There is never a shortage of gadgets at CES and while it’s easy to be dazzled by the abundance of new shiny objects, one of my goals for this year’s show was to find smart home connected products that would serve a purpose. Sure, all products market themselves as being useful but what would I spend my money on? Here are 7 innovative products from CES 2017 that are worth having on your radar as they launch later this year.
ADT Pulse Voice integrates with Amazon Alexa
With a 140 year history of keeping homes secure thanks to “real people protecting people,” ADT Pulse allows homeowners to view and manage their home from smartphones, tablets, and computer and now issue voice commands to control your home anytime, anywhere thanks to the new ADT Pulse Voice. ADT Pulse Voice integrates with Amazon Alexa and works with Nest, Ring, Netgear, Arlo, Kwikset locks, and other IoT devices to arm and disarm your home security system, view real time video, control lights, thermostats, small appliances, and more. Take a look at how this works!
With any smart home connected product, there’s always a risk that each connected device could present a security risk but ADT has added pin codes for added security to arm and disarm your home when using voice commands with Alexa. ADT Pulse can be integrated into your existing ADT system, providing users with the familiarity of ADT but bringing their homes into the connected smart home era. For DIYers or vacation home owners who already have some connected smart home security in place, ADT Canopy is an a la carte flexible service that integrates with numerous smart home products (Samsung SmartThings, LG, Nest, etc.) to provide video backup storage for a month-to-month price and will work with devices like Samsung’s Gear watches.
Flex Wash + Flex Dry Laundry System by Samsung
It happens to all of us. The laundry baskets are empty and as a sense of accomplishment comes over us, a child comes with a last minute request for a favorite pair of pants, must-have hoodie, or stinky gym clothes that have to be washed. If you’ve ever wished you could pop a small load of wash in without having to run a load, Samsung’s Flex Wash and Flex Dry is for you. This new system allows flexibility and choices for users by combining top load and front load machines into one machine.
With two compartments in the Flex Wash washer, you can wash one load at a time, two loads at a time, or have a wash load start after another. The Flex Dry enables big bulky items to be dried in the large front loading compartment and delicates in the upper dryer that can be air dried at the same time. I love the flexibility and time saving methods that Flex Wash and Dry provide and the 6 cubic feet of space in the washer and 7 cubic feet in the dryer provides plenty of capacity to still do all of our family’s laundry but in a far more flexible way.
Family Hub 2.0 by Samsung Home Appliances
Last year when Samsung announced their Family Hub refrigerator, I immediately wanted to upgrade our aging fridge but hesitated knowing that version 2.0 would most likely be better. This year Samsung revealed Family Hub 2.0 with improvements that made me glad I waited. Family Hub 2.0 is now available in every French Door style that Samsung offers, meaning that consumers have more fridge choices that fit their budget, and features voice commands so you can simply tell your fridge to look up a recipe while you’re cooking instead of having to thumb through your cookbook to figure out exactly how much of an ingredient you need. Family Hub 2.0 aims to keep families connected via a touch screen serves as a great way to leave notes for your kids, stay up to date on your family’s schedule thanks to the calendar feature, stream favorite shows, listen to music, and more.
Cooktop Induction Oven from Panasonic
Tasty food in 30 minutes cooked in something other than an InstaPot?!? That’s the amount of time it took to roast chicken and vegetables that not only smelled delicious while cooking but was moist, flavorful, and truly delectable. For this demonstration, I took a ride on Las Vegas’ High Roller Ferris Wheel for the first time. We stepped in for a quick briefing about the Countertop Induction Oven ($599.99), set the timer and weight to cook the pieces of chicken along with the vegetables, enjoyed the view from above during the 30 minute revolution, and then sampled the results that made me a believer in this cooking technology. The Cooktop Induction Oven is currently available on Amazon.
If you’re looking for built-in appliances, take a look at my YouTube video showing Samsung’s built-ins showcased during their home appliance cooking event with Club des Chefs members, Daniel Bolud and Christopher Kristow
Helia by Soraa
What if your lights could wake you up light the natural sunlight and fade in the evening to mimic the natural course of a day? That’s what Helia by Soraa does. With science backing their light technology, Helia combines healthy and full spectrum LED lighting with an expandable network of smart home sensors for a intuitive, energy-efficient lighting system that brings the benefits of dynamic, natural sunlight indoors. Knowing that light impact sleep and health, Helia helps our circadian rhythm by mimicking the natural sunrise and sunset. This allows specialized cells in our eyes that respond to blue light wavelengths to synch our internal clocks by replicating the timing and visible spectrum of natural sunlight. I love that Helia works to adapts to your environment, based on your home’s sunrise and sunset times. Helia bulbs provide plenty of blue light in the morning to wake you up and during the day, museum-quality light makes your surroundings come alive, which is great news for me as someone who works at home. In the evening when my family is working on winding down towards sleep, Soraa’s patented BlueFree™ LED technology removes blue light completely, while retaining a beautiful, soft white color.
Philips Hue Luminaries
As the world’s leading connected light system, Philips Hue is adding a family of six Philips Lighting fixtures to their line beginning this spring. An overhead light, pendant-type lamp, as well as table lamps that use Philips Hue White Ambiance bulbs will allow you to place them anywhere in your home. Using your smartphone, tablet, smart watch, smart switch, or Philips Hue motion sensor, you can select the right shade of light based on your mood, routine, or activity. This system can also be controlled with Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit, Google Home, and also Bosch, Nest, Samsung SmartThings, and other smart home devices.
Robomow
What’s easier than asking your teen to mow the lawn? Investing in a Robomow ($499.99, out in March). Like a Roomba for your lawn (even though the company doesn’t refer to their product that way), Robomow is exactly what it sounds like- a robotic lawnmower for your lawn. Heavy duty steel blades work to cut and edge your lawn quickly and efficiently while the bagless system returns the clippings to the ground. Robomow provides complete lawn coverage for lawns of any shape and can be easily controlled by your smartphone for easy mowing.
Affiliate links included in this post. All opinions are my own. No compensation was received for this post or attendance at any of the events showcasing these products.
