A SMARTER HOME
RIGGAN LED WIRELESS CHARGING LAMP £60, IKEA.COM
The days of scrabbling around trying to find your charger are over. Just place your phone on the stand of your bedside lamp and it’ll start charging. Illuminating.
SMARTER IKETTLE PRE-ORDER FOR £99.99, STORE. SMARTER.AM
Bored of waiting for your kettle to o boil? The Smarter ikettle can be set to boil automatically tically at certain times of the day, ay, or manually ly switched d on from your ur phone when you’re five minutes s from home. me. Because e no one likes s to wait for a cuppa.
HIVE ACTIVE E HEATING NG £249, INCLUDING NCLUDING INSTALLATION, HIVEHOME.CO.UK
The ultimate purchase for any spendthrift who loves to twiddle the thermostat. Hive allows you to control your boiler with the touch of a smartscreen – so if you’re getting home late one night, you can save on heating costs. Hive can also connect with a smart speaker so you can dictate the heat of your home by voice. Pretty cool.
PHILIPS HUE FROM £73, AMAZON.CO.UK
These smart light bulbs can be controlled d through your phone or smart speaker. Turn them off, turn them on, change the he colour, set them to come e on at certain times. Because use light switches es are just so passé. assé.
GOOGLE HOME HUB £139, STORE. GOOGLE.COM
Smart speakers are like robotic personal assistants s in your home, catering for your every whim. Want the e lights turned on, your shopping done, or your favourite tunes played? Just say the words and they’ll do the rest. During testing, we found Google’s version, right, to be the best out there, narrowly beating versions by Amazon and Apple. A We particularly enjoy enjoyed the video screen – y you can watch cat ca videos on Yo Youtube to your heart’s cont content…
FRID FRIDGECAM £149.99, £149 STORE. STO SMARTER. SMA AM
You c can buy whole fridg fridges with touchscree touchscreens and cameras, but bu this Fridgecam Fridgecam, below, is a much easier easi solution. Just pop it in your fridge and you’ll ou ll be able to check what you need to stock up on from your phone the next time you’re near a supermarket. t.
EZVIZ C6T INTERNET PT CAMERA £69.99, AMAZON.CO.UK
Want to know what your dog/teenager/other half is doing while you work? This handy indoor security camera gives you a window on onto your home world via an app on your s smartphone. (Obviously t tell your dog/teenager/ other half before you i install it, to avoid difficult c conversations down th the line.)
TP TP-LINK WI-FI SMART PL PLUG £29.99, SC SCREWFIX.COM
These Th clever little inventions inv allow you to control con all your home appliances via your smartphone. th Pl Plug th them it into your sockets, then plug your bedside lamp or toaster into the smart plug, and, hey presto, you can control the flow of electricity via an app on your phone. You could even turn off the TV remotely if your kids’ Netflix binge has gone on too long.
SMARTER YALE CONEXIS L1 SMART DOOR LOCK £269.99, YALESTORE.CO.UK
Never again ask yourself the panicked question “did I rem remember to lock the doo door?” with this sm smartlock. Instead, s simply look at an app on your phone. Have you forgotten? Then hit ““lock” lock” and ge get et on with you your ur day. So, the next time the postman arrives with a package and you’re not there, you can explain where best to hide the goods in your front garden.
PETKIT FRESH ELEMENT AUTOMATIC PET FEEDER £180, PETKIT.CO.UK
Simply tap a button on your phone, and this device, below, dispenses dry food to your beloved pet. It’s probably not a substitute for a caring neighbour while you go on holiday for two weeks – but it will certainly put your mind at ease on those nights when you’re late back from work.