I'm enjoying making my home smarter via Apple HomeKit-compatible devices. In this post I'll cover a handy gadget from Elgato that lets you monitor how much electricity an appliance is using: Eve Energy ($49.95). Elgato has also given me Eve Weather and Eve Door & Window and I'll cover those HomeKit devices in future posts.
Home & Garden
Review: Upgrade Your Home with the Smart Level Lock+
By Olena Kagui
Have you ever misplaced or forgotten your keys? Gotten all comfy in bed just to wonder, anxiously, if you locked the door? Wished you could let your friend or neighbor into your home while you’re at work? The Level Lock+ makes all these concerns a thing of the past! This smart lock is Apple HomeKit compatible and comes with Apple Home Keys, giving you dozens of quick and easy ways to lock and unlock your door, even if you’re continents away.
How to Use the HomePod mini Temperature and Humidity Sensor
By Olena Kagui
Apple surprised HomePod mini owners with the iOS 16.3 update that activated a previously unused sensor sitting on our shelves. This HomePod sensor not only measures your home's temperature and humidity but can also trigger HomeKit automations for your smart home setup! This means that a change in temperature or humidity can turn on your AC or dehumidifier as long as they are compatible.
HomePod Mini Bluetooth Range & How to Improve It
By Olena Kagui
During the HomePod mini Bluetooth pairing process, you have to keep your iPhone close. However, once your HomePod is set up, it will have a surprisingly good range. I will clarify how far you can be without needing to raise your voice and give you tips for improving it.
3 Best Garden Planner Apps
By Leanne Hays
Whether you enjoy growing flowers, herbs, fruit, vegetables, or all of the above, seed starting is an important skill to master. Growing plants from seed won’t save you money the first season. After all, you’ll need trays, lights, and even shelves if you’re starting more than a few flats. But in subsequent seasons, you’ll reap the financial rewards, germinating dozens of starts for the cost of a single seedling from a greenhouse. Growing seedlings at home also allows you to fill your garden with plant varieties not generally found on the market. You’ll have literally thousands of options readily available from seed catalogs. Here are three seed-starting apps that will help you through the intricate and rewarding process of germinating seeds and growing starts indoors or directly in the garden.
Smart Plants: The Best Gardening Tools for the Techie Horticulturist
By Sarah Kingsbury
Winter is in full swing. It’s time to drag all your houseplants inside from their outdoor abode where they’ve been living their best lives and figure out how to keep them alive in the dry indoor air and limited winter sunlight. Having a house full of vibrant greenery offers a delightful contrast to the cold gray outdoors, but keeping plants happy requires the right tools. Here are all the apps and smart gear I use to keep my indoor garden thriving all winter long.
How to Add a Smart Home Accessory to Your Apple HomeKit
By Hallei Halter
Adding HomeKit-enabled accessories to the Apple Home app lets you control, schedule, and monitor your smart home devices from anywhere in the world. We'll walk you through the steps to add a smart accessory to the Home app on your iPhone or iPad and pair the smart device using the app's Scan QR function (or by entering the code manually).
How to Automate a Smart Home Accessory Schedule from iPhone
By Hallei Halter
If you're just getting started with Apple HomeKit automation, beginning with a timed automation is a great first step! Here's how to schedule an Apple Home automation, so your smart home accessory will perform an action like clockwork. For example, you can set your porchlights to turn on every day at sunset or open the curtains at a certain time while you're out of the house so your indoor plants get plenty of sunlight. The smart accessory will need to have previously been added to the Home app, as well as be charged and connected to Wi-Fi.
Review: Eve Water Guard Leak Detector
By Mike Riley
The HomeKit-enabled Eve product catalog continues to rapidly expand into a variety of home automation hardware, with the most recent being a smart Wi-Fi water sensor alarm that detects standing water. If you have ever experienced a leaking washing machine, dishwasher or overflowing sump pump, the Eve Water Guard ($79.95) is an ideal water leak detector to add to your Apple HomeKit-powered environment.
Philips Hue Reviews: Lightstrip Plus & Hue Smart Plug
By Mike Riley
Apple's HomeKit works wonderfully for smart home automation needs, as long as you stay within the Apple ecosystem. However, if your smart home houses people with mixed technology preferences like mine, getting everyone to agree to a single operating system platform may be a futile exercise. Fortunately, the Philips Hue home automation lighting technology works on iOS, Android, Windows, macOS and even with smart voice assistants like Apple Siri, Amazon Alexa, and Google Assistant as a consequence of the stand-alone base station that controls its smart home hardware. Because of this unique positioning and large market share, Philips has begun branching out beyond smart light bulbs into more elaborate lighting and even smart power outlets. This article reviews two recent additions to the Philips Hue product family.
Igloo Home Smart Padlock Review
By Todd Bernhard
Over the years, I've reviewed a number of smart locks from Igloo Home and the company now has something for just about every customer and need, from door locks to lock boxes and now the Smart Padlock ($109). Igloo Home sent me the padlock to test; and just in time, as I was setting up a storage locker for my daughter to use at college.
Review: Brinno DUO Is a Smart Door Camera for Apartments & More
By Todd Bernhard
While I have a Ring video doorbell, it has some drawbacks. First, I had to physically hardwire it into my house. If I lived in an apartment, that would not be an option. The other issue is that I have to find and open my phone to see who is there. If I'm at the door, a peephole makes more sense. The folks at Brinno have a solution, with the Brinno DUO Smart Peephole DoorCam ($199.95). Brinno sent me the peephole camera and, sure enough, no heavy duty tools were required to install it.
Ever since I got my iPhone X last year, I’ve been intrigued by the possibility of creating a wireless charging station for it. Sure, there’s a burgeoning supply of furniture with Qi chargers already built in, but they’re more expensive than I’m willing to spring for. Beyond that, I enjoy repurposing all sorts of items around the house, from pallets, to fabric, to old box springs, and thought this project would be a great way to reuse a less-than-gorgeous piece of furniture while improving my less-than-stellar carpentry skills. My goal was to combine the old and worn with cutting-edge technology to create a piece of furniture no one would suspect had the ability to wirelessly charge your iPhone.