The fact that Bill Gates largely popularized the smart home craze from 1995 onward doesn't necessarily mean consumers have to possess Gates' gargantuan wealth to get in on home automation anymore.
Smart home technology (aka domotics) has become more accessible for the common buyer as it has become steadily cheaper over the years.
Home automation — the interconnection of various devices in one's house to optimize security, comfort and energy expenditure — is no longer merely for those living in an unforeseeable future or the very rich.
Greater connectivity through the everyday use of devices such as smartphones and tablets has also created a recent groundswell of interest in domotics.
"The pricing market for home automation has come down to a point where it's no longer a rich man's paradise," says Tommy Moeller, owner of @Home Concepts home automation.
Moeller explains that whereas a few years ago, a basic smart home set-up might have run a buyer a minimum of $4,000, these days the same system can be purchased for as little as $1,500.
Mobile device and touchscreen technology is making domotics cheaper, as well.
Trey Hellums, president of Dominion Design & Integration, reports that the same touchscreen technology employed a few years ago for $2,000-3,000 can now be garnered for between $400-500.
Although it may not seem like much of a change, making your house "smart" also means saving on your energy bill and other quotidian concerns such as alarms and thermostats that can be more cheaply handled automatically.
With the house monitoring itself via its interconnected devices that work to determine home temperature, lighting and the like, accidentally leaving the TV on before leaving on a long trip is no longer problem, for example.
As smart-home technology becomes cheaper and increasingly more accessible over the next few years, watching the rise of the industry will be a treat for anyone interested in technology, home comfort/safety and just saving a few bucks.
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