Smart homes (AKA home automation) is one of the more acceptable advances of the modern world to benefit the elderly. It s one of the few technology devices that the elderly can more easily take on-board.
What exactly is a Smart home?
Firstly be assured that many youngsters don’t fully understand the ins and outs of smart home automation, they mainly just know how to work them. So don’t feel the need to learn too much.
Let’s wind back a few years. Remember when TV remotes controls came out, you controlled your TV from your arm chair instead of getting up every time to change channels (all 3 of them) change the volume or turn on or off. That was the “automation” of the TV.
Home automation (smart homes) is simply an extension of that, now with the aid of a Smart phone or the Internet you can control devices, like thermostats, lights, electric blinds or curtains, appliances. Basically any electrical device can now be automated.
So how can home automation benefit older people?
Same way the TV remote control did except you buy either a Smart light bulb, Smart plug in socket (to connect anything electrical) that you then control either by voice through something like an Amazon Alexa device or via an app on a smart mobile phone.
Once set up with something like Amazon Echo (Alexa) you could simple say things like “Alexa, turn on the lounge light” etc. You can even turn on/off your lights when you are hundreds of miles away, on holiday for example.
These are just the basics of home automation. Other benefits include camera door bells (see who is at your door before opening) you can also talk to the caller giving instructions from your armchair if needed. Open and close electric curtains/blinds and so much more.
How can I get Smart?
As long as you have the Internet at home or through a mobile phone you simple need the Smart devices to connect to such as those previously mentioned or highlighted below.
Setting up can be tricky but once done you are good to go. I personally asked my 25 year old Nephew to do this tricky bit (he has his uses) and it saved me scratching my head.