A smart home is a home that is equipped with technology to remotely control and automate household systems like lighting, doors, thermostats, entertainment systems, security alarms, surveillance cameras and other connected appliances. But it’s more than just remote controls. Smart home introduces artificial intelligence to transcend the remote controls and programmable settings that have been standard home features for the past several decades, to create a centralized, self-regulating home monitoring, control, and energy conservation ecosystem.

Home automation refers to technology installed in homes to remotely control and automate household systems like lighting, doors, heating & air conditioning, entertainment systems, security alarms, surveillance cameras and other connected appliances. The programmable thermostats, sprinkler systems, coffee makers, and entertainment systems that have been standard home features for decades can be considered home automation. But by today’s technological standards, the term home automation typically refers to a more advanced and complex set of components.

To make your home smart, all you need to do is combine smart components like doorbell cameras, security cameras, smart thermostats, door & window sensors, smoke detectors, and other home control devices into a unified network with a central control dashboard and an artificial intelligence algorithm. When you install a smart home platform like Vivint Smart Home Cloud, for example, managing your home gets significantly more convenient. With Vivint Smart Home Cloud, you’ll no longer need to switch between different home control apps or walk through the house flipping switches by hand.