How To Build a Smart Home (101): The Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Home Automation

Automate Your Life

Stop guessing how to build a smart home, and start building your home automation the right way.  This is how to build a smart home 101, the ultimate beginner's guide to smart homes, home automation, connective living, and smart home devices.  We focus on practical home automation techniques that actually work for you and your family. We strip away the technical jargon, and teach you the basics of smart homes so you understand how to get this right the first time.  Continue your learning journey with us: Our Smart Home 101 Course: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53PeEdJIPfM How to choose (WiFi 7 vs 6 vs 6e): https://youtu.be/gqyAU46uCF8 How to choose (Zigbee, Z-Wave, Thread, Matter): https://youtu.be/3zaTIRiFemQ My beginner setup in 2026: https://youtu.be/2kI83Q8gwj4  Special thanks to our sponsor for today's video, who made lots of this possible, Tapo! Go get the C675D Solar Kit: - Amazon: https://amzn.to/4sQVhlF (Amazon affiliate link) - Tapo Store:  https://bit.ly/4t9Xzwd (Affiliate link) - Our review of it: https://youtu.be/bvvcbINnLnc Go get the H500 Smart Hub: https://amzn.to/4qzDwpa (Amazon affiliate link) - Our review of it: https://youtu.be/ieSuXxKgaWk  -----  Timecodes for today's video: How To Build a Smart Home 101 - 00:00 What Can a Smart Home Do? - 0:53 How Does a Smart Home Truly Work? - 2:46 How An Automation Works (Different than you think)( - 7:16 What Is A Condition (And How Does It Work?) - 8:25 The Tech You'll Use In A Smart Home - 10:52 The 6 Wireless Highways Of Your Home - 12:55 The Hub Is In Charge (And How) - 16:52 The Matter Standard (And How it Fixes SOME Things) - 19:05 What's in a Smart Home? - 23:08 Device Type 1 (Sensors) - 24:04 Device Type 2 (Action Devices) - 27:16 Device Type 3 (Combo Devices) - 29:38 Device Type 4 (Control Interfaces) - 30:56 Device Type 5 (Accessories) - 31:55 Before You Buy Your First Smart Tech - 32:51 An Example of All 5 Device Types Working Together - 34:10 The Critical Choice, Choosing Your Hub And Ecosystem - 35:19 You MUST Have This On Your Hub - 38:00 The 3 Levels of Smart Home Systems - 39:54 How To Avoid Subscriptions Forever - 46:56 The Final Game Plan You'll Need - 50:12  Channel links:  Join this channel's member program to get access to extra videos, early releases, and our member's vault! (Automater II and higher), plus other perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtRSKEipM17PF7n0mi66btQ/join  Subscribe to Take The Frustration Out Of Automation: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtRSKEipM17PF7n0mi66btQ?sub_confirmation=1  Automate Your Life is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com and other Amazon websites.  Thanks for watching, and Live Smart.  Brian

Transcript

00:00Building a smart home should be easy.

00:02Instead, most people get caught by confusing technology,

00:06marketing that over-promises,

00:08and devices that just don't work together.

00:11So let's fix that.

00:12By the end of this video,

00:14you'll know how a smart home actually works,

00:16what to buy first,

00:17and which of three types of systems you belong on.

00:21I'm gonna name the exact one I hand to a beginner in 2026,

00:25and I'm gonna show you how to build all of it

00:28without paying a single monthly fee to anybody.

00:31I'm Brian, and Automate Your Life

00:33is where I help you save time and money with smart tech.

00:36Now, there are time codes below,

00:38so if you already know a section, skip past it.

00:41But we're gonna build you up from the ground

00:43and get you moving today.

00:45So let's start with what a smart home can actually do,

00:48because this is where most people's expectations are wrong.

00:53Most people think a smart home is a motion sensor

00:57turning on a light when you walk past it,

01:00and that's a 2015 smart home.

01:02Today, the better version knows you're sitting in the room,

01:06not just moving through it.

01:08So here's what my house actually did yesterday,

01:11and I didn't touch a thing.

01:13The shades opened partway in the morning,

01:15because it was mild outside,

01:17and the sun was doing the heating for us.

01:19When everybody left, the house knew,

01:21and it backed off the thermostat,

01:23and it armed our security system.

01:25The vacuum ran while the place was empty.

01:28A package showed up,

01:29and my doorbell told me it was sitting there.

01:31The photo frames cycled through new pictures on their own,

01:36and the dryer finished, and the house told me.

01:38So I didn't find that load sitting there three hours later.

01:42Now, when the sun went down,

01:43the outside lights came on,

01:45and when the last of us went to bed,

01:47one button locked the doors,

01:49killed every light in the house.

01:51None of that is exotic.

01:53Every single piece of it is something

01:55you can go by right now,

01:57and that's the actual promise.

01:59A smart home buys back your time.

02:02It takes running the house off your shoulders,

02:05it watches your property,

02:06and it manages what you're spending on in terms of power.

02:10That's the whole pitch, really.

02:12One more thing,

02:13because this part is brand spanking new.

02:15AI has moved into the products themselves.

02:18Lighting can now build its own animations.

02:21Cameras can decide whether that's a person or a package

02:24right on the device in milliseconds,

02:27and we're now seeing local AI agents

02:30built into products running from inside your home.

02:35None of this happens by accident.

02:38Everything I just described is a rule

02:41that somebody had to build.

02:42So let's talk about how that actually works.

02:46So now you have the basic idea

02:48of what a smart home can do.

02:49So let's talk about how they work.

02:52I'm gonna start with an oversimplification of things,

02:55but we'll get deeper and a little more technical

02:58as we go forward in our video.

03:00At a high level,

03:01you'll have devices in your home

03:02that sense what's happening.

03:05Not surprisingly,

03:06those are often called sensors.

03:08There are many types,

03:09but some examples are leak sensors for water detection.

03:12Door sensors to know when something's open,

03:15and presence sensors to know when someone's in a room.

03:19Cameras are often considered a sensor too.

03:22Then you will have action devices.

03:25These are your smart light switches,

03:27your bulbs,

03:28your plugs,

03:29or even things like smart shades.

03:32Cameras can be an action device too.

03:35Now,

03:35these devices and many more

03:38will communicate with a device

03:39that speaks their language.

03:42Now,

03:42there are many languages,

03:43and because of this,

03:44those devices are often called hubs or controllers.

03:48Today,

03:48a hub can be everything from a little white or black box

03:51to a full-on computer.

03:53What they do is communicate

03:55with all the smart devices around your home.

03:59They process all the information coming in,

04:01and then they send out commands

04:03to turn devices on or off.

04:05They can even be used to change settings on your devices.

04:08For example,

04:09you can change how far a presence sensor can detect you,

04:14and there are many reasons you will want to.

04:16So,

04:16what's happening in a smart home

04:18is that all of your devices

04:19are telling your hub what's happening.

04:21Then,

04:22as a smart homeowner,

04:24you build automations

04:25that tell your hub

04:27what to do with that information.

04:28You'll build those automations

04:30in the app that goes with your hub.

04:33In the end,

04:34a smart home runs on automations,

04:36and so it is really key to understand

04:39what an automation is.

04:41I describe automation

04:43as essentially a cause

04:46and an effect relationship.

04:48Let me give you an example.

04:49Enter a room with a presence sensor in it.

04:53As the sensor detects you,

04:55it sends that information to your hub.

04:59Because you have an automation that says,

05:01when there's someone in the room,

05:02the lights come on,

05:05the hub instantly processes that rule

05:08and sends a command to the smart lights to turn on.

05:12In this situation,

05:14the cause was you entering the room,

05:17and the effect was the lights coming on.

05:20So, let's drop down another layer.

05:22An automation starts

05:23when a specific event occurs.

05:26We call that event a trigger.

05:29In our previous example,

05:30the trigger was the presence sensor

05:33detecting that you were in the room.

05:35The light bulbs turning on

05:37is the effect in our cause and effect relationship,

05:39and it's often called an action.

05:42And you can have multiple actions happen.

05:46That's why we aren't limited to just one light.

05:49But there's a third component to automations

05:51that exist in many hubs called conditions.

05:55Conditions are a check or a blocker

05:58to our cause and effect relationship.

06:01If a condition isn't true,

06:03the actions don't happen,

06:04even if our trigger has occurred.

06:06And this helps you in a lot of ways.

06:09In our current example,

06:10if you enter the room at dusk or later,

06:13you will probably want the lighting

06:14to come on to a pretty bright state

06:17to light up the room properly.

06:18However, in the middle of the day,

06:21you may not want the lighting at all.

06:23The condition here that we would add

06:26to the automation is the time of day.

06:28But it could also be the amount of light

06:31that's in your room.

06:32You have a few options for conditions.

06:34And even better is that you could use both

06:38of those conditions in this automation

06:40to make sure that the lights only come on

06:43when you truly need them.

06:45That's because in many hubs,

06:47you can have multiple conditions.

06:49And one of the reasons I've explained it all like this

06:52is because all of the apps call it something different.

06:56You won't always see the words

06:58trigger conditions and actions.

07:01Every app has its own naming scheme,

07:04but you should always return

07:05to those simple concepts in your own head.

07:09So whenever you look at a screen like this,

07:11I want you to see

07:12trigger conditions and action.

07:16Let's make that real

07:17because trigger condition and action

07:19are just words until you watch one run.

07:22It's two in the morning

07:23and a pipe lets go in my basement.

07:26The leak sensor sitting on the floor

07:28has a sensing cable running along it.

07:31Now, when water touches that cable,

07:33it completes a circuit.

07:35That's how this sensor knows it's wet.

07:38It doesn't decide anything.

07:39It just broadcasts that one thing.

07:42I went from dry to wet.

07:45Now, my hub hears the broadcast

07:46and it knows exactly which sensor that is

07:50because I paired it and I gave it a name.

07:53So this isn't some anonymous signal.

07:55Its basement leak sensor just went wet.

07:58The hub runs down its list of automations

08:01looking for one that starts with exactly that.

08:04It finds it and it starts.

08:06Then to us as humans,

08:07it feels like everything happens at once.

08:10The valve on my main waterline closes.

08:13My phone gets a notification

08:15and a set of bulbs in the house turn red

08:18because at two in the morning,

08:20I want to know before I'm standing in it.

08:22That's a whole pile of separate actions.

08:25Here's the part I really want you to catch.

08:28That automation has no condition on it

08:31and that's on purpose.

08:33If water's coming out of a pipe,

08:34I don't care what time it is.

08:35I don't care if I'm home.

08:37I don't care if I'm asleep.

08:38I don't care if I'm on vacation.

08:40Shut the valve every single time.

08:42That's what an automation with no condition looks like.

08:46It runs, no questions asked.

08:48Compare that to something a lot less urgent.

08:51My porch light,

08:52they come on when someone walks up to my home,

08:55but only between sunset and midnight.

08:57So what happens at two in the afternoon

09:00when the Amazon guy walks up?

09:02Well, my sensor still fires.

09:05The trigger still happens.

09:07My hub still gets the message,

09:09but it checks the condition,

09:11sees that it's the middle of the afternoon

09:13and stops right there.

09:15Nothing happens.

09:15No lights come on.

09:17The condition doesn't stop the trigger.

09:20The trigger already happened.

09:22It's over.

09:23It's done.

09:24The condition stops the actions.

09:27A trigger is a moment in time.

09:30A condition is a situation

09:31and an action is what you do.

09:34Now, one last thing before we move on from this.

09:36For any of that to work,

09:38every one of those devices and the hub

09:42have to be talking to each other

09:43and they have to speak the same language.

09:46How are they actually doing that?

09:50Part of my job is to introduce you

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09:54that work for your home.

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10:24Daytime, nighttime video, they're both sharp.

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10:52The way we tie a whole smart home together

10:55is through networking.

10:57It sounds scary, but it's really not, okay?

10:59There are a few simple terms

11:01you have to understand with smart homes specifically.

11:03The devices you bring into your home

11:06connect to some kind of network.

11:09A network is really just describing

11:11a group of devices communicating together.

11:15Most networks today are wireless, like your wifi,

11:19but you can use physical connections too,

11:22like plugging in an ethernet cable

11:25directly into a hub or a camera.

11:28But what's different about smart home tech

11:30is that we move beyond wifi.

11:33Many products do use wifi

11:35and we'll talk about that a lot,

11:37but smart homes also use some weird terms.

11:40Zigbee, Z-Wave, Thread, Bluetooth, and Matter.

11:45Let me try and break down those into terms

11:48that hopefully we all relate to.

11:51Wifi, it's like a big high-speed highway.

11:54It's great for high-bandwidth devices like cameras,

11:58streaming sticks, smart speakers,

12:00but it uses a lot of power.

12:02So it's not usually good for battery-operated devices

12:06like little sensors.

12:07There are tricks that some companies use

12:10to give you good battery life on wifi devices today,

12:12and that's actually one of the improvements

12:15in the last couple of years that we've seen.

12:17In general, though,

12:18you won't want to put every smart device on wifi.

12:22The fact is your router or mesh system

12:25has an upper limit for how many devices it can handle.

12:28A cheaper router will have a very low limit.

12:31You will experience hitting or nearing this limit

12:34when devices start to drop off your wifi,

12:37or sometimes won't connect.

12:39Basically, you can overload your system

12:41just by putting a lot of devices on it.

12:43And there's a lot of details here,

12:44but it's one of a few reasons

12:46why I don't recommend you build a smart home

12:49entirely based off of wifi.

12:51It's also why we have some of these other network types.

12:55Today, there are three wireless technologies

12:58employed specifically for smart homes.

13:01ZigBee, Z-Wave, and Thread.

13:04Now, I'm gonna put a table up on screen right now

13:07comparing their exact ranges, speeds, and frequencies,

13:10but here's the breakdown of what you need to know today.

13:13All three of these share two big benefits.

13:16First, they are low power.

13:19They sip on batteries, meaning a tiny sensor like this

13:24or a tiny door sensor can last for a year or more.

13:27Second, they all create what's called

13:30a self-healing mesh network.

13:33Now, mesh means that instead of every device

13:36trying to shout all the way back to your hub,

13:40they talk through each other.

13:42Devices plugged into the wall act as repeaters,

13:46passing the signal down the line.

13:48So the more of those repeaters you have,

13:51usually the stronger and further your network reaches.

13:54Self-healing means the network works out those routes

13:58on its own and works them out again when something changes.

14:01So unplug a smart plug that half of your sensors

14:04were routing through,

14:05and they will find a new path

14:08without you touching anything.

14:09But here's the practical part, okay?

14:11Healing is not instant.

14:13Depending on the technology,

14:15it can take minutes and sometimes a lot longer.

14:17So if you rearrange your house

14:19or you move a plug from one room to another

14:23and things go a little flaky for a day afterward,

14:26that's not broken gear.

14:27That's your network rebuilding itself.

14:30So give it some time before you start troubleshooting.

14:32On some hubs, mostly Z-Wave ones,

14:35you'll find a button that says something like

14:38network repair or heal network,

14:40and that's what it's for.

14:42You almost never need to touch it,

14:44but if you've moved a lot of devices around at once,

14:47that's the nudge it needs.

14:49As for the differences,

14:51Z-Wave is the oldest.

14:53It runs on a much lower frequency than the others,

14:56which is why it reaches further

14:57and why it never really fights with your Wi-Fi.

15:00That's a big part of why it's great

15:02for security type devices.

15:05There's also a new version of Z-Wave called Long Range

15:08that can travel incredibly far.

15:11Zigbee, cheap, reliable, absolutely everywhere.

15:14It's a little faster than Z-Wave,

15:16but it does share the airwaves with your Wi-Fi.

15:20Now, thread is the newest standard

15:22and its biggest advantage is incredibly low latency,

15:26meaning when a thread sensor detects something,

15:29the reaction is practically instant.

15:32Like Zigbee, though,

15:33it does share the airwaves with your Wi-Fi.

15:35That sharing used to cause

15:38real interference problems in a smart home.

15:40It's much less of an issue than it was five years ago,

15:44but if you want the full breakdown

15:46on all these technologies,

15:48I've linked a deeper dive video for you in the description.

15:52But, you know, there are a few more technologies

15:54to discuss that you might use in your home.

15:56There is Bluetooth Low Energy, or BLE.

15:59Some companies use this because it allows your smartphone

16:02to communicate directly with the device

16:04without needing a hub.

16:06This is nice when the Wi-Fi goes out in your home.

16:09You might also hear about LoRa,

16:11which is what cities are using for smart cities,

16:15because the range is incredible.

16:16I've used it in just a few smart home hubs today,

16:19but it offers a lot of benefits for farms and acreages

16:22like Z-Wave Long Range does now.

16:26So that's six technologies, or highways,

16:29that you'll run into in a smart home.

16:32Wi-Fi, Zigbee, Z-Wave, Thread, Bluetooth, and LoRa.

16:36But there's another term that you'll hear all the time,

16:39and people confuse it with those six.

16:41The term is Matter,

16:43and you're gonna see it,

16:44the logo and the name on lots of boxes.

16:48Now, hold on,

16:48because Matter is important,

16:50and there's a whole section coming.

16:52But if all these devices

16:53are speaking different languages

16:55on all these different highways,

16:57who's directing the traffic?

16:59Well, that brings us to your controllers or hubs.

17:02We saw this earlier in the video

17:04with the hub receiving signals

17:07and then sending them out.

17:09A few years ago,

17:11a hub was almost always this dedicated box

17:14you bought and you plugged it into your router.

17:16That box was filled with radios and antennas,

17:19and that allowed it to use

17:21one or more of those big technologies.

17:24Today, though,

17:25you can have everything from computers

17:27and servers or NAS drives

17:30all the way down to these little boxes.

17:33Some smart speakers and displays

17:35can be used as a hub or a controller,

17:37and they all come with different options

17:40for using all of these technologies.

17:44Ultimately, though,

17:45they are the ones directing traffic

17:47in your smart home,

17:48and a lot of people think

17:49that they will have just one hub

17:52or one controller,

17:53but the fact is,

17:54a lot of companies will force you

17:56to buy their hub.

17:58Now, the reason I'm gonna give you for this

18:00will make some people suspicious,

18:02and listen,

18:03sometimes a company does that

18:05just to get you to spend,

18:07but there's a real reason this happens

18:09and a real reason you will care.

18:12So those of you who wanna be suspicious,

18:13go ahead.

18:14I don't care because this is the truth.

18:17Now, think of it like this.

18:18If I make a great sensor

18:19like this one from Acara,

18:22it's an amazing presence sensor,

18:24and it has an incredible array

18:26of different advanced settings,

18:29I have to build an app

18:32that handles all of those

18:33different settings and features.

18:35Now, I can't force another company

18:37to put my 10 custom settings

18:40or features into their app.

18:42That limitation,

18:43alongside a few others,

18:45is what drives people

18:46to have a primary brain or hub

18:48alongside maybe one

18:50or two secondary hubs.

18:52But there is something

18:54that is finally helping

18:56to fix that mess,

18:57and it's called the Matter Standard.

19:00Now, let me explain

19:01how that changes

19:02how you build a smart home today.

19:05It is plastered everywhere.

19:08Matter, the logo, the name,

19:10the marketing,

19:10and it's in almost every product today.

19:13So we need to be very clear

19:15about what Matter is

19:16and what it isn't

19:17because the marketing around it

19:19has confused a lot of people.

19:21Matter is not a new wireless technology.

19:23It's not a new type of hub.

19:25Think of Matter as USB-C

19:29for your smart home.

19:30Now, remember what USB-C

19:32actually fixed?

19:34Every company had their own cable.

19:36Apple had one.

19:37Android had another.

19:38My camera has some weird one.

19:41And none of them

19:42worked with anything else.

19:43I ended up with this

19:45giant bag of cables.

19:46And then everybody agreed

19:48on this single connector.

19:50And notice what didn't happen.

19:52The devices didn't all become the same.

19:54Your laptop, your phone,

19:56your headphones,

19:56they're all still different products

19:58from different companies.

19:59They just agreed on the plug.

20:01Now, that's Matter in a nutshell.

20:03A smart plug

20:04from many different brands

20:07can be built totally differently

20:09by companies that compete

20:12with each other.

20:13And every major app

20:14still knows how to talk to them all.

20:17Apple Home, Google Home,

20:18Amazon, SmartThings,

20:19Home Assistant, Homey.

20:21You stop having to check

20:22the back of the box

20:24to see which one of these

20:26you're allowed to buy.

20:27Just a few years ago,

20:29smart homes were incredibly frustrating

20:31to build because of

20:33what we call walled gardens.

20:35You might buy a smart plug on sale,

20:37get it home,

20:38and find out it only works with Amazon.

20:40So if your home was built on Apple Home,

20:43you were out of luck.

20:45And even when a product did connect,

20:47you didn't necessarily get

20:49all of the features

20:50that the box was telling you

20:52you were getting.

20:53It was pure chaos.

20:54Matter was created

20:55to destroy those problems.

20:57It hasn't worked perfectly.

20:58But today, if you look at a box

21:00and you see the Matter logo,

21:01you immediately know three things.

21:04First, it guarantees

21:05it works almost everywhere.

21:06You don't have to stand in the store

21:08trying to work out

21:09whether you're buying

21:10the right version for your home.

21:12Second, it means you can use it

21:14with multiple apps at the same time.

21:16So if you prefer Home Assistant,

21:18but your favorite person

21:20prefers Apple Home,

21:21you're both happy.

21:23By contrast,

21:24Zigbee and Z-Wave devices

21:25are stuck communicating

21:27with only a single hub.

21:29And third is a benefit

21:30called local control.

21:31And basically, it means

21:32that you should be able

21:34to control your device

21:35and have automations happen

21:37even when the internet

21:38is unavailable.

21:39Now, one catch there,

21:40your app also has to work

21:42without the internet

21:43and plenty of them still don't.

21:45But your automations

21:46will keep running either way.

21:49And that's the part

21:50that really matters.

21:51Now, when Matter first launched

21:53a few years ago,

21:55it was pretty limited.

21:56It mostly just covered,

21:57you know, like basic plugs

21:59and bulbs.

22:01Honestly, the rollout was a bit messy

22:03and things didn't work well.

22:05Now, the standard

22:06has matured drastically.

22:08Matter doesn't just cover lights.

22:10The standard has expanded

22:12to support robot vacuums,

22:14appliances of many types,

22:16heat pumps, EV chargers,

22:18even your solar panels

22:20and home battery storage.

22:21Some cameras like this one

22:23are now Matter ready too.

22:25Matter is finally allowing us

22:27to pick the best hardware

22:29and the best app

22:30for our specific needs

22:32without researching

22:33a device's compatibility for days.

22:35Now, there is one big drawback though,

22:37and you've experienced it

22:39with your USB-C cables too.

22:42You grab a cable,

22:43it charges the thing,

22:45but it won't do video.

22:47Or it charges,

22:49but very slowly.

22:50They all fit.

22:52They don't all do everything.

22:54Matter's the same.

22:55Govee's light fits

22:57and every one of these apps

22:59can turn it on and off

23:00and change the color

23:01and the brightness,

23:02but their effects and animations

23:03aren't part of the standard.

23:05So for those,

23:06you're back in the Govee app.

23:09Before I break any of this down,

23:11let me show you something.

23:12This television is so old.

23:15It's dumb as a rock.

23:17It's got a television remote

23:18and it doesn't connect

23:19to the internet.

23:20It survived

23:21because it was well built.

23:22Now, it is part of my smart home

23:25because of this little thing right here.

23:27It's an infrared blaster

23:29and it can learn the TV's remote

23:32and then send out those signals

23:34whenever I want it to.

23:36I'm starting there on purpose

23:37because most people think

23:40building a smart home

23:41means replacing everything

23:43that they own

23:44and it doesn't.

23:45But to know what you actually

23:47have to replace

23:48and what you can just make smarter,

23:50you need to know what's out there.

23:52So here's how I break it down.

23:54Five groups.

23:54Sensors,

23:55action devices,

23:57combo devices,

23:58control interfaces,

23:59and accessories.

24:00Now, sensors are the eyes and ears

24:03of your home.

24:05Their only job is to notice something

24:07and tell your hub about it.

24:08The one almost everybody starts with

24:10is a contact sensor.

24:12Two pieces,

24:13one on the door

24:14and one on the frame.

24:16Now, the bigger piece

24:16has all the electronics in it.

24:18The smaller piece

24:19is actually just a magnet.

24:21Pull them apart

24:22and your hub knows the door is open.

24:24Now, those two halves

24:26need to sit pretty close together

24:27when the door is shut

24:29and companies will tell you

24:30exactly how far apart

24:32is the maximum.

24:33But the little trick here

24:35is that you can make

24:36the magnet stronger.

24:39You don't actually have to use this.

24:40The one I want you to actually

24:42pay attention to

24:43is presence.

24:44Now, for years,

24:45we used PIR motion sensors,

24:48which look for moving heat.

24:50They work,

24:51but they only see you

24:53when you're moving.

24:54If you sit still on the couch

24:56for 10 minutes,

24:56a motion sensor will decide

24:58the room is empty

24:59and then it shuts off

25:00your lights.

25:01So annoying.

25:02But everyone who's built

25:03a smart home

25:04has been left

25:05sitting in the dark

25:06by one of these.

25:07Today, we have

25:08millimeter wave

25:09radar presence sensors

25:10and these track movements

25:12so small

25:13that they know

25:13you're in the room

25:14just from the rise

25:16and fall of your chest

25:17while you read.

25:18That is a huge upgrade

25:20from the last few years

25:21and it is honestly

25:22the difference between

25:23a house that reacts to you

25:25and a house that

25:26kind of fights you.

25:27A real drawback though

25:28is that they are sensitive

25:30enough to pick up

25:31other things that move

25:32like a fan

25:33or a plant

25:34or even blinds and shades.

25:36Now, that depends

25:36how the sensor was built

25:38and how you place it.

25:39You can absolutely

25:40get false positives.

25:42Beyond those two,

25:43there is a sensor

25:44for nearly everything

25:46you can think of.

25:47Temperature,

25:48humidity,

25:48air quality,

25:49right down to CO2

25:51or VOC levels,

25:52water leaks,

25:53inline meters

25:54that watch the flow

25:56through a pipe,

25:57vibration for a mailbox

25:58or a laundry machine,

26:00ambient light,

26:01acoustic sensors

26:02that listen for glass breaking

26:04or a smoke alarm going off,

26:07plus power,

26:08which is the category

26:09growing the fastest right now.

26:11That runs from a simple smart plug

26:12that tells you exactly

26:13what your TV is drawing

26:15all the way up

26:16to a whole home energy monitor

26:18that clamps onto the circuits

26:20inside your breaker panel

26:21and then tells you

26:22what the entire house

26:24is pulling

26:25or producing

26:26if you've got solar.

26:28Two things

26:28before we leave sensors,

26:31okay,

26:31because both of them

26:33trip people up.

26:34First,

26:35a lot of sensors

26:35don't arrive

26:37looking like sensors.

26:38They're built

26:39inside other products.

26:41This camera

26:42has a motion sensor in it.

26:44This display

26:45knows when you walk up to it.

26:47This thermostat

26:48has presence detection

26:49built right into it.

26:51You may or may not

26:53get direct access

26:54to those sensors

26:55in your app,

26:56but they are absolutely

26:58affecting how that device behaves.

27:00Second,

27:01not everything feeding your home

27:03has to be a device at all.

27:05Your utility

27:05can hand your home

27:07the current price

27:08of a kilowatt hour.

27:09A weather service

27:10can tell you

27:10what's coming this afternoon.

27:12That information gets used

27:14like a sensor reading.

27:16So if sensors

27:17are the eyes and ears,

27:18action devices

27:19are the hands.

27:21They take a command

27:22from your hub

27:23and physically do something.

27:25Smart lighting

27:25is where most people start.

27:27Bulbs,

27:28LED strips,

27:29and smart wall switches.

27:31And if you've got switches

27:33that you actually

27:34like the look of,

27:35you can put

27:36an in-wall

27:37relay module

27:39in the box

27:40behind them

27:41and then

27:41make the dumb switch

27:43smart

27:43without changing

27:44how it looks.

27:45Most people

27:45have no idea

27:47these exist.

27:48Smart power

27:49is your plugs,

27:50your power bars,

27:51and inline dimmers

27:53which turn anything

27:54you plug into a wall

27:55into a smart device.

27:56But it goes a lot

27:57further than that.

27:58There are smart breakers now,

28:00entire smart electrical panels,

28:02and there are battery backups

28:04that report

28:05to your hub

28:05so your home knows

28:07the second

28:08the power goes out.

28:09Window treatments

28:10run from

28:13retrofit motors

28:14that pull the curtains

28:15you already own

28:16all the way

28:16to full replacement shades.

28:19There are even

28:19smart awnings.

28:21And a lot of these

28:22window treatments

28:23now come with solar panels

28:24so you never charge them.

28:26Appliances are further along

28:27than people think.

28:28Fans,

28:29portable AC units,

28:30humidifiers,

28:31my fridge,

28:32my oven,

28:32my microwave,

28:33they're all connected.

28:34The control you get

28:35is often limited

28:36but it's there.

28:37And safety and security

28:39includes gear like

28:40automatic water shutoff valves

28:42and sirens.

28:43Your smart speakers

28:44can be included here too

28:45because a speaker

28:46that announces a leak

28:47is taking an action.

28:49Workers are the newest group

28:51and they're moving

28:52well past robot vacuums.

28:54Robot lawnmowers

28:55are getting really good.

28:56We're starting to see

28:57machines that fold laundry.

28:59Most of the complicated

29:00ones of these

29:01aren't ready

29:02for a normal house yet

29:03but they are coming.

29:05And then there's

29:05the one I opened

29:06with IR

29:07and RF controllers.

29:09An infrared blaster

29:11copies a handheld remote

29:12so it can turn

29:13a dumb TV

29:14or a portable AC unit

29:16into a smart one.

29:17An RF blaster

29:19does the same thing

29:20for radio remotes,

29:22fireplaces,

29:23garage door openers,

29:25and even fun things

29:26like this little fog unit

29:27I used for Halloween

29:29last year.

29:2920 or 30 bucks

29:31and gear you already own

29:32joins your smart home.

29:34You know pound for pound

29:35is kind of the best value

29:37in the video.

29:38Now number three

29:39is combo devices

29:41and here's the thing

29:42that trips people up.

29:43Most of what you'll

29:44actually buy

29:45doesn't sit neatly

29:46in either of those

29:47first two groups.

29:49Many do both jobs

29:51at once.

29:51That's not a different

29:52kind of product

29:53on a different shelf.

29:54It's just what happens

29:55when a company

29:57builds the sensing

29:58and the acting

29:59into the same thing

30:00and it usually

30:01saves you money

30:02because you're buying

30:03one thing

30:03instead of two.

30:04Now the simplest example

30:06is a smart plug

30:07with energy monitoring.

30:09It's a sensor

30:10because it knows

30:11what's being pulled

30:12through it.

30:13It's an action device

30:14because it can

30:14shut that power off.

30:16Your cameras

30:17and video doorbells

30:19are combo devices too.

30:20They sense motion

30:22or presence

30:22and then they use

30:24AI usually

30:25to work out

30:26whether that's a person,

30:27a vehicle,

30:27or a package.

30:28Whether that AI runs

30:30on the camera itself

30:31like this one

30:32or up in somebody's cloud

30:34like this one

30:35matters enormously to you

30:37and we'll come back to it.

30:39But they're also acting

30:40because they do record,

30:42they play sounds,

30:43they let you talk

30:44to whoever's out there.

30:45Now your thermostat

30:46is a combo device too,

30:49reading temperature

30:49and humidity

30:50while firing up your furnace.

30:52Your smart lock

30:52is another,

30:53reporting the state

30:54of your door

30:54while locking

30:56and unlocking it.

30:57Now number four

30:58control interfaces.

31:00Now automations run

31:01your home

31:02in the background

31:03but you still need

31:05a way to take the wheel.

31:07The truth is

31:08you can't automate everything

31:10and you will crash

31:11and burn trying.

31:12That's what control

31:13interfaces are for.

31:15Here are a few examples.

31:17Wireless buttons

31:18and dials

31:19that you can stick

31:20on a nightstand

31:21or beside a door.

31:22Voice control

31:24through smart speakers.

31:25It's worth knowing

31:26that it isn't just

31:27the three big

31:29Google, Amazon

31:30and Apple anymore.

31:31There are smaller companies

31:33now doing

31:34local voice assistants

31:36like this one

31:36from Third Reality

31:37that actually never send

31:39the request

31:39out of your home.

31:41Your TV

31:41and streaming boxes

31:43which can put

31:43camera feeds

31:45and scenes

31:46on screen

31:46and dedicated dashboards

31:48which can be

31:49a mounted tablet

31:50or an e-ink panel

31:53like this one

31:54or a full-on computer.

31:56And our fifth group

31:57are accessories.

31:58They're a supporting cast.

32:00Two things are worth

32:00your time here.

32:01Batteries are one

32:02of my biggest

32:03ongoing costs

32:04and most people

32:05don't budget for them.

32:06I now pick sensors

32:08partly based

32:09on what battery

32:10they take

32:10and I use rechargeables

32:12wherever I can.

32:13There's a huge tip there,

32:14okay?

32:15When a battery

32:16starts dropping

32:17in voltage

32:17the sensor

32:18doesn't die completely.

32:20It starts behaving strangely.

32:22Half your weird problems

32:23are a dying battery

32:25or just a bad one.

32:26Then there's installation.

32:27You know,

32:27there's cable channel

32:28to hide wiring.

32:30Mounts that let you

32:31put up a camera

32:32without drilling

32:33and honestly

32:34a 3D printer

32:35has become

32:36one of the more

32:36useful things

32:37I own for this.

32:39There's one more accessory

32:40that matters

32:41more than all of those

32:42and that's

32:43camera storage

32:45but that one

32:46isn't really

32:46an accessory decision.

32:48It's a money decision

32:49so I'm gonna deal

32:50with that properly

32:50in a few minutes.

32:51Now before you

32:52buy anything

32:53three things

32:54that will save you

32:55a return.

32:56Be careful

32:57pairing smart bulbs

32:58with dumb switches.

33:00If you screw

33:01a smart bulb

33:02into a fixture

33:03that a regular

33:04wall switch controls

33:05the first person

33:06who flips that switch

33:07off cuts power

33:08to the bulb

33:09and every automation

33:10you built

33:11stops working.

33:12Guests do it,

33:13kids do it,

33:14your partner does it.

33:15That's why

33:15a smart switch

33:16or an in-wall relay

33:18is very often

33:19the better

33:20long-term answer.

33:21Now before you

33:22buy a smart switch

33:23go look for

33:24a neutral wire.

33:26Pull the plate

33:26off the switch

33:27look for a bundle

33:28of white wires

33:29here in North America

33:30in the back

33:31of the box.

33:32Most smart switches

33:34need one.

33:35A lot of older homes

33:36don't have them

33:37so there are

33:38no neutral

33:39switch models

33:40you just have to

33:41buy them deliberately

33:42and you know

33:43if a light is controlled

33:44from two switches

33:46that's called

33:47a three-way

33:47and it needs

33:48a specific model

33:49or a companion

33:50switch to work.

33:51If you rent

33:52none of that

33:53is your path

33:54anyways

33:54or not usually.

33:56Bulbs,

33:56plugs,

33:57retrofit motors

33:58that clip onto

33:58your curtains

33:59and camera mounts

34:00that don't need

34:01a screw.

34:02You can build

34:02a really good

34:03smart home

34:03without putting

34:04a single hole

34:05in a wall.

34:06I did it for years

34:07on the channel

34:07and you can take

34:08all of it with you

34:09when you leave.

34:11Let me show you

34:11those of five groups

34:13working together

34:14because that's

34:15the part

34:15that actually matters.

34:17So someone

34:17walks up

34:18to my front door.

34:20A sensor

34:21on my porch

34:22catches them

34:23walking up the walk

34:24and then it tells

34:25my hub.

34:25Now my hub

34:26turns on the porch

34:28light

34:28and that light

34:29is an action device.

34:30Now my video doorbell

34:32is a combo device

34:33sensing them arriving

34:34and acting

34:35at the same time.

34:36It's recording

34:38the clip

34:38and letting me

34:39talk to them

34:40from anywhere.

34:40So here's me

34:41speaking through

34:42my Amazon Echo Show 8.

34:44If I want to override

34:46any of it

34:46I reach for a

34:47control interface

34:48and I have a few

34:48whether it's the

34:49dashboard on my

34:50kitchen counter

34:51or the little

34:52control interface

34:52I have on my

34:53thermostat

34:54and that recorded

34:55clip is sitting

34:56on a micro SD card

34:58inside my home

34:59in the doorbell's

35:00chime.

35:01The SD card

35:01is an accessory

35:02and it's the reason

35:03I'm not paying

35:04anybody a monthly fee

35:06to store my footage.

35:07That's a great

35:08smart home

35:09working as intended

35:10and that brings us

35:11to the final

35:12big question

35:13which smart home

35:15ecosystem

35:16and primary hub

35:17should you choose

35:18to run all of it?

35:19We've covered the

35:20devices, the networks,

35:21the languages

35:22now comes the most

35:24important decision

35:25you'll make in your

35:26smart home journey

35:27picking the brain

35:27that controls it all.

35:29Earlier I mentioned

35:30that you will likely

35:31end up with one

35:32primary hub

35:33as the main brain

35:34and a few

35:35secondary hubs

35:36to handle specific

35:37brands or technology.

35:39There are a few

35:39reasons for this.

35:41Number one

35:41you unlock

35:43advanced features.

35:44You often need

35:45the manufacturer's hub

35:46to access deep

35:47settings or certain

35:48features.

35:49This is pretty

35:49common with Zigbee

35:51devices where brands

35:52layer custom features

35:54into their own apps.

35:56Number two

35:56Matter

35:57it's got a basic

35:58baseline.

35:59As we covered

35:59earlier Matter

36:00standardizes

36:01basic controls

36:02but advanced

36:03settings, scenes

36:04or features

36:05still require

36:06the manufacturer's

36:07app or

36:08in some cases

36:09hub.

36:09And number three

36:10there's other

36:10wireless standards.

36:12Well your primary

36:13hub might lack

36:14a specific radio

36:15frequency needed

36:16for certain devices.

36:18The best example

36:19of a secondary hub

36:20is actually

36:21Lutron.

36:22They make fantastic

36:24smart lighting

36:24and motorized shades

36:26but there's a catch.

36:27Lutron devices

36:28don't speak Zigbee,

36:29Z-Wave or thread.

36:30They run on their

36:31own technology

36:32called ClearConnect

36:34on 434 megahertz

36:36and nothing else

36:37in your house

36:37speaks this language.

36:39So your primary

36:40hub cannot talk

36:42to a Lutron

36:43switch directly.

36:43It doesn't matter

36:45which hub you buy.

36:46What you buy

36:46instead is a

36:47Lutron bridge

36:48and here's the

36:49part people miss.

36:51The Lutron bridge

36:52is a hub.

36:53It's just a hub

36:54that only ever

36:55handles Lutron's

36:56gear.

36:57So the picture

36:58looks like this.

36:59Your Lutron

37:00switches and shades

37:01talk to the

37:02Lutron bridge.

37:03The Lutron bridge

37:04talks to your

37:05primary hub.

37:06Your primary hub

37:07never speaks

37:09to those switches

37:09directly.

37:10It speaks to the

37:11bridge and the

37:12bridge passes it

37:13along.

37:14The good news

37:14is that Lutron

37:15has done really

37:16great work

37:16making sure

37:17that their bridge

37:18connects really

37:20cleanly into

37:20almost every

37:21primary hub

37:22on the market.

37:23So you don't

37:23lose the devices.

37:25You don't lose

37:26control of them.

37:26You just accept

37:28one extra box

37:29and Lutron

37:30isn't the only

37:30one worth

37:31knowing about

37:32here.

37:32You know,

37:32Philips Hue

37:33has their

37:34own bridge

37:34and it's

37:35worth having

37:36if you want

37:36their lighting

37:37effects and

37:37the sync

37:38features for

37:39your TV.

37:40SwitchBot has

37:40a hub for

37:41a lot of

37:41their retrofit

37:43gear.

37:43Ikea has

37:44one if you

37:45want cheap

37:45reliable

37:46Zigbee or

37:47now today

37:48with the

37:48new one

37:49matter over

37:50thread.

37:50Your goal

37:51today should

37:51be to

37:52choose a

37:53primary hub

37:54which is the

37:54central app

37:55where your

37:56core

37:56automations

37:57all your

37:57devices and

37:58your control

37:58interfaces

37:59live.

38:00Here is what

38:01you should look

38:02for when

38:02choosing your

38:04primary brain.

38:05First is

38:06radios.

38:07You want a

38:07hub that

38:07speaks Zigbee,

38:08Z-Wave and

38:09thread because

38:10those are the

38:11three that

38:11smart home

38:12gear actually

38:13uses.

38:14Now Bluetooth

38:14is on there

38:15too but mostly

38:16that's for

38:16device setup.

38:18That's how

38:18your phone

38:19finds a

38:20device the

38:20first time.

38:21Second,

38:22and you know

38:22this is a

38:23little tricky

38:23okay?

38:25Matter travels

38:25two ways.

38:27Matter over

38:28Wi-Fi and

38:29matter over

38:30thread.

38:31The Wi-Fi

38:31half you get

38:33for free.

38:33Your hub's

38:34already sitting

38:34on your

38:35network so it

38:36can already

38:37reach those

38:37devices.

38:38Thread is the

38:39one to watch.

38:40Thread's got its

38:41own separate

38:41road and it

38:42needs an

38:43on-ramp onto

38:44the rest of

38:45your network.

38:46That on-ramp

38:47is called a

38:47thread border

38:48router and it

38:50takes real

38:51hardware.

38:51An actual

38:52radio inside

38:53the hub.

38:54So on the

38:55box you

38:55want to see

38:56two things.

38:57Matter

38:58controller and

38:59thread border

39:00router.

39:01If it only

39:01says matter

39:02controller then

39:03you've bought a

39:04hub that can

39:05only do half

39:05of matter.

39:07Third,

39:07local processing.

39:09You want a

39:09hub that makes

39:11its decisions

39:11inside of your

39:13home.

39:13If the

39:14thinking is

39:14happening in

39:15someone else's

39:15cloud, your

39:16lights are

39:17slower and the

39:18day your

39:18internet goes

39:19down your

39:19home stops

39:20working.

39:20Those three

39:21things I

39:22wouldn't

39:22compromise on

39:23at all today.

39:24Then there

39:25are three

39:25more what

39:26I'd call

39:26nice to

39:27have.

39:27Number one,

39:28good dashboards

39:28and room

39:29views so you

39:30can actually

39:30see your

39:31home at a

39:31glance.

39:32Family

39:32permission so

39:33your kids

39:33get a

39:34different level

39:35of access

39:35than you

39:36do.

39:36And three,

39:37automation

39:38depth,

39:39meaning it

39:39lets you

39:40stack multiple

39:40conditions

39:41together.

39:42Things like

39:42all true

39:43conditions or

39:44any true

39:45conditions.

39:46Let's get

39:47into choosing

39:47one of the

39:48three levels

39:49of hubs.

39:50This is

39:50how you

39:51can narrow

39:52down your

39:53choices

39:53quickly.

39:54Level one

39:55is what I

39:55would call

39:55the voice

39:56assistant

39:56ecosystems.

39:57In plain

39:58terms,

39:59that's

39:59Amazon,

39:59Google,

40:00and Apple.

40:01This is

40:02the default

40:02entry point

40:03because you

40:03probably already

40:04own one of

40:05these speakers

40:05or you've

40:06at least

40:07already got

40:07the app

40:08on your

40:08phone.

40:09Many

40:09modern

40:10speakers

40:11now function

40:11as matter

40:12controllers

40:13and thread

40:14border routers

40:15out of the

40:15box.

40:15But this

40:17is the

40:17category

40:17to watch

40:18in regards

40:19to that

40:19thread

40:20thing as

40:21some smart

40:22speakers

40:22don't have

40:23it.

40:23The pros

40:24are easy

40:25setup,

40:26great voice

40:26integration,

40:27and Apple

40:28Home stands

40:28out here

40:29with faster

40:30local execution

40:32of automations.

40:33The cons

40:34are vast

40:35though.

40:35Automation

40:36logic remains

40:36basic to

40:37this day.

40:38Building

40:38conditional

40:39rules like

40:40checking

40:41time,

40:42room state,

40:43and lux

40:43levels together

40:44that basically

40:45can't happen.

40:46You can't do

40:47multiple

40:47conditions.

40:48On top

40:49of that,

40:50you'll find

40:50subscriptions

40:51all over

40:51these services.

40:52Even Apple

40:53wants you to

40:54pay for

40:54cloud video

40:55storage.

40:56Amazon and

40:56Google are

40:57full of

40:57subscriptions.

40:58They as

40:59companies are

40:59pushing you

41:00deeper and

41:00deeper into

41:01their overall

41:02ecosystem.

41:03And these

41:03days,

41:04they favor

41:04their own

41:05products heavily

41:06with better

41:07features for

41:08those products

41:09over others.

41:10Level two

41:11are the

41:11consumer or

41:13beginner

41:13automation

41:14hubs.

41:15Now,

41:15if you

41:15want real

41:16automation

41:16power without

41:17needing a

41:18technical

41:18background,

41:19you do.

41:19You step

41:20up to a

41:21dedicated

41:21consumer

41:22hub.

41:23And remember,

41:24stepping up

41:24to a

41:25dedicated

41:25hub doesn't

41:26mean you

41:26lose voice

41:27control.

41:28You can

41:28still link

41:29these hubs

41:30to Amazon,

41:31Google,

41:31or Apple

41:32Home.

41:32So your

41:33voice assistants

41:33act as a

41:34front-end

41:35interface while

41:36your hub does

41:37all the

41:38heavy lifting.

41:39Aqara is

41:39the beginner

41:40automation hub

41:41that I

41:42actively are

41:43pushing people

41:44towards today.

41:45Aqara makes

41:46a ton of

41:46products.

41:47They build

41:48reliable hubs

41:49that speak

41:50both ZigBee

41:51and Thread.

41:52They even

41:53embed those

41:53hubs directly

41:55into products

41:56you're already

41:56buying,

41:57like security

41:58cameras.

41:59Now,

41:59most of

42:00their hubs

42:01also come

42:01with an

42:02IR blaster

42:03built right

42:03in so you

42:04can bring

42:04those dumb

42:05devices like

42:06your TVs

42:06into your

42:07automations.

42:08And their

42:09conditional

42:09automation

42:10engine has

42:11pretty good

42:11depth.

42:12Their

42:12homepages

42:13are highly

42:13customizable

42:14and their

42:15hardware runs

42:16fast and

42:17locally most

42:17of the time.

42:18Aqara is

42:19also still

42:20one of the

42:20best brands

42:21to buy if

42:21you want to

42:22control everything

42:23from Apple

42:23Home on

42:24your phone.

42:25Now,

42:25Samsung Smart

42:26Things is the

42:27other big name

42:28at this level

42:29and it's

42:30still the king

42:31of this space

42:32when it comes

42:33to balancing

42:33ease of use

42:35with device

42:36compatibility.

42:37In fact,

42:38Smart

42:38Things could

42:39push up another

42:40tier but

42:40kind of let

42:41the platform

42:42slip in a

42:43few ways.

42:44They still

42:44have a lot

42:45of automations

42:45that execute

42:46in the cloud

42:47rather than

42:48locally which

42:49holds them

42:49back, lowers

42:50their overall

42:51reliability.

42:52Lots of

42:52features don't

42:53get fully

42:53polished and

42:55there are

42:55some bugs

42:56that just

42:57seem to

42:57live forever

42:58on the

42:58platform.

42:59Still,

43:00compared to

43:00the voice

43:01assistant

43:01platforms,

43:02those level

43:02one things,

43:03Smart

43:03Things'

43:04automations

43:04are very

43:05powerful.

43:06You can

43:06customize a

43:07favorites page

43:07specifically for

43:08each person

43:09in your

43:10home and

43:10the routine

43:11builder gives

43:11you great

43:12depth.

43:12There's also

43:13good integration

43:14with their

43:14appliances,

43:15although the

43:16controls aren't

43:16always what

43:17you'd hope

43:18for.

43:18And when

43:19you're comparing

43:20Aqara and

43:20Samsung,

43:21Samsung allows

43:22you to connect

43:23a wide variety

43:24of Zigbee and

43:25Z-Wave devices

43:26directly to

43:27their hub.

43:28You will not

43:29find that with

43:29Aqara.

43:30On an Aqara

43:31hub, you can

43:32only connect

43:32Aqara Zigbee

43:34devices, which

43:34does limit your

43:35choices on

43:36that side.

43:37Where both of

43:38these platforms

43:39have turned to

43:40solve that

43:41problem is

43:42Matter.

43:42Both Samsung

43:43and Aqara are

43:44heavily invested

43:45in the Matter

43:46standard, which

43:46means they

43:47can pull in

43:48all kinds of

43:49Matter over

43:50Wi-Fi and

43:51Matter over

43:51thread devices

43:52from other

43:53brands today.

43:54The other

43:54reason I call

43:55these beginner

43:56or consumer

43:57hubs is

43:57because they

43:58make it easy

43:59to upgrade

44:00later.

44:00And Aqara

44:01in particular

44:02has been

44:03designing their

44:04sensors and

44:05their hardware

44:06so that if

44:07you eventually

44:07decide to

44:08step up to

44:09level 3, a

44:10powerhouse hub,

44:11their devices

44:12transition over

44:13pretty seamlessly.

44:14Level 3 are

44:16those premium

44:17powerhouse hubs.

44:19If you want

44:19the most

44:20powerful local

44:21smart home

44:21possible, this

44:22is where you

44:23move.

44:23Homey or

44:24home assistant.

44:25And Homey

44:26offers a few

44:26different hub

44:27options today.

44:29They're on the

44:30more expensive

44:31side up front.

44:32Today, the

44:33Homey Pro Mini

44:34is about 250

44:35bucks.

44:36Full Homey Pro

44:36is I think

44:37450.

44:38But once

44:40you've bought

44:40the hardware,

44:41there are really

44:42no subscriptions

44:43to worry about.

44:44That is, unless

44:44you look at

44:45their self-hosted

44:46version where

44:47instead of

44:48buying the

44:48box, you run

44:50their software

44:51on a NAS

44:53drive or a

44:54spare computer.

44:55That one can

44:56be a subscription

44:57or you can

44:57buy it outright.

44:58And the Homey

44:59interface is

45:00fantastic.

45:01They have the

45:02best dashboards

45:03out there, great

45:04compatibility across

45:05the industry, and

45:06the most powerful

45:07visual flow engine

45:09for building

45:10automations.

45:11Home assistant, on

45:12the other hand, is

45:13the undisputed

45:14end game.

45:15Today, I would

45:16almost call Home

45:17assistant the true

45:18operating system of

45:19the smart home.

45:20And in fact, their

45:22software is literally

45:23called HAOS.

45:25So they think so

45:26too.

45:26Now, Home assistant

45:27integrates with

45:28almost every brand,

45:29device, service

45:31you can name.

45:32And it gives you

45:33total customization

45:34over automations,

45:36dashboards, and

45:36your devices.

45:37It's focused on

45:38being local.

45:39But let me be

45:40clear about this.

45:41Home assistant

45:42itself runs

45:43entirely inside

45:44of your home.

45:45But some things

45:46you might connect

45:47or use might

45:48require cloud

45:49services.

45:50Those would

45:50require the

45:51internet to work

45:52right.

45:52But what I really

45:53like is that the

45:54platform tells you

45:55which one those

45:57are before you

45:58add them.

45:59So how local

46:00your home ends

46:01up being is

46:01your decision

46:02and nobody's

46:03hiding it from

46:04you.

46:04It's also become

46:05much more

46:06accessible in the

46:08last few years.

46:09You can buy their

46:10ready-made home

46:11assistant green hub.

46:12That's what I'm

46:13using in my home.

46:14I think it's

46:15199 bucks right

46:16now.

46:17You could build

46:17your own home

46:19assistant version

46:19using a raspberry

46:20pi or you can run

46:22it on a NAS

46:23drive or a spare

46:24computer.

46:25The learning curve

46:25is definitely

46:27steeper than the

46:28other options on

46:29this list but it's

46:30not nearly as

46:31intimidating as it

46:32used to be.

46:33Now by the way

46:33choosing between

46:34homey and home

46:35assistant is a big

46:36decision that a lot

46:37of people are

46:38facing right now.

46:38So we have a

46:39dedicated comparison

46:40video breaking

46:41down homey versus

46:42home assistant

46:43head to head.

46:44So if you want to

46:45go deeper into hub

46:46hardware we also

46:47have our smart home

46:48hubs 101 guide

46:50and a video

46:51covering our top

46:52three favorite hubs.

46:53All of those

46:54videos are linked

46:55in the description

46:56below.

46:57Let me tell you

46:58the worst part

46:59about subscriptions

47:00in your smart

47:01home.

47:01Honestly it isn't

47:03even the money.

47:05When you buy a

47:06product that depends

47:07on a subscription

47:09you aren't really

47:10buying the product.

47:11You're renting

47:12access to a cloud

47:14service that the

47:15company has to keep

47:16paying for to run

47:18and the day that

47:19service stops being

47:21profitable enough

47:22for them they kill

47:23it.

47:24Not your

47:25subscription.

47:26They kill the

47:26service.

47:27service and you

47:27know when the

47:28service dies your

47:29product dies because

47:30it's dependent on

47:32it.

47:32You're left holding

47:33e-waste that you

47:35paid full price for.

47:36I've been covering

47:37this industry for

47:38about eight years

47:39on the channel.

47:40I've been playing

47:41with smart tech for

47:42a lot longer and

47:43companies will

47:44absolutely pad their

47:45profits this way.

47:46What they've gotten

47:47very good at is

47:48using a cheap

47:50starter product as

47:51the gateway to get

47:53you into their

47:53ecosystem and then

47:55putting the parts

47:56you actually want

47:57behind a monthly

47:58tier.

47:59The video doorbell

48:00trap is the best and

48:01most iconic example

48:02today.

48:03Many people start

48:04their journey by

48:05buying a doorbell to

48:07watch for packages

48:08but take a ring video

48:10doorbell.

48:10It'll happily send you

48:11a notification, let

48:13you talk to whoever's

48:14out there for free.

48:15What it will not do

48:17without a subscription

48:18is save a single

48:20second of footage.

48:21There's a ton of

48:23other features tucked

48:24behind the paywall

48:25too and my latest

48:26ring product required

48:28two subscriptions

48:29just to get what I

48:31wanted.

48:31Here's the trickiest

48:32part of video doorbells.

48:34Many video doorbells

48:35will work only inside

48:36the manufacturer's app

48:37and won't connect to

48:39another hub at all.

48:40I know almost everyone

48:42wants a video doorbell

48:43but don't buy this

48:45first.

48:46Buy it once you have

48:47your primary hub and

48:48make sure the two

48:49work together.

48:50How this works is

48:51once you've bought a

48:53Nest or a ring doorbell

48:55they get you with that

48:56first subscription.

48:57Then you want to buy

48:58their cameras and

48:59their thermostats so

49:01they all work within

49:02one app.

49:03Now your choices are

49:04very limited for those

49:06devices in your home

49:08and then you end up

49:09paying the subscription

49:10forever.

49:11So how do you avoid

49:12subscriptions?

49:13The first thing is to

49:15prioritize local

49:17storage.

49:17This camera right here

49:19has a little micro SD card

49:21right here.

49:22You just flip down this

49:23face and that's where

49:25it goes.

49:25Now you can also

49:27attach this to network

49:29attached storage or

49:30NAS or get ones with

49:31local network video

49:33recorders or NVRs.

49:36Something else to look

49:37for is on-device AI.

49:40Select devices that run

49:42computer vision and

49:43object detection right on

49:45the camera hardware rather

49:47than routing video clips

49:49to cloud servers.

49:50You'll see this mentioned

49:51on packaging or marketing

49:53as local AI detection.

49:55It can also be called

49:56edge computing.

49:58And number three, run a

49:59local hub.

50:00So you pick a system that

50:01processes those automations

50:03inside of your home and

50:04stores the data on the hub.

50:06Pick that hub first.

50:08Don't pick the video

50:10doorbell first, please.

50:12So we've covered a lot,

50:13but let's put it all

50:14together so you can build

50:15this without getting

50:16overwhelmed.

50:18First, build a solid

50:19foundation.

50:20Your router or mesh Wi-Fi

50:22is your smart home's

50:23lifeline.

50:24If you have a larger home,

50:25invest in a good mesh

50:27Wi-Fi system where you

50:29can wire with Ethernet.

50:31It'll cost an electrician's

50:33time, but it's worth it to

50:34wire a mesh system and to

50:37wire to devices like TVs or

50:40streamers.

50:40Also, do not use cheap

50:42Wi-Fi extenders unless you

50:45enjoy a smart home that

50:46constantly goes offline.

50:48And as you buy your network

50:50gear and your primary hub,

50:52make absolutely sure they

50:54support matter and thread

50:56because that's how you're

50:57future proofing your setup

50:59today.

50:59When choosing your hub,

51:01prioritize the depth of

51:02automations and the options

51:05you will have with your hub.

51:06Second, let's talk about

51:07money.

51:08You don't need much to

51:10start.

51:10Call it a couple hundred

51:11bucks.

51:12That's a real hub, a couple

51:14of sensors and a couple of

51:16smart plugs.

51:17You might push up to 300

51:18bucks, but that's enough to

51:19build your first handful of

51:21automations and find out

51:23whether you actually enjoy

51:24this.

51:25Around 500 is where it starts

51:28to feel like a smart home.

51:30You've added some smart

51:31switches or more lighting, a

51:33camera, a button or two for

51:35manual control and enough

51:37sensors that the house begins

51:39reacting to you instead of

51:41waiting on you.

51:42Past that, it scales as far as

51:44you want to take it.

51:45You know, shades, expensive

51:46sometimes, but great.

51:48Locks, presence sensors in

51:50every room, energy monitoring

51:52on your breaker panel, a

51:54dashboard on the wall.

51:55For the hub specifically, you

51:57got real anchors.

51:59An Acara hub around a hundred

52:00bucks, 150 home assistant

52:03around that 200 homey pro

52:05mini to 50 and homey pro

52:06450.

52:08Don't start buying it all at

52:10once.

52:11Start with one problem.

52:13But as I said in the

52:14subscriptions part of today's

52:16video, watch what you start

52:17with.

52:18Okay.

52:18Don't get captured.

52:19And as my dad would say,

52:21throw good money after bad.

52:23Start with something almost

52:24embarrassingly simple.

52:26Put a smart plug on a lamp

52:29and have it come on at sunset

52:31and go off at midnight.

52:33That's a trigger and an

52:34action.

52:35It costs you about the price

52:36of lunch after your hub and

52:38you don't have to touch a

52:39wire or a wall to do it.

52:41Then go back and add one

52:42condition to it.

52:44So it only runs on the days

52:46you're actually home.

52:47Now you've built all three

52:49parts of an automation with

52:50your own two hands and you'll

52:52learn tons from just doing

52:54this and it won't overwhelm

52:56you if something fails.

52:58Here are the first five

52:59automations I built and in

53:02this order.

53:02One, that lamp on a schedule

53:04which you've already done.

53:06Two, a leak sensor under your

53:08kitchen sink that sends you

53:10a notification.

53:11Cheapest insurance you'll

53:12ever buy.

53:13And actually you can usually

53:14tell your insurance.

53:15Pays for the entire hobby the

53:17first time that one fires.

53:18Number three, a contact

53:19sensor that tells you when a

53:21door has been left open for

53:23more than five minutes.

53:24Number four, everything gets

53:26turned off when the last

53:28person leaves the house.

53:29You can lock a door lock if

53:30you've got one.

53:31Five, your bathroom fan or

53:33another fan runs for 20

53:35minutes after humidity spikes

53:37and then it shuts itself off.

53:39Five automations and you'll

53:40have used triggers, conditions,

53:43actions, sensors, action

53:44devices and your hub all

53:46together.

53:47And that's this whole video

53:49running in your home.

53:50I want to give you one habit.

53:52OK, what you've got to do is

53:53you've got to name your device

53:54by room and by function on

53:57the day that you add it.

53:59Put every device into a room

54:01as you go.

54:02It takes a few extra seconds in

54:04the app.

54:05And the difference is huge.

54:07If you call something plug

54:08three in year three, you're

54:11toast.

54:11One rule to design around.

54:13OK, everything has to still

54:15work for somebody who has never

54:17heard of your hub, your partner,

54:19your kids, a guest, a babysitter.

54:21If the only way to turn on a

54:23light is your phone, then you

54:25built something for you, not

54:27for your home.

54:28That's the number one reason

54:29people rip these systems back

54:31out. Keep the physical

54:33switches working.

54:34Keep a button somewhere obvious

54:36and test it by handing someone

54:39the room and saying nothing.

54:41Then you can let the complexity

54:44grow organically to fit your

54:47life. You take on small

54:48projects and expand on what you

54:51already know.

54:52Creating good notes for yourself

54:54for how the system works really

54:56helps in the future and you can

54:58build it out slowly, but surely

55:00this way.

55:01This is smart home 101, so it

55:02can't take you all the way down

55:04the path, but the rest of the

55:06path is already built for you.

55:08The videos in our smart home

55:10beginners playlist are built like a

55:12course, a lot like this video

55:14was today.

55:15There's a video about smart home

55:16hubs, there's a video that teaches

55:18you a lot of advanced automation

55:20ideas and topics, and you can even

55:22get help with your Wi-Fi and your

55:24network. Click on that playlist,

55:27save it somewhere and keep learning.

55:30Otherwise, thanks for watching.

55:32And of course, live smart.

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