Simple Ways to Turn Your House into a Smart Home
Bill Lee, Vice President of Smart Home Product Marketing at Samsung Electronics America, sat down with Mediaplanet to talk about how smart home technology is simpler than you realize.
Where will the future of the smart home take us?
Bill Lee: Now that more and more smart devices are available, it’s about making them all work together seamlessly. Interoperability and openness are central to our smart home ecosystem because people just want their connected home to work. No subscriptions, no clunky setup. From our smart appliances, TVs, home audio and mobile products, to hundreds of devices that are compatible with the SmartThings platform, we want to make it easy for consumers to set up their own smart home. As time goes on, I think consumers can expect to see more essential products that streamline many smart home tasks and combine them into one device.
What are the first steps for those looking to implement smart technology in the home?
There is a common misconception that you have to suddenly install a multitude of tech products to make your home “smart.” This isn’t the case. If you have just one smart device, congratulations – you have officially begun to build your very own smart home ecosystem. I always suggest that people start small. With those in place, you can do so many things – get notifications if a door is opened, know if movement is detected in the garage, see when your elderly parent opens the medicine cabinet.
How should homeowners go about upgrading and securing their Wi-Fi networks in the home to prepare for “Internet of Things” integration?
As homeowners look to integrate more smart home products and increase security, I recommend considering a device that can both control connected devices and offer fast, secure Wi-Fi under one roof.
What are the key issues that smart home devices can address in your daily life?
The better question may be, “What issues can’t smart home devices address?” One of the best parts of my job is hearing from people whose lives have been changed or improved by our technology. A recent example comes from a family who used our Samsung SmartThings products to help their father stay in his home comfortably and safely after the onset of dementia caused him to wander. We also worked with a family in San Francisco to outfit their home with smart home products. Seeing their faces light up when we showed them how the lights turned on when they walked in the door and how they could turn off the Wi-Fi in the kids’ rooms when it was time for bed was amazing. The possibilities really are endless, and that is the magic of the smart home ecosystem that we’ve created.