Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant now has two serious competitors in the smart home market. Google is the first, launching its own smart home assistant, the Google Echo, last year. The Echo’s main advantage is its ability to play music, books, and various other tasks without requiring users to get up and turn on the lights or the TV. However, the Echo doesn’t have the Echo’s ability to listen to voice commands easily, and it doesn’t have the vast library of Alexa skills, either.
Technology is transforming the way that families communicate and interact. In addition to the social media networks that most people use to keep in touch, families can now look to several “home technologies” to help them stay connected. Here are a few ways that technology can help your family stay connected, even when you’re not in the same room.
When it comes to the topic of home technology, there are many ways to win. So many people dread the thought of reworking the way they live in their homes, but they often fail to realize the many benefits of getting started. We’ve put together a list of top home technology benefits that will help you see just how easy it is.
Alexa
It’s pretty clear that Amazon has a thing for Alexa. The software that powers Amazon’s Echo smart speaker first appeared in 2014 as a built-in feature on the company’s Fire tablets. Since then, Amazon has integrated it into everything from the Fire TV streaming media player and the Fire TV Stick to its online checkout system and its mobile app for iOS and Android.
The benefits of being an Amazon Echo user are plentiful. First, you can ask Alexa to turn on your lights, adjust your thermostat, or tell you when the next bus will arrive. Now, you can even lock your doors with a simple voice command. Using Alexa to unlock your door is a really convenient way to get inside your home without fumbling for your keys, and you don’t need to worry about Alexa letting someone inside your home.
The process is simple: create an Alexa-compatible smart lock and connect it to your Echo device. Then, you can ask Alexa to lock or unlock your door, and she will do it for you.
Google Echo
The Amazon Echo is an always-listening voice-controlled device that performs a variety of actions based on voice commands. You can ask it to play music, answer questions, check the weather, set alarms, control smart devices in your home, and more. Amazon Echo is a Bluetooth speaker that is linked to the Alexa Voice Service. This service allows you to play music, make calls, control smart home devices, get news, information, sports scores, weather, and more. Essentially the Echo can do everything that the Amazon Fire TV Stick or Fire TV Cube can do.
You have to admit; the Google Home was a pretty cool device. Its ability to recognize your voice and serve up answers and information made it feel like a futuristic addition to the home. But soon after the Google Home launched, the Amazon Echo entered the scene. And, if anything, the Echo is even cooler than the Home. It can do a lot of the same things the Home does, plus all kinds of other things. Its ability to play music is a great party accessory, for one thing.
In the modern world, there is no more important home technology than the smart home. Smart homes are the wave of the future: they are the way all homes will be built—and the way all homes will be lived in—in the future. But, what exactly is a smart home? Most importantly, what makes a home smart? And, if a home isn’t smart, how do you make it smart?
The Home of today is a wonderful thing! Gone are the days where you had to be in front of a desktop to do work. Our phones and tablets have changed the way we surf the web and the way we interact with our friends and family. With all the useful and fun apps available, there is no wrong way to have fun! Whether you are looking for a new way to stay connected or you want to try new and exciting games, we have you covered with this list of top home technology!