In the Smart Home

Valerie at CES 2024

CES 2024: Smart Home Insights

In 2024, CES seems to be back to where it was in 2019. This year we could feel the energy and...
Valerie and Mark AppMyHome at CES 2024

CES 2024: Our Top 20 Favorite Home Tech

Every year we visit CES it’s the same. People ask us what we saw, we say, oh not much. Nothing that...
2023 Holiday Gift Guide Graphic

Time to Shop: Our 2023 Smart Home Holiday Gift Guide

Welcome to our tenth smart home holiday gift guide! We’ve been sharing our favorite home technology...
Valerie Mark and Brandon

Smart Home Tour: Behind the Scenes at AppMyHome

Our friend and fellow creator Brandon Doyle came through California on his Tesla road trip and...
Peloton Guide with Valerie working out

Peloton Guide Review: Best Features, Benefits and Tips

I’ve been a Peloton member since March 2021. I didn’t buy my Bike Plus during the original peloton...
CES 2023 Smart Home Insights CES Sign

CES 2023: Smart Home Insights

It’s been a few weeks since our annual trip to Las Vegas for CES 2023 and we’ve had some time to...

CES 2023: Our Top 20 Home Tech Products

This year’s CES had more than 3200 exhibitors and 115,000 attendees, far from the record but still...
2022 Holiday Gift Guide Graphic

2022 Smart Home Holiday Gift Guide

When we first started doing our smart home holiday gift guide in 2014, the shopping season started...
Peloton Upstairs with Weights

My Peloton Bike Plus Tips and Tricks

While I love the Peloton bike, the instructors and the content, I have not always found it easy to...
Mark and Valerie CES 2022 Venetian

CES 2022: Top 20 Home Tech Products

We were so happy to return to Las Vegas this year to see what’s new in home technology at the...
Mark and Valerie CES 2022 Blue Banner

CES 2022: Smart Home Insights

We made it to Las Vegas for our first in-person Consumer Electronics Show since 2020. We’ve been...

2021 Smart Home Holiday Gift Guide

Welcome to our eighth annual smart home holiday gift guide. We started recommending smart home...

DIY Home Security: Moving Inside

Our series on DIY home security systems we’ve tested in our own home. Depending on your comfort...

DIY Home Security: Protect the Perimeter

Our series on DIY home security systems we’ve tested in our own home Now that you’ve learned a bit...
man looking at DIY home security app

Is Full DIY Home Security for you?

Our series on DIY home security systems we’ve tested in our own home Part 2: Protecting...
Home Security on Laptop

DIY Home Security Insights

Our series on DIY home security systems we’ve tested in our own home. Part 1: Introduction...

Best Alexa devices for every room: Our 2021 guide

We got our first Amazon Echo in late 2015. By that time, we’d already been buying smart devices and...
soil moisture meter in vineyard

Temperature sensors and soil moisture meters – at home and at a family-owned winery

We test the Zynect temperature sensor and soil moisture meter at home and with a family-owned...
Flume Smart Water Monitor Water Leak Detector Installation

Smart Water Leak Detector: Flume Water Monitor

Water leak detection is an industry with millions of dollars at stake. Water damage is one of the...
Door slightly open

Redfin: Ways to Fortify your Home without an Alarm

Redfin featured AppMyHome on their blog featuring tips about home security: read the article...
Brilliant smart home control with hand

Brilliant Smart Home Control: Our Review

When we first started our DIY automation journey back in 2013, we started replacing a lot of things...
two video doorbells

Living in a Test House

We have two different video doorbells installed right next to each other near our front door. When...
CES 2021 Anchor Desk

CES 2021: Smart Home Insights

We’ve been heading to Las Vegas for CES for years to see the latest smart home technology. Every...

CES 2021: Top Home Tech Products

It’s hard to imagine that at this time last year, we had just returned from a week in Las...
Holiday Gift Guide Banner

2020 Smart Home Holiday Gift Guide

Welcome to our 2020 smart home holiday gift guide, our seventh annual edition. AppMyHome has been...
Katana Safety Wallet on Phone

Peace of Mind with the KATANA Safety Wallet

Have you ever been in an uncomfortable situation and wish someone could watch over you for a few...
Nexx Smart Alarm with phone

Nexx Smart Alarm – control your alarm from anywhere

Our home came pre-wired with a security system when we bought it, but we never connected it with a...
CEDIA Expo Virtual

CEDIA Expo Virtual – DIY Smart Home

Watching YouTube and reading blogs are great for learning about current smart home technology, but...

Wyze: almost a complete smart home ecosystem

We started our journey with smart cameras outdoors with our first generation Skybell video...
C by GE Smart Home Lighting

C by GE: the Evolution of Smart Home Lighting

With C by GE, GE Lighting, a Savant Company, is creating a new smart home ecosystem for the...
Filtrete 1900 Smart Air Filter

Filtrete Smart Air Filter Review

We have plenty of smart home tech that does amazing things – turn our lights on when we enter...
Konnected Packaging

Konnected Alarm Panel Review

When we bought our new home more than 10 years ago, it came pre-wired with window and door sensors...
Spying Security Camera

Spying Security Camera

I woke up at 3 a.m. and the security camera was on in the bedroom. I could see its bright green...
home internet service

Take control of your home internet service

We believe that a strong, secure home network is the foundation for any smart home. When did you...
Armstrong Water Circulator

How to Have Hot Water in the Morning

We automate our hot water circulator with a smart plug and Alexa. We’ve all been there in the...
SmartThings 1.0 Box

Our Journey with SmartThings

Update December 13, 2021: Samsung no longer builds the SmartThings Hub, but the app is still up to...
MyQ with screens

Smart Garage Door Opener – Chamberlain MyQ

The Chamberlain MyQ smart garage door opener was one of the first products we reviewed and it...
FoodMarble with Strawberries

Get Smarter about Digestion: FoodMarble AIRE Review

About ten years ago we gave up eating beef. We aren’t vegetarians – we still eat pork, lamb...
Hyundai Santa Fe in Driveway

2020 Hyundai Santa Fe Smart Tech

In 2016 we got a new car to replace our old Ford Escape Hybrid. The car was getting tired and...
CES 2020 Logo

Best CES 2020 Smart Home Tech

Every year we head to the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas to search for the best new smart...
CES 2020 Insights Graphic-1

CES 2020: Smart Home Insights

2020 marked our fourth consecutive year at CES in Las Vegas. Year after year, it is still the best...
smart home summit 2019 graphic

Insights from the 2019 Smart Home Summit

We recently had the opportunity to attend the Smart Home Summit, an intimate gathering of smart...
Smart Home Holiday Gift Guide

2019 Smart Home Holiday Gift Guide

Welcome to our 2019 smart home holiday gift guide, our sixth edition. AppMyHome has been...

The Empty Booth

Bringing a smart home device into your life to help you is not just a time and money investment...
smart modular outlets from Swidget

Smart Modular Outlets from Swidget

We are excited about making our whole home a platform with smart modular outlets from Swidget...
Power Lines with Blue Sky

What happens when your smart home loses power?

Recently we were one of about 738,000 California households that lost power for a couple of days in...
Wink Hub 2 Lifestyle Photo

Time to shut down our Wink Hub

After more than five years, it’s finally time to shut down our Wink Hub, one of our first smart...
CEDIA Expo Denver 2019 Inside

CEDIA Expo 2019 DIY Smart Home

We explore DIY Smart Home products and services at the CEDIA Expo, the premier event for home...
Amazon Echo with books

Alexa in the House

Over the last couple of weeks we’ve seen so many people who used an App called FaceApp to upload...
6 Features for Your Indoor Camera

Six Key Indoor Camera Features

When we talk to our friends about smart home technology, everyone wants to discuss smart cameras...
amazon echo show and echo show 5

Amazon Echo Show Envy

About a month ago we visited our brother and sister-in-law back east in Connecticut. Joe and...
Guardian Leak prevention Kit

Preventing water damage with Guardian

We installed the Guardian Leak Prevention System Plus and feel safer knowing we can automatically...
second generation Lowe's Iris Hub

Lowe’s Iris Shuts Down

We have used the Lowe’s Iris smart home hub on and off since 2014. We share our thoughts on...
Our favorite CES smart home gadgets graphic

Our 29 Favorite CES 2019 Smart Home Gadgets

We highlight our favorite CES smart home gadgets we are looking forward to exploring in 2019. Every...
Interlogix smart home artist

State of the Smart Home 2019 – Observations from CES

We share our view on the smart home market after our visit to the Consumer Electronics Show in Las...
RealityAdapter Amazon Echo Dot

Wire-Free Smart Lighting from ThirdReality

We review ThirdReality’s wire-free smart lighting products: the RealitySwitch, RealityLight...
myTouchSmart In-Wall Wi-Fi Smart Outlet and Switch

Smart Wi-Fi Controls from myTouchSmart

We review four Wi-Fi smart home products built by Jasco – myTouchSmart indoor and outdoor...
christmas decorations

2018 Smart Home Holiday Gift Guide

Welcome to our fifth annual smart home holiday gift guide. Since we made our first shopping...
Maximus camera floodlight unboxed

A Smarter Light for Our Yard: the Maximus Camera Floodlight

We upgraded our side yard security with the Maximus Camera Floodlight and Kuna Artificial...
obsidian smart lock unboxed

Sleek and Stylish Smart Lock – the Kwikset Obsidian

We upgraded our smart home recently with a sleek and stylish keyless smart lock from Kwikset...
San Diego Convention Center

Smart Home at CEDIA Expo 2018

Last week AppMyHome attended the CEDIA Expo in San Diego, the annual gathering of professionals in...
Sleeptracker smart bed unboxed

Making our bed smart with Sleeptracker

Like most data geeks, we have been experimenting with tracking our sleep for years as part of our...
Nexx Garage with parts

Smart Entry with Nexx Garage

We have been using the Chamberlain MyQ garage door opener for years and it was one of the very...
B-Hyve smart hose faucet timers

Filling our fountains with the B-hyve hose faucet timer

When we first moved into our home and landscaped our garden, we included two fountains, one on the...
iHome iAVS16 bedside speaker

Alarm Clock with Alexa inside – the iHome iAVS16

When we got our very first Amazon Echo we weren’t sure exactly what to do with it. We had been...
smart home couch

Smart Meditation with Headspace Alexa Skill

Regular meditation doesn’t require any technology, but it can relieve stress, unleash creativity...
Kevo Convert unboxed

Make an Old Lock Smart – Kevo Convert Review

We have been using Kevo Touch-to-Open Smart Locks, together with the Kevo Plus, for several years...
BedJet Product Photo

Smart Sleep Temperature with BedJet

Temperature can be one of the biggest challenges to falling and staying asleep. In the summer we...
Mother Installed

Our Mother has gone offline

It looks like another IoT product has outlived its useful life – today we discovered that our...

GE Smart Motion Sensor and Touch Sensing Smart Dimmer

Since our recent story about GE smart switches and outlets, built by Jasco, we have received two...
Jasco Z-Wave Family

GE Smart Switches built by Jasco

When you think about starting to automate your home, you may ask yourself, smart light bulbs or...
Maximus Lighting

Attractive Smart Home Security from Maximus Lighting

We have been experimenting with different security cameras over the years, both inside and outside...
petcube bitess teddy

Connect to your Pet with Petcube Bites

Here at AppMyHome we are always intrigued with novel ways to monitor our home and solve problems...

Smart Home Security with Konnected

Update July 22, 2020: This is our review of the original Konnected Alarm Panel that launched...
holiday gift guide

2017 Smart Home Holiday Gift Guide

Welcome to our fourth annual smart home holiday gift guide. As we reflect on the past year, it...

Smart Comfort with Haiku Fans

Update July 16, 2019 – Big Ass Fans has discontinued the separate Haiku Home branding but...

SkyBell HD – Smart Doorbell

Update April 17, 2020: We retired our Skybell after using three generations of the product. While...
cujo out of box

Smart Home Security with the Cujo Smart Firewall

Update April 17, 2020: Cujo AI discontinued the CUJO AI smart firewall at the end of 2017. If you...

MySmartBlinds adds window automation

Update April 16, 2020: MySmartBlinds is now Tilt by SmarterHome, with an expanded line of smart...
Wink Hub 2

Smart Home Control with the Wink Hub 2

Update April 16, 2020: We no longer use our Wink Hub 2. Read why here. We purchased our first Wink...

CES 2017 Smart Home Wrap-Up

Every year thousands of visitors converge on Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show, the...
smart home couch

State of our Smart Home 2017

As we head into 2017, after more than three years on our journey to automate our home, it’s a good...

Solar-powered Smart Camera – the Ring Stick Up Cam

Around the same time we installed our mom’s Ring Pro doorbell, we decided we wanted to try out...

2016 Smart Home Holiday Gift Guide

Welcome to our third annual smart home holiday gift guide. As we get ready to start our fourth year...

Smart Doorbell for Mom – the Ring Pro

If you have been following our blog from the beginning you probably already know we have a SkyBell...

Our Smart Car – 2017 Ford Escape

For years, we have been looking at new cars without finding anything that compelled us to upgrade...

Sengled Snap – Smart Home Security Lighting

We have been big fans of the Sengled smart home lighting product line and the way they have...

Adding security with a smart camera

Security cameras have been in use for years, long before the DIY smart home revolution. While there...

Making our car smart with Automatic

Update: May 7, 2020: Automatic has announced that they will be shutting down their app and service...

Smart Home 2015 Holiday Wish List

Now that we have recommended holiday gifts, it’s time to think about our own smart home holiday...

2015 Smart Home Holiday Gift Guide

Welcome to our second annual smart home holiday gift guide. 2015 has been a big year for DIY home...
Echo with Apps

Smart Home with Amazon Echo

The first time we heard about the Amazon Echo was about this time last year when a colleague shared...
Kwikset Kevo Box

Kevo Plus – Smart Lock adds Internet

Update April 17, 2020: We still have one Kevo lock in service, but now also use the sleek and...
Zipabox

Local Smart Home Control with Zipato

Update April 16, 2020: we no longer use our Zipabox smart home hub. Zipato continues to expand...
Living Room Final

Roomie Remote – Smart Entertainment

Update April 16, 2020: We are no longer using the Roomie Remote Service. It is still available but...

Connecting IR devices to our Smart Home

While we are in the 21st century, some companies like Samsung still do not know how to turn their...

Summer Smart Thermostat Fail

This week our temperatures soared up to the 100s, and at some point, the fan on the outside air...

Smart Home Safety with Nest Protect

This post originally appeared on Powers Automation – Smart Home Gurus. We are mostly DIY here...

A Mother for our Smart Home

As of July 2018 our Mother is now out of service. She served us well over the years and we will...
Wink Hub

Wink Hub Goes Down

Update April 17, 2020: We no longer use our Wink Hub. Read why. Yesterday Wink had a major meltdown...

Smart Home Sound with Sengled Pulse

The Sengled Pulse light bulbs, smart LED bulbs that double as a Bluetooth speaker, were one of the...

Smart Irrigation with Rachio

We have been in the market for a smart irrigation solution for our yard and garden for some time...
Utilitech Water Leak Detector

Detecting Water Leaks with Iris

Update April 17, 2020: Lowe’s Iris closed their service but you can still use a Z-Wave water...

CES 2015 Smart Home Wrap-up

The Consumer Electronics Show is the place for companies from all over the world to show their...

Which Smart Home Platform is Right for You?

Update April 17, 2020: Lowe’s Iris and Staples Connect are no longer in service, and we...

2014 Smart Home Holiday Gift Guide

  Home automation is hotter than ever this holiday season. If you are looking to surprise that...

Cutting the Cable

With all the talk this week about Aereo and the Supreme Court decision, it seems like a good time...

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