Retail Treat Get the Drop

Category

Smart Home

Smart-home gear that solves real problems without turning your house into a part-time IT job.

5 picks

Philips Hue Smart Light Starter Kit

Smart Buy

$90–$200 depending on kit

Philips Hue Smart Light Starter Kit

The smart lighting system that most people should start with. Mature ecosystem, excellent app, voice assistant compatible, endlessly expandable.

Not exciting to recommend, which is a kind of endorsement. It just works, reliably, every time.
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Lutron Caseta Smart Dimmer Starter Kit

Smart Buy

$100–$120

Lutron Caseta Smart Dimmer Starter Kit

A smart dimmer switch that fixes the actual wall switch experience. Works with normal bulbs. Annoyingly reliable.

Not beautiful, but so dependable it borders on boring. That is exactly what smart home infrastructure should be.
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Aqara Smart Video Doorbell G4

Best Find

~$120

Aqara Smart Video Doorbell G4

A smart video doorbell with HomeKit Secure Video support, no mandatory subscription for core features, and a battery or wired install.

For HomeKit households that do not want to fund Ring's subscription business model indefinitely.
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Eve Eve Energy Smart Plug

Smart Buy

~$40

Eve Eve Energy Smart Plug

A smart plug with energy monitoring and Matter/Thread support. Makes dumb devices smart without drama.

The smart plug to buy if you care about Apple Home, energy data, and not handing your outlet to a cloud service.
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Nanoleaf 4D Screen Mirror + Lightstrip Kit

Useful Toy

$100–$130

Nanoleaf 4D Screen Mirror + Lightstrip Kit

A TV/monitor backlight kit that mirrors what is on screen in real time. It is ambient lighting for people who actually use their TV.

Not necessary. Still worth wanting. This is Retail Treat territory.
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