I recently installed the biggest smart home antenna I’ve ever seen, and it helped open up new areas in my smart home, from the attic to the chicken coop. The towering 12-inch-tall Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2, which launched this week for $69, plugs into any Home Assistant system via USB and can connect to any […]
I’ve waited two years to try out the new Alexa, which was first announced way back in 2023, and this week I finally got access to Alexa Plus (not organically – I did have to pull a few strings). I’ve now spent 24 hours with Amazon’s generative AI-powered voice assistant, and it’s not just an […]
Editor’s note: Amazon Prime Day 2025 is officially underway. If you’re looking to make the most of the four-day shopping extravaganza, we’ve put together a guide to the best Prime Day deals you can get. With a smart video doorbell, your front door’s communication skills go from 1980s landline to a modern smartphone. Combining a motion-activated camera with […]
The Nuki Smart Lock ($159) is the most advanced retrofit smart lock I’ve tested. It features a sleek, compact design that looks and works like a regular doorknob, but it’s much more than a doorknob. It can automatically unlock as you approach, lock behind you, unlock using a keypad or your fingerprint, and be controlled […]
Legacy lock maker Kwikset has been producing innovative smart locks since 2013, when it released the first touch-to-open lock, the Kwikset Kevo. The company followed that up with the launch of one of the first key-free locks in 2016, one of the earliest Apple HomeKit locks, and one of the first fingerprint-only locks. Kwikset has […]
Robot vacuums that can both mop and sweep your floors have improved significantly in recent years. While they are still not as effective as good ol’ manual labor, if you run them regularly, they will help keep your floors cleaner with much less effort on your part. The difference is that newer “combo” robot vacuum […]
I am an excellent home cook, if I do say so myself. I regularly produce restaurant-quality dishes from my smart kitchen. But I have two favorite dishes I’ve never mastered at home: pizza and burgers. Yes, I can make them, but do they taste as good as my local burger or pizza joint? Nope. Naturally, […]
A smart lock is an easy solution to some common problems. Locked yourself out? Need to let a friend in to water the plants? Your latchkey kid lost their key? Hands are full, and it’s raining cats and dogs? A smart lock solves all of these problems and more. One of the best smart home […]
I suspect my dog does not like the Roborock Saros Z70. Unlike the dozens of other robot vacuums that Gus happily lets clean around him while he sleeps, the Z70 keeps stealing his treasures. Not his dog toys – although that could be a future feature – but my family’s socks that he loves to […]