The most asked question is, “I would like some smart home technology, how much does it cost?”

This is a great question because it allows us to begin having a conversation where we can ask questions and listen to what is important to our clients. We consider a successful technology solution performs the functions as intended with minimal or little input. The result enhancing the way you live in your home. 

There are two methods to implement technology.

Method one, purchase an off the shelf preprogramed solution that you understand may tick some of your boxes. This method is fine as long as you understand the functionality parameters.

Method two, have a solution tailored to your specific requirements. This involves an assessment to discover the way you want to live in your home. This also gives us the opportunity to educate on the latest technology and provide information on what is possible today.

With both methods the most important step is understanding what functionality you are going to get when the project is completed. Each point or function of the solution can then be ticked off making sure you got what you expected during the handover.

What is an example functionality?

Let’s discuss just one sub-system, a CCTV solution. The questions we ask would be,

Why do you want to see in your cameras?

Are you tracking people entering your property?

Do you want to use the real time streaming to an app?

Do you want to speak with them while they are still onsite?

If someone is detected onsite, what would you like to happen? A notification on your phone? A phone call a monitoring company? Recording onto a hard drive? How long do you want the recordings to last before being overwritten? This is just to give you an example of what should be considered.

It’s information like this that we use to determine which solution is best suited to you.

To summarise, understand what is possible with today’s technology. Decide on the functionality you want from each sub-system and compare this with the end result during your client hand over. A successful technology solution will tick every functionality you agreed on.