SMART HOME LIGHTING
One of the essential parts of a smart home automation system is the lighting. Sufficient lighting for any home is highly important as it can affect moods and can help us feel comfortable in our own home. Smart home lighting aims to give us more control over this.
WHAT IS SMART HOME LIGHTING?
When most people think of smart home lighting, they might think of smart home plugs connected to a smart assistant such as Google or Alexa. With the press of a button or a voice command, they can turn on a single light in their home. But a bespoke, installed smart home lighting solution is different.
Smart home lighting comprises both lights and blinds that are linked to a central smart home hub, along with other smart home devices. They are different from normal lights in that they are all interconnected and can be programmed or operated digitally. Lighting is installed to operate at night and for creating certain moods, whilst automated blinds are used to control the levels of natural light.
HOW DOES SMART HOME LIGHTING WORK?
Smart home lighting solutions are usually part of a wider smart home automation system. Lights, blinds and other devices are linked together either wired or wirelessly and all link back to a smart home hub such as Crestron or Control4. These smart home systems come with touchscreen devices and apps that allow you to control your lighting as you wish.
Lighting and blinds can also be linked to movement sensors or GPS technology that can trigger when you enter a room or if you are within a certain radius of your home.
WHAT ARE THE BEST SMART HOME LIGHTING SOLUTIONS?
If you’re looking for a full smart home lighting system, we would recommend either Lutron or Rako.
Lutron has been in the lighting industry since the 1960s and has long been a trustworthy brand worldwide. Because of this, it is compatible with a wide range of devices and systems making it extremely versatile. Read our recent review on Lutron lighting here for more information.
Rako is a UK based smart lighting manufacturer and is typically a more affordable option for a smart home lighting installation. It’s able to combine wired and wireless lighting options, making it great for any sized project.
Both of these brands offer stylish wall panels that allow you to operate lighting scenes and blinds at the flick of a switch. These plates come with some great finishes which add even more style to your home. Their lighting scenes are programmable using the panels or their respective apps, with Rako even boasting a smartwatch app. They both offer a high amount of precision when it comes to dimming lights, lowering blinds and being in control.
BENEFITS TO SMART HOME LIGHTING
Smart home lighting provides many benefits to the home and you’ll find it difficult to imagine a life without it once you’ve gotten used to it.
Firstly, you are able to control all the light on your system in one single application from anywhere with an internet connection. The Internet of Things (IoT) makes it possible for you to fine-tune and customised the lighting sequences and moods as you like them.
Maybe you’re trying to create the right mood lighting for a romantic evening at home or you’re hosting a party and want to make your home seem more attractive to guests. With smart lighting, there’s no longer just on and off. Each light can be dimmed as you wish and this configuration can be saved to the system for when it’s needed again.
Another bonus to smart home lighting is its energy-saving benefits. With automatic lighting set up, your lights will only activate when motion is detected or when they are scheduled to switch on. This means no more lights left on when no one is using them… unless that’s the intention…
Deliberately switching lights on when no one is home might seem like a waste of energy and money, but it can actually save you from a lot more than that. Switching a light on remotely through the smart home system gives the impression that someone is home, which acts as a great deterrent to potential intruders.
