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Humans have always been fascinated with coming up with new ways to make tasks easier. Even our hunter-gatherer ancestors, says Harvard professor Daniel Lieberman, were "as likely as 21st century Americans to instinctually avoid unnecessary exertion."

From motion sensor lights to air con timers, we've invented a host of gadgets and gizmos to help automate our lives since. In particular, many devices have been created with our haven of peace and rest in mind - the home.

It might seem like the term "smart home" has been thrown around for a long time now. That's because it has. The means to allow two or more things to communicate wirelessly - protocols like the Z-Wave and Zigbee - has existed for more than a decade.

In other words, the capability to control your locks and light switches remotely has been around for a while.

Of course, in the early 2000s, you could only do this via a dedicated remote control. It was only in 2011 did Nest introduce WiFi into their first product, the Learning Thermostat.

Due to factors such as prohibitive pricing and inaccessible technology, having your own smart home has probably always been a pipe dream - until now. Here's why 2018 is the perfect year for you to get into smart home automation in Singapore.
 

Automating menial tasks at home might come across as frivolous.

Yes, having the aircon in my bedroom switch on automatically when it gets a bit warm is pretty cool (pun intended). But if all I have to do is spend a minute to stand up, walk into my bedroom, and press a button on the remote control to do the same, is it really worth spending good money on that? Why not save it up instead?

The answer lies in two words: decision fatigue.

Everyday, we face an incredible amount of decisions that need to be made.

Some are more important, such as whether you should fire an underperforming employee or not.

Other decisions might seem less impactful, but require equally lengthy consideration.

Take lunch, for example. You’ll start off with whether you should eat more fried food or vegetables at lunch today. Which leads to the question of which hawker center or restaurant you should patronize. Which leads you down the rabbit hole that is Yelp, Burpple, or your favorite food blogs.

On Burpple alone, there are 57 food categories to choose from. There goes half an hour of pre-lunch work productivity.

On a daily basis, we make a large number of seemingly “routine” decisions, which are actually not routine at all.

All of these add up to decision fatigue: “the more choices you make throughout the day, the harder each one becomes for your brain, and eventually it looks for shortcuts,” according to The New York Times.

The result? We end up making bad decisions, or none at all - which could be catastrophic if we happened to be in such a state when facing an important but tough call to make.

This is the reason why people who need to make big decisions constantly - such as CEOs and presidents - wear the same thing everyday.

“I’m trying to pare down decisions,” former US president Barack Obama tells Vanity Fair. “I don’t want to make decisions about what I’m eating or wearing. Because I have too many other decisions to make.”

The solution? Automate as many so-called menial decisions as possible. And that starts at home.
 

To those who are not well-acquainted with this industry, technology always seems to be expensive - even when it is not - because everything appears to be futuristic and shiny.

The fact is, however, that the more technology advances, the cheaper it actually gets.

Take the personal computer, for example. In 1971, the first ever PC debuted at an inflation adjusted price of over $4000. And let’s not talk about Hewlett-Packard’s first attempt to produce a business computer, which had a stunning price tag of $95,000 (inflation adjusted price: $541,209).

Even in the last two years, the cost of smart home automation devices and parts have halved (in some cases, even more), according to Home-A-Genius.

How did this happen? We have China to thank for that. Chinese tech companies such as Xiaomi, with a huge advantage on the production front, have leapt ahead of the US and rapidly produced high-quality, low-priced goods at scale.'

In other words, you can now get Chinese smart home automation devices and parts in Singapore that are as good, or even better, than their US counterparts. At a price point that makes sense for the everyday consumer.

Don’t believe me? Here are some examples we have gathered:

Earlier in this article, we talked about the Z-Wave protocol, which basically allows you to add any device in your home to your network and control it remotely. This can be achieved simply by plugging the relevant Z-Wave module into your devices of choice, which can then be controlled with a Z-Wave controller.

While Z-Wave smart home products are very popular in the market, they’re notoriously hard to purchase in Singapore - typically, you’d need to ship them in from the US or Europe.

Additionally, the Z-Wave protocol works in different frequencies for different countries. In other words, Z-Wave products purchased in the US won’t work in Singapore.

Once again, China has offered us a better way to get past these difficulties.

For one, we can now get our smart home products and devices directly from manufacturers in China. Xiaomi, for instance, shipped over 10 million smart home products globally in the past three years. MiJia smart switches and smart sensors, for instance, are very highly rated.

Shenzhen-based VStarcam has also set the standard for wireless IP cameras locally. TP-Link, which also hails from Shenzhen, offers a cheap but superior Smart Plug alternative.

Furthermore, Xiaomi smart home devices are also generally compatible with Zigbee, another well-known protocol. Zigbee’s advantage over Z-Wave is that it is is a standardised protocol, which makes it far easier to implement, especially in this part of the world.

Similarly, the popular Amazon Echo - a smart home voice controller - is huge in the US, but don’t ship directly to Singapore. Google, however, has recently set up an online store in Singapore, giving locals access to their newly launched voice controller, the Google Home.

All that said and done, setting up a smart home system in your home can seem like a daunting task.

A major issue is technological fragmentation - that is, when each of your devices, while able to communicate with each other, require separate remote controls and mobile apps to operate.

Another is the sheer amount of options available for hub devices, protocols, software ecosystems, and so on. For the average user, it can be overwhelming.

The good news is, these issues can be easily overcome by having a smart home hub.
 

A smart hub allows all your devices to operate on the save wavelength, and gives you centralized control over your entire smart home automation system.

Rather than having to manage different apps and remote controls for your devices, you’d be able to access everything through a single hub.

For instance, if you’ve opted to use Mi Home and Philips Hue devices, you can get access to both lines of devices simply by connecting the Mi Home Gateway and Philips Hue Bridge to our Home-A-Genius hub.

From then on, you can control them via the smart home hub directly.

Another advantage of using a smart home hub is the ability to group devices in a room or environment together. For example, if you have a lamp, fan, and speaker from different ecosystems in your living room, you can group and control them as a “room” unit.

A good smart home hub also includes connectivity across different wireless standards, regardless of whether you’re using Z-Wave or Zigbee, so you don’t need to worry about compatibility.

Here’s how our Home-A-Genius Hub looks like:
 

This is the fun part! Here’s where you consider which devices you want to automate, and find the relevant smart plugs and switches that will accomplish that for you.

For instance, if you want to fit out all your lightings with Philips Hue devices, you’d need to first get the Philips Hue bridge. If not, you might want to consider getting TP-Link Smart Plugs to connect your “dumb” light fixtures.

Either way, a good smart home hub would allow you one-stop connectivity all of these devices - regardless of the ecosystem they belong to. Home-A-Genius takes it up a notch by operating through local network connections, which allows the system to receive triggers and send signals to the respective devices faster.

You can go one step further and get a voice controller - such as the Amazon Echo and Google Home - which would allow you to deliver commands from anywhere in the house.
 

The best part? Once set up, smart home automation systems tend to be relatively low maintenance. Apart from updating device and hub software, there’s really not much else to be done.

An exception would be sensors and IP cameras, which require changing of batteries once every three years and three months respectively. Even then, it’s a small price to pay compared to the alternative of running wires to power these devices. Sure, you might go through some trial and error at the beginning, but once these systems are optimized, you’ll reap great benefits from it.
 

Clearly, many factors have aligned to make smart home automation a much friendlier and affordable option in 2018. If you’re looking to dive into it, we’re here to help. Let’s explore how we can help you save time and money together!

After months of paper work, finally..... You have gotten your keys to your new home. Now what? The beautiful, dreamy image of an ideal home comes in...

but stop. Let s roll back a little.

First, whip out your floor plan and strategise your army of smart gadget.

Automatic Lightings - On-demand lights in certain areas e.g. entrance, kitchen/yard, bathroom are definitely needed. You will be thankful for these little angels in scenarios like walking home hands full, getting busy in the kitchen and walking to the bathroom in the middle of the night. Not to forget areas that require motion sensor so that you can activate lights handsfree anytime you need them.

Mood Lighting - dimming to save energy? Mood lighting is more than that. Coloured lights set the mood for different events. Dimming the lights not only saves energy, but also gives off a cosy and relaxed atmosphere.

Convenience on the go - Forget to turn off something? Most Smart hubs are equipped with remote access functions. You can control your home even if you are miles away from home.

On-demand Spotify connection - Most hubs can be connected to a Spotify account; you may need this feature especially if you need music to soothe your soul often. You can also request for specific songs to be played depending on your K-mood.

RSS feeds on Singapore news/weather conditions/road conditions - some softwares/hubs allow for updates on news and weather inside or even before you head out of your home. May be good to carry along an umbrella if weather turns grey or bring in the clothes rack when the rain comes in. With the new Google Home coming to Singapore, to this feature is way more accessible.

Automated Cleaning - Robots are in demand now, especially when robots are being sold at a really affordable price. The advantages of having a robot allows you to trigger it to start cleaning when you are out of your home, on a run or even hanging out with your friends. Trust me, this trusty little helper will do its best cleaning the corners of your home, even under your bed and shelves. Most of us who have used it, cant live without it.

Climate Control - Cooling/heating systems in Singapore is very much a necessity; despite its high cost. We have received many requests to manage air-conditioners and heaters due to its high cost if unmanaged well. The worry is not about forgetting to on/off the cooling/heating systems, but more on the decision fatigue of remembering the task/chore.

When do you need to start planning for your smart home?

I would say during renovation. Note that most smart switches need neutral wires to work*. If you own a new unit, check with your electrician if he can add on an additional neutral wires for the switches you’d like to call smart. If you own a resale flat, you may want to take this opportunity to decide on re-wiring; if not the first option is fine too. We have identified a few immutable(s) below:

Location of Modem & hub - Centralise them!!! Without these 2 bff working together, you can forget about automating anything at the far ends of your home. Plan this seriously and get your contractor to lay CAT6 and above cable to the ideal spot. The last you'd want is for your smart home to fail due to weak signals.

Number of lights - Next, you may need to decide on which lights to be dimmable; if you intend to have dimmable switches, you may need an additional dimmer relay on top of that switch. You will need an electrician to fix up the switch relay or dimmer relay during your renovation.

Location of Switch - There are many switches in the market, all with pros and cons. You should always work/live with one that gives you the option of turning on the lights/appliance should the smart switch fails on you.

Location of Ceiling fans and its components - If you are a fan of traditional ceiling fans, you can consider automating it. However, you may need to allocate space for the speed controller.

Location & number of Power Point plugs - Determine the number of devices you want to “make smart” via smart plugs and also the location of voice-control gadgets you intend to put; preferably one in each room. If you are looking at Smart Homes, you will need to cater for at least one power point plug for your smart devices on top of your daily activities.

Number of gangs per switch

Smart switches are limited by the number of gangs attached per switch. Smart switches like Fibaro and Xiaomi has a maximum of 2 gang per switch. Hence, limiting the design features of the switches. Non-Neutral Smart Switches are limited by the maximum voltage it can take in.

This is one of the limitations we face when we integrate smart homes after electrical setups have been done. i.e. if the switches has more than 2 gangs, we will need to combine the sets of lights to make up a maximum of 2 gang.

*With recent changes in the industry, smart switches can now be retrofitted into already renovated homes. i.e. smart switches now can work with wiring with or without neutral wire.

As of 17 June 2018

Speak to us to find out more.

or maybe, speak to someone who had worked on home automation.

Don’t get us wrong, we are for all the hard core DIY people out there; for brevity, let’s just call them DIY-ers. Here are some factors to consider for all DIY-ers out there.

Time - some smart gadgets need configuration/settings/updates/etc. Even though not difficult, expect the process to be tedious when you are integrating the various smart gadgets into the hub(s). Some of the UI are complex and not easy to understand and in some cases, programming is needed. DIY-ers-to-be, brace yourselves for an adventure.

Money - As much as we want to believe that we live in a perfectly integrated Smart gadget world, we have to admit that competitors will always be loggerheads; enterprises will always pick their friends and foe wisely. Behold your surprises, but not all gadgets are recognised by any hubs. There are just some gadgets that doesn’t work with some particular hub(s), but integrates perfectly with another. So, research (x3) and study (x3) before making any purchases.

Future proofing your home - Technology is never constant. New armies of smart gadgets are constantly innovated and it just gets stronger. These new armies can range from kick-starter projects to projects spawned from large enterprises marching all the way from different parts of the globe. Working on your home may be one off, but ensuring that your home is equipped with scalable technologies, that can withstand the test of time will accrue comfort in the long run.

Last but not least, owning a smart home is a journey filled with thrill and excitement. Speak to us if you have any questions on the various smart gadgets!

Post updated 18 February 2019