Late-stage capitalism has ensured that, whatever object or service you’re looking to buy, the market is absolutely flooded with perfectly good (if not totally identical) options.
This can be a huge benefit if you enjoy shopping around and choosing precisely the right thing to bring into your life, but if you get overwhelmed by choices and don’t enjoy the process of staring at countless toasters, speakers, windshield wiper packs, pairs of socks, or whatever else you find yourself needing, having some help choosing can be a huge boon.
Nowhere is this more prevalent than when picking smart devices for your home. These technologies are so new and so ubiquitous that deciding between them is always a challenge.
Knowing how to assess the different smart devices you want in your home is an excellent way to cut out some hassle and ensure your house is kitted out with the best of the best!
Do Your Research Before You Start Looking
The Internet is your friend when it comes to buying smart devices. Tech writers love writing about new tech; this means that there are plenty of lists that will compare devices by brand, price, functionality, or whatever other qualifier is most important to you in your search.
If, for example, you’re looking for the best smart thermostat to help regulate the environment in your home, you simply need to google ‘best smart thermostat’ and then be smart about which sources you trust.
Generally speaking, sites that are owned by technology companies are not going to be your friend, but seeking out reliable technology publications such as WIRED or PCMag are great places to start.
Consider Budget Carefully
There are many purchases you can make which will rely very heavily on the ability to get the cheapest version of what you need: spatulas, for example, are not going to differ massively between models, so you may as well buy that $1 one from the local shop. Smart devices are slightly different: these are complex pieces of technology that have to fit smoothly into your daily practices and routines. If ever there was a time to put a little bit more money into a purchase, this is it.
That said, don’t be distracted by gimmicks that will end up costing you extra for useless features! Think carefully about what exactly you need and then price it out accordingly: we’re not saying there’s no use for a sparkly diamond-faced thermostat cover, but it might not be the one thing you should account for in your budget.
Make Sure You Understand The Operating System
There’s absolutely nothing worse than getting a piece of technology home and realizing you have no idea how it works. Nearly as bad: getting a piece of technology home and realizing it won’t sync up to the other technology you own because the operating system is different.
While doing research on the Internet to start is great, going into a store to test out how one of the smart devices you want is actually going to work is an intelligent way to avoid this pitfall.
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