Smart Home
9 Articles
Smart Leak Detectors Near Your AC Unit: Overkill, or the $40 Fix That Prevents a $4,000 Problem?
Is a $40 smart leak detector overkill, or cheap insurance against a $4,000 AC repair bill? Bob Vila, Tom Silva, and Alec Paggie debate…
Matter and HomeKit: Why Your New Thermostat Might Not Talk to Your Other Smart Devices
Upgraded your thermostat only to find it won’t talk to your other smart home devices? The culprit is often a protocol mismatch, and the…
Geofencing Thermostats: The Feature That Saves Energy Without You Lifting a Finger
Geofencing thermostats promise to cut HVAC waste by sensing when you've left the house — but does the technology actually deliver, or does it…
Smart Vents Promise Room-by-Room Comfort — Do They Actually Work?
Smart vents promise to fix hot and cold rooms with a tap on your phone — but do they actually deliver? Jim McNair, Emily…
Smart Home Security: Can Someone Hack Your Thermostat?
Could a hacker really mess with your thermostat? Mark G. Zandi, Jesse K. Yoder, and Rachael L. Glass explore how smart HVAC systems create…
Smart Air Quality Monitors: The $50 Gadget That Tells You What's Actually in the Air You're Breathing
For about $50, a smart air quality monitor promises to reveal what's really in your home's air—but is that data actually actionable? Chris McGowan,…
Home Office Comfort: Why the Room You Work From Home In Is Always the Wrong Temperature (And How to Fix It)
With 73% of remote workers reporting inconsistent comfort in their home offices, why does that one room always feel too hot or too cold?…
Buying a Bigger AC Won't Cool Your House Faster — Here's the Sizing Mistake Everyone Makes
Is a bigger AC unit really the fix for a hot home? HVAC technician John Hall, energy analyst Lydia Martinez, and building scientist Richard…