What is a Smart Home Controller?

Are you frustrated with your piecemeal smart home technology?

We get it. All of us here at AV Design Consultants love smart tech! Smart home technology is super fun, and it can be easy to start by picking up a smart speaker, then grabbing a smart thermostat, and maybe throwing in a few smart bulbs, as well. 

The problem: Just because it’s all smart technology, doesn’t mean it all knows how to play well together. Especially as the market grows, you could end up with remotes and apps and switches for your different smart toys, and none of them actually being able to communicate or work well with each other. 

That’s the problem we’re here to help with. With a dedicated smart home controller, all your technology can work together in harmony. To really dive into the benefits of a controller, first let’s start by talking about what a smart home controller is. Then we’ll dig into how it can help take your smart home to the next level.

So, what is a Smart Home Controller?

Before we talk about how great they are, we should probably tell you what they are. 

A smart home controller is a central “hub” that brings all your myriad smart devices together. It helps them work with each other and communicate.

Another way to think of a controller is as the “brain” of your smart home. The different “body parts” of your smart home need one central device that keeps everything running smoothly and operating at its best – that’s your central smart home controller. 

The Benefits of a Smart Home Controller 

We already alluded to why in the intro, but if you are getting frustrated by the lack of communication between your disparate smart devices, then a smart home controller is just the device you are looking for. 

First off, smart home controllers are an elegant solution to the control problem that many smart homes run into. Instead of having to juggle between different devices and apps, your smart home controller can easily be controlled via one device, whether it’s an app, remote, or touch pad. Lights can be controlled by simple keypads, or you can use voice control to access any of your systems, as well. 

Smart home controllers are designed to give you the best and easiest control possible, which means no more switching apps when you want to turn the lights off to watch a movie, then switching apps back to turn the TV on and off. And they are made to work with as many devices as possible. To use some numbers to put things into perspective: The Control4 ecosystem can work with over 11,0000 different products – giving you loads of options across all the different areas of smart home tech. 

Aside from simplified control, a smart home controller also offers an interface that is consistent across all of your different control devices. This means that you have one, easy-to-use interface that can control everything -- your lights, security, outdoor pool and spa, audio, video, you name it. You can forget having to learn how to use a new interface for every system and instead have one sleek interface that covers every part of your smart home technology, no matter if you are controlling it from an app on your phone or a touch panel on the wall.  

Benefits Pt. II

Having control over your different smart home tech is a great benefit, but it isn’t the only benefit that you get when you upgrade to a smart home controller. 

You may make controlling your smart home more efficient, but you also make your smart home more energy efficient. Using different schedules, you can set different parts of your smart home to turn off when you aren’t using them. Many smart home controllers also tell you how you are using energy in your home and what parts of your home tend to draw the most energy, thus cost the most to operate every month. This can help you make informed scheduling decisions and bring down your energy costs. 

A smart home controller can also make adding new components to your smart home easier than ever. Are you looking to expand your home into new areas of smart technology, such as a smart TV, projector, receiver, alarm system, or security cameras? Having a controller makes it more likely that you’ll be able to add new components easily – but you’ll always want to make sure to confirm compatibility with us or the manufacturer, just to be sure. 

Unlike piecemeal smart home products, the complicated programming and set up of smart home controllers can only be handled by professionals who are trained to know what they are doing. That’s what we are here for! Give us a call at 479-365-2201 today and we’d be glad to help you get started with more advanced smart technology right away.