Smart Lights

JodyHi, I’m Jody. I graduated with honors with a Masters of Science in Computer Engineering and have over 15 years of experience working as an engineer with electronics products. I’m a lifelong learner and tinkerer and enjoy automating things around the house so I can solve bigger problems than getting out of bed to check … Read more

JodyHi, I’m Jody. I graduated with honors with a Masters of Science in Computer Engineering and have over 15 years of experience working as an engineer with electronics products. I’m a lifelong learner and tinkerer and enjoy automating things around the house so I can solve bigger problems than getting out of bed to check … Read more

JodyHi, I’m Jody. I graduated with honors with a Masters of Science in Computer Engineering and have over 15 years of experience working as an engineer with electronics products. I’m a lifelong learner and tinkerer and enjoy automating things around the house so I can solve bigger problems than getting out of bed to check … Read more

When new products hit the market, it can be an exciting time to discover how they can be beneficial for your home, especially products that promise to make life better for you, cut down on energy costs, and even work with products that you might already have in your home. That’s where Stack comes in. … Read more

Having just had a less-than-stellar experience reviewing the Belkin light bulbs and hub, I decided to take a break and check out some other companies making WiFi home automation products. And, I found a promising looking candidate called the Ankuoo Neo WiFi light switch.  It will let you schedule and automate your lights and control … Read more

First Impressions of the WeMo Lights How’s the WeMo app anyway? Automating your WeMo Lights Grouping Lights in the WeMo App So Why the Bad WeMo App Ratings? Summarizing the WeMo App Performance Are the WeMo Bulbs Reliable? Final Call on the WeMo Lights At first glance, the Belkin WeMo lights are attractive for the … Read more

Looking for more options to automate your lights but aren’t interested in a dedicated home automation hub? As it turns out, WiFi works just fine for home automation for switches connected to a power source like an in-wall switch. Let’s check out the Ankuoo Neo WiFi smart switch and see how it does, at $29 … Read more

Although they aren’t ideal for every situation, it’s hard to argue with the pricing of the Cree Connected and GE Link smart light bulbs at around $15. At that price, they’re just a touch more expensive than their non-connected LED bulb counterparts. And, they’ll pay for themselves in 2 years when compared to an incandescent … Read more

The home automation market is really taking off, and it’s hard to get a bead on the best products out there. Just want somebody to recommend something to buy? No problem! We’ve done a market survey and scoped out the best smart lights switches for home automation for you. Why do I Need Smart Light … Read more

Thinking about adding smart lights to beef up the security of your home? They’re good to make it look like you’re home during a vacation or just to make things more convenient around the house. We’ll make sure you understand the pros and cons of both smart bulbs vs smart switches so that you won’t … Read more

Intrigued by the uniqueness of the Aeotec Micro Smart Switch G2, we picked one up for a quick review.  Most Z-Wave light switches simply replace your existing switch. That’s OK for most cases, but: Have an interior design of your current switches that doesn’t match up very well with the new Z-Wave light switch? Want … Read more

Going out of town?  Take me.  Fine . . . have it your way.  When I get ready to leave, a million things run through my mind, in addition to the obvious.  I always like to prepare my house too, though.  Here are a few things that I think of as I’m preparing to leave. … Read more

Normally, we don’t bother to cover news on things that aren’t even in production yet.  But, we’re making an exception for a clever new smart light switch, Switchmate.  The campaign is still open on Indiegogo for pre-orders that they plan to ship at the end of the year (also known as next spring). Switchmate – … Read more