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5 Ways You Can Control Your Home With Your Phone


It sounds like something out of science fiction. You push a few buttons on your palm-sized personal computer, and every aspect of your home responds with perfect attentiveness and synchronicity. Your lights turn on, your meal prepares itself, your climate control kicks in--all without you even having to be at home. But while a fully remote controlled house may sound like a dream, the truth is that it is fast becoming a reality. Here are five aspects of your home that you can control with nothing more than a smartphone.

1. Security

security

In the United States, a home is broken into approximately every 15 seconds. In fact, statistics show that 1 out of every 5 homes will experience an invasion at some point. With numbers such as these, it becomes imperative that homeowners do everything that they can to protect their families and property, but when you're away from home, how much can you really do? Well, a lot, apparently. Modern home automation companies such as Vivint provide direct, mobile device based access to their Vivint home security systems from anywhere in the world. That means that even though you’re on the other side of the planet, you can still view live security camera feeds, lock or unlock doors, and even check up on things to see if it was a burglar who tripped your alarm, or just fluffy out for a midnight hunt.

2. Lighting

Energy production accounts for a large portion of the world's dangerous greenhouse gas emissions, and a lot of the energy that we use in our homes and pay top dollar to utility companies for ends up going completely to waste. Have you ever rushed out of the house without remembering to turn off the lights? Well, there's your culprit. With home automation, however, it never has to be a problem again. In addition to timers that can automatically turn on or off lights at specific hours of the day, and occupancy sensors that can deactivate lighting when you leave a room, automated lighting can also be controlled from the phone. That way, when you arrive at work and realize that you left every light in the house burning brightly, you can just use your phone to turn them all off.

3. Climate control

temp

Thermostats are wonderful inventions that have been around a long time, but they certainly have a few flaws. For one thing, how can you make sure that the temperature stays comfortable for you, without having to leave it running while you're away from home? Smart thermostats solve this problem, by not only taking into account the homeowner's schedule, but also making it possible to adjust the temperature of your home remotely. So, if it's been a long, cold day, and you're looking forward to stepping into your nice, warm living room, you won't have to leave the furnace running the entire time you're gone; just use your phone and get things cooking ahead of time, and everything will be perfect when you pull into the driveway.

4. Appliances

Speaking of cooking, you can also use your phone to activate and control appliances. You can set the crockpot to begin heating up supper or the coffee maker to begin brewing you up a steaming cup of joe long before you walk in the door. You can even tell the popcorn maker to start popping while you're still browsing your selection choices at the corner Redbox. In fact, with a few attachments, any home appliance can become mobile phone controlled.

5. Entertainment

And at the end of the day, when you just want to relax, you can even have your phone tell your home to record your favorite television shows to watch later, while it gets your automated home theater setup to your liking. Because really, what good would a totally remote controlled home be if you couldn't also use it for entertainment purposes?
So live the sci-fi dream, and discover what you can do with a few home automations systems, and a mobile smart device. Total home control is just a button away.
Featured images:
  •  License: Royalty Free or iStock source: www.123rf.com
  •  License: Royalty Free or iStock source: www.123rf.com
About Author: Lindsey Patterson, a freelance writer who specializes in technology and the latest social trends, specifically involving social media. She is currently a social media advisor to Vivint.

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