smart home technology is pretty stable for release to the public, and from my testing is astounding when it comes to usability and functionality, it can be hard to setup but its worth it on the long run, especially useful for times you might be in a real hacker jam
I chose all Aqara equipment and hubs and thermometers and cameras. I used the e100 hub, which is HomeKit compatible, which I think is also compatible with google androids smart home thing
how it works is you buy equipment, a hub, set it up using your phone by scanning in a barcode in the apple home app, and add equipment via their barcode via the + "add accessory" button. it then sets up the device after it adds the barcode, I think to the iCloud configured on the phone, and adds it to the HomeKit network
the phone and device need to be hooked up to the same iCloud in order for it to show up on a Mac desktop/laptop I think
here are some pics, I use my smart cam to monitor my weed plants btw which Im not going to show
there are also smart lights which are compatible with Apple HomeKit, at around 9 or 10 im going to unscrew 4 and install 4 more and add them all to home kit, or try, I think you just scan those and screw in, anyways, another somewhat hitch when it comes to smart homes
you can also buy sensors that activate, sometime according to people (meaning a person can be identified via ai and trigger an event), you can do stuff like add a sensor by your door and hook up a smart outlet to a light fixture, and have it turn on, along with camera events, but it needs to be carefully setup and maintained, in both hardware and software maintained, or else it'll just goto waste.
that's about it, Aqara has a large line of equipment that is smart enabled, and look for those buzz words, zigbee, matter, HomeKit,google home, etc!
you can also have a 100% HomeKit experience on a google smartphone and or an apple phone
edit: also if going this route, you might need some double sided tape for cameras
I chose all Aqara equipment and hubs and thermometers and cameras. I used the e100 hub, which is HomeKit compatible, which I think is also compatible with google androids smart home thing
how it works is you buy equipment, a hub, set it up using your phone by scanning in a barcode in the apple home app, and add equipment via their barcode via the + "add accessory" button. it then sets up the device after it adds the barcode, I think to the iCloud configured on the phone, and adds it to the HomeKit network
the phone and device need to be hooked up to the same iCloud in order for it to show up on a Mac desktop/laptop I think
here are some pics, I use my smart cam to monitor my weed plants btw which Im not going to show
there are also smart lights which are compatible with Apple HomeKit, at around 9 or 10 im going to unscrew 4 and install 4 more and add them all to home kit, or try, I think you just scan those and screw in, anyways, another somewhat hitch when it comes to smart homes
you can also buy sensors that activate, sometime according to people (meaning a person can be identified via ai and trigger an event), you can do stuff like add a sensor by your door and hook up a smart outlet to a light fixture, and have it turn on, along with camera events, but it needs to be carefully setup and maintained, in both hardware and software maintained, or else it'll just goto waste.
that's about it, Aqara has a large line of equipment that is smart enabled, and look for those buzz words, zigbee, matter, HomeKit,google home, etc!
you can also have a 100% HomeKit experience on a google smartphone and or an apple phone
edit: also if going this route, you might need some double sided tape for cameras