Last fall, Best Buy outlined its plans to massively expand the smart home services and in-home technical support provided by Geek Squad. Last week, Best Buy announced the launch of its Total Tech Support Powered by Geek Squad, making the service available nationwide. The program has been in a pilot over the last few months, […]
Get the GuideAmazon Introduces Smart-Home ‘Experience Centers’
Amazon has announced the opening of interactive Amazon Experience Centers within select Lennar model homes across the United States. In these Alexa-enabled smart homes, customers can ask Alexa to control the television, lights, thermostat, shades, and more. The model homes showcase how customers can use Alexa in their everyday lives. According to the retail giant, […]
Get the GuideTechorating: Designing a Hidden Home Theater
It was 10 years ago that the AV industry adopted the term “techorating” to describe the art of blending technology with a room’s interior design and decor. Many homeowners still seek to match their entertainment systems with the aesthetics of the surrounding space. Related: What Happens When Design and Technology Collide? But the prevalence of […]
Get the GuideAmazon Debuts Smart Home Services, Security Package Tiers
A good home security system is the cornerstone of any smart home. Thanks to manufacturer striving for interoperability among various smart home devices, a home security system is able to communicate with a variety of products–video doorbells, light switches, thermostats, and more. It makes sense then, that Amazon should get into the security business. The […]
Get the GuideWearable Technology: The Future is Scary, But Also Fascinating
If you thought it was scary when Big Brother was watching, imagine how freaky it’s going to be—or maybe already is—when Alexa, Watson and their futuristic wearable technology cousins who are still in development are able to analyze your mood or determine your overall health. Related: 10 ways your home will change by 2020 One […]
Get the Guide10 Top Notch Outdoor Speakers for the Ultimate Backyard Bash
Homeowners want to party outside… using technology… according to the Houzz 2018 Landscaping Survey, which found that over half of homeowners (51 percent) spend more time entertaining outside after completing landscaping projects. The Houzz survey of 750 consumers also shows technology plays a role in making the yard entertainment-ready. Of the nearly one in five […]
Get the GuideLeviton Wi-Fi Lighting Controls Now Integrate with Nest Devices, No Hub Required
By Andrew Nichols Integration is the name of the game when it comes to adding smarts to your house. The more easily devices can communicate with each other, the more opportunities you’ll have to automate how these devices operate. When two big-name companies like Leviton and Nest band their products together some truly amazing things […]
Get the GuideNest x Yale Smart Lock Offers Enhanced Home Security
Yale Locks & Hardware announced the launch of its lock designed and built in collaboration with Nest, the Nest x Yale Lock, the first ‘Works with Nest’ product that is controlled using the Nest app. The newlock is a key-free touchscreen deadbolt that can lock and unlock doors remotely, create passcodes to manage access for […]
Get the GuideHomeowners Celebrate March Madness in Basketball-Theme Entertainment Rooms
March Madness is in full swing, so in between adjusting your brackets and arguing with your neighbor over your top pick, we thought we’d offer up some hoop-themed distraction with our favorite and most over-the-top basketball-inspired home theater and A/V systems. Related: Check out these amazing theme theaters What does a big basketball fan want […]
Get the GuideLG OLED TVs Are First with Dolby TrueHD Lossless Audio
If you have an OLED TV from LG, you’ll wake up soon with Dolby TrueHD uncompressed audio, thanks to an over-the-air firmware upgrade. LG’s 2017 OLEDs are already among the best TVs money can buy, although a firmware upgrade is set to make them even better. That’s thanks to added support for Dolby TrueHD lossless […]
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