Popular Home Technologies for Luxury Residences

Mohit Gupta, Sr. Executive VP, Sales & Marketing, Piramal Realty What are the reasons for rise in demand for home automation? The consistent rise of disposable income for the urban middle-class consumer has led to a fundamental shift in their requirements. Owning a house with superior facilities and advanced technology while providing convenience is increasingly becoming a priority for consumers as it offers Safety and comfort. Today, consumers are opting for smart, connected, and energy-efficient homes that not only add value to their lifestyle but also offer energy efficiencies.  Digitally enabled homes are revolutionizing our lives in more ways than one. They are becoming a part of our day-to-day life. Over the years, smart home technology has evolved significantly, making it possible for homeowners to control and monitor their appliances even when they are away from home. With the rapid growth and expanding awareness on smart home technology, real estate developers have endless possibilities to explore in smart homes that transform the way we see the future of living.    Which are the home security technologies that are becoming popular? Innovations in digital video surveillance systems has changed the way we used to approach home security. Today’s high-tech security cameras offer homeowners peace of mind while they are out managing their businesses. Their valuable possessions would be much safer and could be monitored from anywhere through an app. With the smartphone notifications, remote accessibility has made it possible for people to keep a tab on their abode while they are away and make real-time decisions to ensure safety. Apart from allowing you to unlock and lock your door without using a key, most smart locks are connected to the internet via your home Wi-Fi allowing your house-help and others to enter the house without using a key. This dismisses the need to have multiple keys, which can be stressful as smart locks become beneficial, offering better security. Smart locks offer remote unlocking through Keypads, Biometrics, Swipe Cards and OTP’s ensuring control on who is entering your home. This technology can be integrated to send a notification on your phone when the doorknob is triggered, thus, having the option to limit people’s access and restricting them to enter during specific hours or days.   In terms of convenience which are the home automation systems most in demand? Adjusting curtains and shades for all the windows at your lavish home can be a task and might disturb the guilty pleasure of an extra nap on a weekend. Automated blinds and curtains can be customized to open and close across individual rooms automatically to the homeowner’s time preferences. Easily controlled by wall switches or panels, mobile devices, or voice command, these automated curtains / blinders are a must-have to maintain an ambient temperature and lighting within your apartment.  Good lighting is vital for creating a relaxing ambience at home. Whether to host a get-together or to decompress after a stressful day, one would not want to be blinded by glaring lights all evening. With intelligent light controls, lighting in the home can be controlled and adjusted through voice and an app for ambient lighting.  With all the smart devices around the home, one will also require a central hub to control them. To indulge in the comfort of smart homes, you need to integrate all the smart tech devices with a virtual assistant AI such as Alexa or Google Home hub to control the home’s lighting, electricity usage, security and much more. The rate at which homeowners are adopting these tech-enabled devices is astonishing, and before we know it, every new electronic device like televisions, air conditioners, geysers, Dishwashers, washing machines etc. at home will be operated remotely.