OutSmart Homes

If you took my my advice from the last post then you are on your way to building a smart home. Let me walk you through some thoughts on how to add some smarts to your home with your new Kasa TP-Link smart plugs. Remember, you can always turn on/ off a lamp that you plugged in to the Kasa smart plug by switching the button on it or you can use your smartphone if it's handy. Having a smart plug will let you do more than just having an off/ switch. Download the Kasa Smart app ( Apple or Android ) and follow the instructions on how to setup and configure the smart plug. Create an account if you don't already have one with Kasa. All smart devices will require you to have an account with the manufacturer because in order for you to set schedules up, you will need an account to keep the data. The Kasa Smart app will allow you to setup schedules on when your lights turn on/ off. Schedules are great because lights will appear to turn on when you come home and off when you turn ...

Amazon just dropped prices on the Kasa TP-Link smart plugs so add it to your cart and get on with your smart home. We recommend Kasa smart plugs over a generic brand because they are reliable, dependable, well made and they work with IFTTT (ie. the programming language that anyone can learn to do). At this price, there is no excuse to on building your smart home. Start now and add a Kasa TP-Link smart plug to your shopping cart. Here are 10 ideas on what you can do with your Kasa TP-Link smart plugs: 1. Turn lamps on at sunset. 2. Brew coffee when you wake up. 3. Turn on fan when it's hot outside. 4. Turn on your tv when you get home. 5. Turn fan on when garage door opens. 6. Turn off lights when you go to bed. 7. Turn on the humidifier when humidity is low. 8. Turn on all the lights in the house with one button. 9. Turn on your Christmas tree when you get home. 10. Blink your lights when you get an email or text. The whole idea behind smart plugs is that you c...

When the sun goes down, darkness lurks all over your home. Why not light it up with a light connected to a smart home device like the Wemo Insight Smart Switch or a Philips Hue Light ? Having a light turned on automatically using a smart home security routine is cool but before you spend a cent, ask yourself if a simple night light would do the trick? One of the reasons why so many people have not jumped on the smart home bandwagon is cost. Smart home devices aren't cheap and most people are old school including myself. We would rather use our house key to open and lock our doors instead of keying in a code or using our smartphone. I think having a smart home is convenient, useful and I love writing this blog about everything you can do to add the smarts in your home but I'm budget-conscious like I know a lot of you are too. Back to the night light question, will a simple night light solve my problem or do I have to use a smart home device? I go to my favorite online...

People get nervous around cameras, especially when they walk into a home with surveillance cameras mounted everywhere. I know that because recently, my realtor asked me if it was okay to take down all the cameras before an open house. She explained that potential buyers may have a problem touring the house with cameras watching them and possibly, filming them without their permission. If privacy tops your concerns about putting smart home devices into your home then this blog is for you. With most good smart home cameras, there is a mode that works as though the lens cap was left on the camera lens. It is known as the 'privacy mode' and when turned on, it shuts down the live view and prevents the camera from capturing images. The camera remains on and is still connected to your network but the camera lens and microphone are both disabled. In this mode, the camera is dark and is unable to capture any images or video. As I've found, only some of the better smart home camer...