On Smart Homes
Quora Question: What’s getting in the way of mass adoption of smart homes and smart home products?
I started in the “smart home” industry back around 1995, and compared to then, home automation is much more accessible and affordable already. As an example, Nest thermostats and wifi surveillance cameras are sold at Home Depot at a very affordable price point, whereas just 15 years ago I clearly remember doing proposals for centrally controlled thermostats and wireless internet enabled camera systems that were in the 5-figure range.
So, cost and ease of use are much less of an issue now, but there is one key thing that is going to limit adoption more than anything else. Adoption of universally recognized standards.
Imagine if Microsoft and Apple had their own version of HTML, so that some websites would only work with their operating systems, or if iPhones could only talk to other iPhones. That is the way many “smart home” systems work now, they are limited by design. It’s easier, and more profitable to make something proprietary than it is to adopt, or help formalize, open standards. However, long term open will win, and the first to move in that direction will be ahead of the curve.
The other big hurdle to wide-spread adoption, is actually being useful enough that people don’t mind both the expense and effort of learning something new.
I used to design and program Crestron and Lutron systems, and the number one thing that convinced people that they received value from their investment was that their life was simpler. Push one button and all of the lights adjust, or the home theater activates itself and switches everything to DVD mode, rather than having to press 20 buttons in the correct sequence, or walking around the house adjusting light switches 3 times a day, every day, for the next 20 years.
However, many of today’s mass marketed “smart home” devices don’t really make people’s lives that much simpler. How often do we adjust the thermostat, really? How much easier is it to press 5 buttons on a smart phone to turn off a few light switches that are less than 15′ from the couch? How much value is the customer really getting from the technology, compared to the investment of their time and money?
About 12 years ago I was referred to a client who wanted his home automation system audited. He asked me to check every function on every keypad, touchscreen and remote control in every room, and provide a quote for reprogramming the system from scratch. It was a large system, and he had a dispute with the installing dealer, and did not want to pay the final balance. Once I realized his intention was to find justifications for his stance, which he could then take to his attorney, I brought in someone from Crestron to help.
However, the real problem wasn’t his system, it’s that he spent over $1,000,000. on the system, and tolerated technicians in his home, too frequently, over several years, and didn’t see $1M of value in the end result. Yes, the touch screen remotes made it easier to watch TV, he didn’t have to walk around the house adjusting the lights, and there was a nice dedicated theater, but those three things could have been done for a lot less than $1M. The money spent and complication to his life wasn’t worth the end-result, in his mind.
If “smart home” technology can really, truly make a person’s life easier, they will spend the money and time required to adopt that technology into their life. I have seen it myself, many times, with customers who purchase higher-end systems. However, in my opinion, it may be a while longer before we get to that point with “smart home” technologies marketed to the average consumer…