If you’re interested in making your home smarter a video doorbell should be high on your list. But which one? It can get complicated but this guy lays it out pretty clear. Bear in mind these are battery doorbells and not the kind that connect to your existing doorbell wiring. But if you have an Echo Show device, which I featured in a previous post, some of these will pop right up on it when someone rings the bell. If not it will still pop up on your phone.
Smart Home Hub
On a previous post I showed you a very inexpensive security camera. That camera can be easily viewed on your smart phone. But there is another way also. With one of these Amazon Echo Show devices. If you don’t already have an Echo Dot or any type of Alexa powered device, then you should really look into one. An Echo Dot is a fairly inexpensive personal assistant device. It can do a multitude of things to help simplify your life. With the Echo show however, you have a screen. So you can do many more things. One of those things is viewing your security cameras and the Wyze Cam I wrote about earlier will connect to this in a snap. Just say “Alexa show me the driveway cam” and voilà, there it is on the screen. Of course the Echo Show does many more things like controlling your smart lights, smart locks and the many, many things you see in this video. If you’re thinking about making your home “smarter”, one of these devices is a good way to start. They’re not complicated to set up and they come in a variety of screen sizes. Check them out at amazon.com.
Security Camera
I’ve been using Wyze cams around my house for the last few years. For the price I don’t think they can be beat. The night vision on this V3 is unbelievable. If you’re new to home security this is a great way to get started. These cameras are available on the Wyze website, Amazon and I’ve even seen them in Home Depot. Setup is super simple. All you need is WiFi, a cell phone and the Wyze app. You can’t go wrong for $20 with this.
Kevin Hicks 