasa Smart LED: White ($20)

Light Bulbs

PlugsKoogeek: ($25)

� iDevices Switch ($29)

SMART HOME DEVICES

Philips Hue Motion ($28)

Motion Detectors

Wireless SwitchesPhilips Hue Smart Dimmer ($25)

Wired SwitchesKoogeek WiFi Wall Switch ($47)

SMART HOME DEVICES

August Smart Lock Pro ($195)

Smart Locks

Thermostatsecobee3 lite Smart Thermostat ($169)

Garage Door OpenersMyQ Smart Garage Door Opener ($80)

MyQ Home Bridge ($87) Total: $167

SMART SPEAKERS

Google Mini ($29)

Google Home Smart Speaker ($89)

Google (Assistant)

Amazon (Alexa)Dot ($30)

Echo ($75)

Echo Plus­2nd Gen ($150)

Apple (Siri)iPhone, iPad

Apple HomePod ($250)

SMART HOME DISPLAYS

Echo Spot ($100)

Echo Show ($230)

Amazon

GoogleGoogle Home Hub ($99)

AppleiPad Mini ($146)

iPad ($299), iPhone ...

SMART HUBS

Samsung SmartThings ($63)

Wink Hub 2 ($116)

Google

AmazonSamsung SmartThings ($63)Wink Hub 2 ($116)

AppleAppleTV ($149)

HomePod ($250), iPad in home

SECURITY & PRIVACY

Security: Todays smart home systems are pretty good (probably no worse than when you connect your phone or PC to your network)

Note: It’s important that you have a strong network password and change it every once in a while

Privacy: Can be questionable with Google & Amazon because they collect and use your data

FIRST STEPS

STARTING SMALL

Start small...

Buy a single type or brand of smart devices

Light bulbs

Plugs

Camera

Use device’s smartphone app to turn on/off or

view status

To expand, you need an integrated ecosystem

WHICH ECOSYSTEM?

� You need to select a smart home system that can

integrate (control and monitor) all your devices

Primary choices are:

Amazon EchoGoogle HomeApple HomeKit

AMAZON ECHO

� Uses Amazon Echo devices as base station

� Voice control via “Alexa” (great voice recognition)

� Lots of automated functions via “skills”

� Many home automation devices available

� Privacy is poor (captures & uses your data)

� Generally only basic smart­home control, i.e., on/off vs. automation

� Best system if you already have Echo & Alexa controllable devices

TOP 10 LIST WITH ECHO

1. Make phone calls

2. Get cooking ideas and tips

3. Get the news

4. Entertain your kids for hours

5. Learn about more features

6. Get fit (or try to)

7. Control your TV

8. Use Spotify or Pandora to play music

9. Control your smart home10. Train Alexa to do practically anything else (IFTTT)

GOOGLE HOME

� Started late but rapidly catching up

� Uses “Google Home” device as base station

� Voice control via “Google Assistant”

� Lots of home automation devices available

� Many automated functions (fewer than Amazon &

Apple)

� Terrible privacy (Google, Google, Google,...)

� Best if you have Android phone and/or Google for

email, calendar, maps, Nest devices and more

APPLE HOMEKIT

Controllable via iPhone, iPad, AppleTV & HomePod

Away from home control (AppleTV, HomePod)

Can use your iPhone’s GPS location for actions

Voice control via “Siri”

“Home” app is simple & the best automation

Maximum security with end­to­end encryption

Fewer home smart devices available (doesn’t work

with Google’s Nest or Amazon’s Ring devices)

Best if already vested in Apple ecosystem

MY DECISION PROCESS

Amazon EchoI have an Echo and an Echo DotGreat at answering questions (personal assistant)Can turn Bose Radio on/off, change stations Can turn TV on/off, change stationsGood at voice control (primarily on/off)Poor automation capabilityNot selected

Google HomeExcept for Gmail, not vested in Google stuffNot selected

MY DECISION PROCESS

What I want in a smart home system

More than just turn things on/off via voice

Automation (automatic control) such as:

Accessory control (Ex. “When a light turns on”)

Sensor detection (Ex. “Motion detected”)

Location change (Ex. “Everyone has left home)

Maximum security and privacy

Already vested in Apple products (iPhone, iPad, AppleTV)

Apple HomeKit was selected

MY SMART HOME HISTORY

1980­: Plug­in mechanical timer

1980’s: X10 Devices (PLC)

Plug­in modules: Lights

Remote controller

2000’s: Insteon Devices (PLC)

Plug­in, lights, locks, appliance modules

PC programable (ISY)

Smart mobile device control (Mobilinc)

2018: HomeKit (WiFi, Bluetooth, ZigBee & Z­Wave)

HOMEKIT

BUILDING A SYSTEM

My HomeKit experience used as an example on

how to setup a smart home system

Setup for Amazon or Google is somewhat similar

General concept is the same

Many devices work on multiple systems

There are though some differences in both security

and functionality

BUILDING A SYSTEM

For HomeKit:

You need to have Apple hardware (iPhone or iPad)

To get the most out of your system, you also need

either an Apple TV, HomePod, or a dedicated iPad

You need smart home gadgets that work with

HomeKit

HOMEKIT TERMINOLOGY

Home: Standard built­in iOS app (2016)

App is used to view & manage smart home

devices or accessories

Rooms: Specifying where devices are located

� Example: Living Room, Family Room, etc.

� Zones: A bunch of rooms grouped together

� Example: Upstairs, Downstairs

Scenes: A group of actions all triggered at the same

time

HOMEKIT TERMINOLOGY

Automations: Control things without intervention

using various triggers

Examples: Time of Day, When sensor detects

something, etc.

Home Hub: Allows controls of your home when you

are not there

Need Apple TV, ApplePod, or dedicated iPad

HOMEKIT CONTROL

HomeKit setup is done via “Home” app on iPhone/iPad

Manually control devices via “Home” app or Siri

Siri recognizes your rooms, scenes, and automations

Some Siri examples:“Turn off the lights in the family room”“Set living room light to 50 percent”“Set the temperature to 68 degrees”“I’m home”“Did I lock the front door?”“Is the garage door open?”

Security measure: Some accessories don’t work with Siri unless phone is unlocked, i.e., front door, garage door

LETS START BUILDING!

ADD AN ACCESSARY

“Home” App Scan codeAdd Accessory

SPECIFYING THE ROOM

Change the “Room”ID the “Room”

AUTOMATION

Program how device(s) will automatically act:

A Time of Day Occurs

An Accessory is Controlled

People Arrive or Leave (geofence)

A Sensor Detects Something

TIME AUTOMATION

ACCESSARY AUTOMATION

SENSOR AUTOMATION

GEOFENCE AUTOMATION

HOUSEHOLD SHARING

You can invite others iOS owners to access your

HomeKit control (spouse, child, etc.)

For security, make sure they have a password &

two­factor authentication on their iCloud account

They will have full access to all your devices (You

cannot share a single device)

“HOME” APP ON IPHONE

“Home” App Change Settings

“HOME” APP ON IPAD

NOTIFICATIONS

You can get notifications sent to your iOS device(s)

My notifications are:

When someone approaches front door

When someone opens front door

When someone opens the garage door

When there is motion detected in house and we’re not home

When someone rings the front door (Ring Doorbell)

MY “AUTOMATION”

Morning: Turn up heat to day­time tempEach day: Turn­on garden fountain Sunset: Turn­on entryway/sidewalk lightsEvening: Turn­on hall lights on movementAny time: Turn­on computer room lights on movementLate evening: Turn down heat, lock front door, close garage doorNight time: Turn on front lights on motion in frontWhen I leave: Lower heat 2°, lock front door, close garage doorWhen I arrive: Turn up heat, turn­on family room light (night only)More motion sensor “automation” being planned

RELIABILITY

Most smart home devices work flawlessly but...Do some research before buying devicesAvoid devices with reported communication issuesMinimize the number of different brands used

Smart home systems don’t work if:Loose power to your houseWi­Fi locks­up (Get it up to snuff before starting)

SETUP CHALANGES

When buying, make sure devices work with your system (HomeKit, Amazon, Google Home)

Check to see if a “hub” is also needed for a device

Setting up devices is relatively easy

Often use device’s app for startup steps (No written instructions)

My linking issues experience:Apple TV: Reset iCloud (Google) August Lock: Unlock gear mechanism (Google)MyQ Garage Opener: Hub & Bridge (Tech.)Lutron Bridge: Reset (Tech.)

CONCLUSION

A Smart Home system is fun to use

Sometimes a challenge to setup

Can be a bit expensive

Adds comfort, convenience and security to your home

Moves you & your home into the modern age