Build Your Own Smart Home, Discover STEM activities for kids and much more

Remember Back To The Future II? The one where Marty goes to a future where hoverboards really do hover and houses are voice-operated? Well, the former may not have materialised quite as the filmmakers had hoped, but the latter is more tangible than ever.

Modern smart homes are more accessible thanks to technology like smart home apps and smart home hubs. These can be paired with high-tech products to create a home that can be controlled with your voice or from the palm of your hand. Vodacom has some impressive products to get you started with creating your smart home.

Why create a smart home?

Besides the bragging rights to having the futuristic home ’80s movie dreams were made of, smart devices also offer solutions to everyday problems. Ever left home and wondered if you’ve switched on the alarm? No need to turn back – just check your phone and activate it if you haven’t.

You can manage your home from one place,?improve home security?with surveillance and alarm devices, and even save energy through remote access to lights, geysers, and heating systems.?Smart home entertainment?systems are also a thing, but before all of this, you need to get the basics right.

The Internet of Things (IoT)

The key aspect to building your smart home is the IoT, which consists of products that are connected and communicate via the same internet connection. This connection is what allows wireless control between mobile phones, voice-operated devices and your household products. Products like?Vodacom Fibre?are your first step in giving you the connectivity to create a smart home.

How much can you control in a smart home?

Almost anything can be controlled using?smart home functionality, provided you use smart home appliances like the Xiaomi Mi Smart LED Bulb, which bypasses the switch, and is operated directly from the smartphone or smart hub. Xiaomi also provides several products like door and window sensors and security cameras?while Ring has a video?doorbell, alarm system?and indoor cameras among many others.

Things get even more interesting with products like the Mi Smart air fryer, Mi Robot Vacuum and a smart pet feeder, all?by Xiaomi. The only local issue holding back smart homes is load shedding, although that can be avoided by?getting a UPS?or by using one of these?loadshedding apps?to know exactly when your smart home becomes a regular one, and for how long.

Beyond the smartphone

The most convenient way to achieve all the above is by using a smartphone?app.?This is one way of controlling smart appliances, as they all come with easy-to-follow instructions and simple formatting. They also offer a voice control option, although, if you want to go full Back To The Future, the alternative could be a?suitable smart hub.

Vodacom offers the Xiaomi Mi Smart Home Hub, which connects via WIFI, Bluetooth, and Zigbee allowing users to control a network of smart home products from their phone. There is also the Mi Smart Speaker which has the OK Google function, letting users control connected smart devices with their voices. This brings?the functionality as close to the movie experience as it can get.

Where to find these devices

The abovementioned products, along with many others, are available from the?Vodacom online store?so that you can start creating your smart home. While most of the online purchases are once-off retail purchases, if you go into the physical store, you can add product costs?to a new or existing contract.