Friday Feature: Connected Home Devices a Growing Trend
Connected home devices are trending in the rapidly expanding marketplace of smart gadgets.
Released just earlier this month, Apple’s iOS 10 features a new app specifically designed for smart home devices: aptly named Home. Home is the latest in the evolutionary development of Apple’s initial platform called HomeKit, and it integrates different smart-home accessories and products into a unified control app. (CNET published an extensive review of Home if you want to learn more.)
Consumers aren't the only ones talking about smart devices for the home; B2B and incentives groups are talking too.
Earlier this week, our merchandising manager Raul Garcia was featured in an Incentive Magazine article which explores the growing trend of incentive redemptions for connected home products. Garcia talks about redemptions for smart refrigerators here at Hinda, as well as the more modest home automation products like Google’s Nest.
The Nest Thermostat was actually named one of CNET’s 10 best smart home devices of 2016, along with a few security-themed products like a video doorbell, a smart alarm and a baby monitor. But the list isn’t all safety related — a connected cradle, a remote-controlled shade and the voice-activated Echo speaker all made CNET’s list as well.
CNET's list represents how diverse these new connected home devices can be, and the broad appeal these items can have for different generations. From security-minded homeowners to entertainment-minded younger millennials, there are smart devices that can appeal to all.
And the popularity of these connected home devices is expected to grow at a rate faster than smartphones or tablets, according to a 2015 report published by BI Intelligence. According to their forecast, from 2015-2019 consumer shipments of connected home devices will grow at a compound annual rate of 67 percent, totaling 1.8 billion (yes, billion) units shipped in 2019.