“The world is changing very rapidly,” says Nick Candy, of Candy & Candy, the developer behind One Hyde Park. He says this kind of technology will one day be commonplace. “Years ago my grandma had an enormous black-and-white television; now can you imagine going into a home and not seeing a plasma set?”  In Surrey, Marc Rowan, managing director of Centenary Homes, has just put the finishing touches to Centenary House in Kingston-upon-Thames (www.palladianestates.co.uk). For £6m you get an 8,000 sq ft home fitted with a dizzying list of technology by the specialist installer Crestron.  There is an audio visual system served by 50 speakers, accessing a shared music library, a smart lighting system, climate control for each room, and a CCTV network that can be viewed via any television in the property.  “People travel extensively and they go to better-quality hotels and they want the same indoors,” Rowan says. “Have celebrity homes been an influence? Absolutely; no question about it.”  Dominic Grace, head of development at Savills, draws an analogy with the motor industry – even a basic hatchback now has electric windows, air conditioning and a CD player. “Developers are always competing with the second-hand market, and smart home technology, air-conditioning and sophisticated security are becoming typical in developments of £750 a square foot and above,” he says.  “These are things that would have seemed very James Bond 10 years ago, but they will inevitably cascade down to the mainstream.”  Grace believes the cost of kitting out a flat with lots of technological extras is perhaps five per cent of the total build, but might add 10 per cent to its value.  “The benefit is that it has all been put in for you, integrated and thought out, and you don’t have to deal with it yourself,” he says.  Ross Ward, a director of Pereds estate agents in Holland Park, has seen it all, from swimming pools that transform into dance floors to remote-controlled baths that can be instructed to fill while you are on your way home.  “Most of these things are there just to dazzle,” he says. “How many people really run the bath by remote control?”  One of the most outstanding visual examples of home technology is the former house of the architects Heidi Locher and the late Richard Paxton. The four-bedroom property, in Clerkenwell Green, east London, is on sale for £2.2m and has a vast retractable roof.  “People tend to be very impressed, especially as it is rain-sensitive so if it is left open after you go to bed and it starts to thunder it will close itself,” says Paul Driscoll, director of Hurford Salvi Carr, which is selling the property.  Driscoll believes that buyers – specifically male buyers –are willing to pay for high technology. “These are boys’ toys that will appeal to a single man,” he says.  Even in the middle market the trend is catching on. One-bedroom flats at the Frobisher Crescent development in the Barbican, central London, (www.frobishercrescent.co.uk) start at £500,000. They are fitted with smart showers so each family member can enjoy a personalised bathing experience, in terms of heat and water pressure, at the press of a button.  David Graham, of Grahams Hi-Fi (www.grahams.co.uk), meanwhile, was recently asked to install a £9,000 “dumb waiter” letterbox in a north London house where the living space was on the first floor. The mini lift means the owners can collect their post from the hall without the trouble of walking downstairs.  Gary Patrick, sales manager at Barratt London, expects to see hi-tech security and entertainment trickling down to the mass market. “But it is easy to get carried away, and then you are making an expensive product even more expensive,” he warns. “And whether they will use all this technology is another matter.”  3D home cinema, with projector and drop down screen. From £15,000  Whole home audio, broadcast music around the house. From £800 a room  Electronic blinds, controlled by the touch of a button.From £1,000 a window  Scene setting lighting, which can be set to different “moods“ from “dining“ to “party”. From £500 per room  Secret television concealed behind artwork. Using a “picture lift” the wall slides back revealing the screen. From about £1,500 (lift only)  The Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association (www.cedia.co.uk)
The gadgets developers use to sell their luxury homes will soon be available    to everyone, says Ruth Bloomfield