Smart Home vs. Home Integration

Expert hints and tips about what you need to consider when building a new integrated home

In 2009, Apple coined the phrase “there’s an app for that!” This was two years after the invention of the iPhone. Twelve years on it turns out they were right, and the modern-day smart phone is now a part of our everyday life. We are now in an era where we can control our homes through proprietary apps controlling individual “smart things” throughout. You can purchase off-theshelf lighting and power systems at your local hardware store.

Many other companies have launched apps for their products, including fireplaces, security systems, access control, sprinklers, pool motors, blinds, motorized doors, the list goes on. All these devices are controlled by a variety of wireless technologies.

This is where the confusion and frustration begin for the end-user, and where we can start to understand the difference between a smart home vs. an integrated home.

As mentioned, it is very easy to fall into the confusion of purchasing multiple appbased products to control everything in your home. Once you have connected all of this tech you are ready to go, swapping from app to app to turn on your fireplace, dim the lights, change the song, adjust the temperature, oh wait, the lights are not right, you will have to go back into the lighting app to adjust them.

What may happen once all of your wireless devices are set just the way you want is that your ISP modem will reach its wireless capacity and lock up, then nothing will work until you power cycle the modem. Does this sound familiar?

That is the off-the-shelf smart home technology solution that many homeowners are deploying in their home, and while this may work for many and the costs are relatively low, it is not an integrated home.

A professional systems integrator will create a design that will combine all of

these services into one piece of software, allowing the home-owner to control their entire home in a very simple and natural way.

Some things to consider when building a new integrated home:

A Robust Home Network

The question I get asked often during an initial discovery meeting is, “isn’t everything wireless these days?” While this is sometimes true and it seems that every piece of electronics is wi-fi connected, a structured home will have as many hardwired connections as possible, this is to minimise wi-fi congestion and to ensure a solid, fast internet connection. We also hardwire robust wi-fi access points to ensure that when a wireless device speaks to it, the information gets transferred as quickly as possible back to the network.

Services

A modern home includes many connected services these days. This may include multiroom audio/video, a complex lighting system, blind control, security, access control, irrigation, pool control, solar energy management, vehicle charging, and a multi-zone air-conditioner.

These systems need to be reviewed at the beginning of the project to ensure the initial design and cabling are correct. Some products work well with each other while others do not.

Design and Project Management

A good initial design will pave the way to seamless integration. A well-designed system includes a lot of cables, and understanding what cables to use is important. Do we use CAT6, CAT6a or fibre? Where do we run these cables? It is worth noting that this area of construction is fairly cutting-edge, and not available on all builds, hence, your builder may ask for assistance, and a good project manager will help guide the builder through the complete installation process.

Central Control

The key piece to an integrated home is the control software, and there are many out there, all built to achieve a certain level of control. While I typically use a program called Savant, other integrators may prefer to use a different brand that they are trained to use and understand well.

The controller will bring in all of the previously-mentioned variables into one unified control system, tie them together as one package and then output it to a variety of mediums such as your smart phone, a universal remote, or a touchscreen wall controller. The initial design will denote where these may need to go. For example, a TV will need a handheld remote and the kitchen or bedroom may have on-wall touchscreens for quick access to many services.

An experienced designer will allow for some customised scenes that will control a variety of items at the touch of one button.

For example, when you press the home button, your garage will open, lights leading into your key rooms (kitchen, lounge, bedroom) will turn on, your favorite playlist will come on, and the temperature will be set to 23 degrees.

There are a variety of scenes that can be set up in this way, and Savant enables the home owner to be the programmer and create and adjust their own scenes without integrator support.

If you are interested in building a new home and would like to incorporate any of these technologies, I would encourage you to speak to an integrator first.

After all, just as you would not ask your plumber to do your landscaping, you should not ask your electrician to design your next integrated home.