HearthwireSmart home kit decided by numbers

Smart home

How to choose

The decisions that actually change what you end up with.

1 guides

Woman holding a white digital thermostat towards the camera, screen showing room temperature 25.5 Celsius — A room unit like this reports the current temperature and signal strength alongside the programmed schedule.Photo: Shixart1985 · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons · Open source page

Smart lock cylinder with fingerprint-reader keypad, three RFID key cards and a phone app, on white

How to choose

Choosing smart home devices that still work in five years

The radio, the hub and the support window decide whether a smart home survives five years. Here is how to read all three before you buy anything.

Updated 3/11/2026 · 10 min

Photo: Unknown authorUnknown author · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons