Future Home Shop
Cart Cart
Home
Shop By Brand
Works With
Home Security
Lighting
Heating and Energy
Smart Sensors
Appliances
Blog
CES 2019: Smart Home Round-Up
by Kate Robinson January 14, 2019
Last week was an incredibly exciting one in the world of smart home tech, as the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2019 saw new announcements, new products and game-changing technologies unveiled at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
Now we’ve had a couple of days to process the first wave of fantastic tech news for this year, here’s a rundown of the innovations we’re most excited about:
Google Assistant Connect Revealed
The Amazon Echo currently dominates the smart speaker market (with 41% of the share compared to Google’s 28%), but Google used CES 2019 to announce the launch of a new gadget that will bring its Google Home smart speakers more in line with Alexa.
Google Assistant Connect is an add-on to smart home products - you’d add the chip to your gadgets, they’d wirelessly connect to your smart Google device, and then you’d be able to control them via voice command.
It’s a similar idea to the Alexa Connect Kit, and will provide brands with more options when it comes to deciding how to enable their products.
New Players in Video Doorbell Market
At Future Home Shop, we’ve been big fans of the Ring Video Doorbell since it first launched, so we were excited to see several more video doorbells unveiled at CES 2019.
Netatmo is bringing one out, as is First Alert, with the latter’s offering set to be compatible with both Amazon Echo and Google Home, which means it’ll be a good choice for those of us wanting to take steps towards a fully connected home.
Meanwhile, Maximus unveiled the world’s first dual-camera doorbell (with one camera pointing ahead so you can see and communicate with whoever’s at your door via the accompanying app, and another directed at the ground below) allowing you to keep a closer eye on the parcel that’s been dropped off.
This growing number of players in the video doorbell space shows just how popular smart home security products have become - as well as doorbells, you’ll find a collection of smart home security cameras at Future Home Shop.
Ring Announces Move into Smart Lighting
Following the success that it’s had with its video doorbell, Ring used CES 2019 to announce that it will be launching its own smart lighting products in the near future - and you’ll be able to sync them with your smart doorbell for even tighter and smarter home security, and another step towards a fully integrated smart home.
To start with, Ring will be introducing spotlights, a floodlight with in-built motion sensor and battery-powered, motion-sensing landscape lights, with potential for the range to expand even further in the future.
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, who is The Smartest Mirror of All?
Capstone Connected Home unveiled a mirror with a difference at CES 2019 - it's Google-enabled.
The mirror can differentiate between six voices - instead of asking it who’s the fairest of them all, you can ask it for updates on the latest news, the weather outside, or to stick your favourite YouTube channel on.
Hang it in your living room and enjoy updates via the big screen whenever you need them; put it in your bathroom and watch online videos from the bath or while you’re brushing your teeth.
You might feel a little like you’re in an episode of Star Trek the first time you use it, but this looks set to be the future of smart home technology, so it’s time to get used to it.
