Find the best smart home devices with our buying guides. Compare cameras, lights, plugs, and more to make the right choice.
The short answer: Arlo Pro 5S 2K if you want the best wire-free camera money can buy, and Blink Outdoor 4 if you want something that works without emptying your wallet every month. Everything else falls somewhere between those two. Outdoor smart cameras have one problem nobody talks about enough: the sticker price is a … Read more
The August Wi-Fi Smart Lock is the right call for renters and anyone who wants to keep their existing deadbolt – it sits on top of the interior thumb turn and handles everything from there. If you’re buying a new deadbolt anyway, the Schlage Encode Plus is worth the extra spend: it’s a complete deadbolt … Read more
If you want a reliable WiFi thermostat without paying ecobee prices, Honeywell Home delivers. The T9 is the pick for most people – room sensors, smart scheduling, works with Alexa and Google Home. If you’re deep in Apple HomeKit, though, read the HomeKit section before you buy. Spoiler: it’s complicated. Budget shoppers who just want … Read more
For most people, the Arlo Pro 5S 2K is the one to buy. It hits the sweet spot between image quality, wire-free convenience, and smart home compatibility – including HomeKit if that matters to you. Everything else in Arlo’s lineup is either a step down or overkill depending on your situation. That said, Arlo’s subscription … Read more
The E340 is the one to get. It shoots 4K on the main lens, has a second 1080p camera pointed downward to catch package thefts at ground level, and stores footage locally for free with a HomeBase. If you’re stuck on an older wired chime and want a simpler upgrade, the S330 is still solid … Read more
The Ring Floodlight Cam Wired Pro is the smart outdoor flood light most people should buy. It combines a genuine security camera with a 2,000-lumen floodlight, works without a subscription for basic motion alerts, and installs like any hardwired fixture. Everything else on this list fills a specific gap – color lighting, no-wire installs, budget … Read more
When buying a robot vacuum, there are some basic guidelines you need to keep in mind. Several types of robot vacuums are on the market, but only some will work with Homekit. For now, robot vacuums need Homebridge to make them work with Apple Homekit. None that I could find at this time had native … Read more
The HomeKit dimmable-bulb field looks nothing like it did three years ago. Half the brands that dominated the old buyer’s guides are either acquired, deprioritized, or quietly missing from Apple’s compatibility list. Matter and Thread have rearranged everything underneath, and the bulbs worth buying in 2026 mostly weren’t on the market in 2022. Below are … Read more