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Ambient Computing: What is it?
Ambient computing is underlying a lot of our technology today, but what is it?
Devices all around us are getting smarter, and part of that perceived intelligence is the fact that so many of them are practically autonomous. If you have a Google Pixel, for example, you'll be familiar with features like Now Playing that just run in the background without any input. It's essentially invisible tech.
You can now generate AI art on your TV with a Raspberry Pi
Raspberry Pi 4 can act as an AI art generator device. You can use your voice to generate those images.
One of the great uses of Raspberry Pi is helping you build home assistants that can enhance your life in many ways. The latest one that caught our attention is DevMiser's open-source project called Lumina, which uses Raspberry Pi 4 to generate AI artwork and automatically displays it on TVs.
This holiday season, Aqara is offering up to 25% off some of its products between the 11th and 17th of December. If you or a loved one want to make your home a little smarter, then these Aqara products are a great way to do exactly that.
Don't miss out! Grab this Chamberlain Smart Garage Control for 42% off this Cyber Monday
You can buy the Chamberlain Smart Garage Control at a mammoth discount thanks to Cyber Monday
Cyber Monday always promises deals galore, offering an incredible opportunity to buy the product you always wanted at a mouth-watering discounted price. And if that product is a Chamberlain Smart garage controller, you're in luck! Amazon currently has a major price drop, helping you save as much as 42% off the original price. This controller is usually priced at $30 on Amazon, but this rare discount brings it down to just $17.48. However, this is an extremely limited-time deal. Once a certain amount is claimed, the deal is over, so you'll want to pick one up fast.
Embrace the keyless lifestyle with advanced home security from Aqara
This post is sponsored by Aqara.
If you’re still using a physical key to unlock the front door of your home, it’s time to consider how a smart lock can improve your life. If your vehicle uses an RFID fob—unlocking its doors when you stand nearby—then you’re already familiar with how convenient it is to ditch the old-school key. The Aqara Smart Lock U100 is a hyper-secure user-friendly option that will level up the safety of your home and make your comings and goings a breeze.
I'm making my home smarter with these 3 Prime Day deals
Building a useful smart home can be expensive, but I've started the process with these fantastic Prime Day deals.
The idea of having a smart home has been around for a while, and brands like Apple HomeKit, Google Nest, and Amazon Alexa have all tried to make smart homes feel like a necessity. However, smart homes are far from ubiquitous in 2023, partially due to cost. Smart home products can be expensive, and sometimes you need a lot of them to start seeing the utility of a smart home. Some smart home products also require power tools or electrical wiring to install, which makes a smart home inaccessible to many people. I've avoided both of those obstacles by getting my smart home started during Amazon's Prime Big Deal Days sale, and you can start making your home smarter too with these three deals.
How to set up and use a HomeKit accessory on iOS and iPadOS
Once you set up a HomeKit-enabled smart accessory, you can easily control it using Siri or the Home app on any of your Apple devices.
HomeKit-enabled accessories are smart devices you can add to and control using the Apple Home app. And once you set one up using your new iPhone or iPad, you get to customize its functions through any of your compatible Apple devices, including the Apple Watch and Mac. That's not to mention you could ask Siri on your iPhone 14 Pro Max or HomePod to enable, disable, or control the HomeKit accessory in a hands-free manner. Whether you're on iOS 17, iPadOS 17, or an older OS version, the process to do so is the same. All you have to do is follow the steps we've listed below.
Add some serious smarts to your garage door with this $19 accessory
Keep tabs on your garage door from anywhere with myQ's Chamberlain smart garage controller
We're now on the back half of Amazon's Prime Day two-day event, but the deals keep rolling in. While we've been focusing heavily on PC accessories and full-built computers — including the best Prime Day laptop deals — there are plenty of smart home gadgets to check out.
Kasa's top-rated outdoor smart plugs are only $14 with these Prime Day deals
Keep your string lights connected with deals on these savvy plugs
Amazon Prime Day has arrived, so it's time to take advantage of huge deals and discounts on your favorite gadgets and gizmos. Smart plugs aren't always the first thing we reach for when it comes to sale shopping (typically, earbuds, laptops, and TVs occupy our carts), but just because they aren't flashy doesn't mean you should pass up the opportunity to stock up on these small but mighty tools. Kasa offers smart plugs are a water-resistant way to connect outdoor electronics, like string lights, with a bunch of bonus features, including long-range Wi-Fi, voice control, and scheduling tools. There are also options for in-home use that can power appliances with Alexa, Apple HomeKit, and Google Assistant compatibility. We've rounded up the best deals on Kasa smart plugs for Prime Day so that you can upgrade your everyday objects for less.
Save 61% off this fantastic Amazon Echo Dot bundle that includes the Kasa Smart Plug Mini
An incredible Echo Dot bundle that's only available for a limited time.
Amazon makes some of the best smart home products available, and its revamped Echo Dot is no exception. The compact speaker offers incredible sound, is powered by Alexa, and best of all, it doesn't cost a lot of money. While the speaker normally retails for $50, this bundle drops the price to $28 and also includes a Kasa Smart Plug Mini for free. So if you've been looking for a simple and easy solution to give your home some smarts, this is going to be an excellent bundle for you.
Which music services are supported on the HomePod?
Apple's HomePod 2 and HomePod Mini are two excellent smart speakers for iPhone users. Which music streaming services do they support, though?
Apple's HomePod 2 and HomePod Mini are two excellent smart speakers for iOS users. So if you recently bought a new iPhone, such as the iPhone 14 Pro Max, then you may want to invest in one of them. Though considering many users heavily rely on these devices for music streaming, you must be wondering what services they support. Below you will find what you need to know about supported music streaming services on the HomePod 2 and HomePod Mini.
Ring's Battery Doorbell Plus offers wide FOV, higher resolution, and long battery life
Ring's stepping up its battery-powered doorbell camera with its latest release, offering numerous improvements over its previous versions.
Ring has been producing smart home products for quite some time, offering a wide variety of products like doorbell cameras, outdoor cameras, indoor cameras, alarms, and more. So while a new doorbell camera from the company might not sound all that exciting, its latest model, the Battery Doorbell Plus, actually offers a number of improvements over its predecessor, making it a worthwhile upgrade or great new purchase for someone looking to secure their home.
How to listen to Apple Podcasts on the Amazon Echo
Listening to Apple Podcasts on an Amazon Echo device isn't as straightforward as doing so on a HomePod speaker.
The Amazon Echo is a great smart speaker for those not fully invested in Apple's ecosystem. Thanks to its cross-platform support, users with both iOS and Android phones can take advantage of it. And unlike Apple's HomePod, you can download skills on it to further integrate it into the services and apps you actively depend on. This means you can rely on an Amazon Echo speaker to listen to Apple Podcasts. You don't even have to settle for third-party clients since Apple Podcasts is available as an official skill.
Lenovo's ThinkSmart View Plus is a 27-inch display with 4K camera, sound bar, runs Android and costs $2,345
A monitor purpose-built for Microsoft Teams featuring a 4K camera, four-microphone array, sound bar and costs a little over $2,000.
Ahead of Mobile World Congress next month, Barcelona is hosting another well-known trade show, the Information Systems Europe (ISE) 2023, which is touted as the "largest AV systems integration show in the world." The annual event is taking place over the next four days, and as you might expect, there are some interesting products being announced.
Apple is looking to take your money and control your home with new smart home projects
Apple is looking to compete with Amazon and Google, and will release new products in the smart home segment.
This week has been full of surprises, especially if you're a fan of Apple and its products, as the company announced new MacBook Pro laptops, a Mac Mini, and a HomePod. While it appears that it's done releasing new hardware for the time being, a new report has surfaced, with news of Apple's ambitions in the smart home segment.
Samsung unveils a new smart home hub with wireless charging built-in and quick access to routines
Samsung's SmartThings Station delivers ease of use, activating routines with the click of a button, and can charge your favorite devices wirelessly.
CES 2023 is in full stride in Las Vegas, and we're covering all the news coming from the show floor and press releases, which means plenty of new announcements from some of the biggest companies in tech. Today, Samsung announced the SmartThings Station, a smart hub that also doubles as a wireless charging pad.
Nanoleaf expands its RGB lighting prowess into new products at CES
Nanoleaf already offers some of the most unique smart lights on the market, and it is only expanding that catalog at CES 2023 this week.
These days it seems that smart lights are a dime a dozen. But Nanoleaf has always stood out with its unique approach to the type and style of lighting fixtures it offers. If you've seen wall panel lights with vibrant colors and seamless transitions between colors in your favorite YouTube or gamer's videos, there's a good chance Nanoleaf makes them. With CES 2023 kicking off this week, it only makes sense that the company would have something new to show off — and does it ever. Nanoleaf is unveiling new products and updates of some existing ones to give smart lighting fans even more to be excited about in 2023.
Act fast! Amazon's best smart display is still at its lowest price for Black Friday weekend
Amazon is also offering six months of free subscription to Amazon Music Unlimited for Prime members who're yet to try it.
The Echo Show 10 stands out from the rest of the smart displays in Amazon's lineup, and it's currently available at its lowest price for Black Friday. That's right, you can grab the 3rd gen Echo Show 10 right now with a massive 32% discount, bringing its price from $250 down to $170. This is the lowest price we've seen for the Echo Show 10, so this is one of the best times to buy it. Additionally, Amazon is also offering six months of free subscription to Amazon Music Unlimited for Prime members who're yet to it.
Get festive with these last minute Black Friday deals on Philips Hue Lights
These Philips Hue lights are rarely discounted, so grab them while you can.
Nothing screams holidays like some festive lighting, so you might want to consider picking up some lights for your home or for your Christmas decorations. If you want to ditch regular bulbs with some smart light bulbs then there are some good discounts to be had on Philips Hue lights right now. These lights normally cost a pretty penny and they're rarely discounted, so Black Friday might be the best time to start your Philips Hue light collection.
This half-price LG C1 Series 65-inch OLED TV is the best Black Friday TV deal you’ll find
Hard to believe it's 52% off the regular price
Every Black Friday there seems to be a TV deal that trumps all the rest, and I think we might have already found it. At least for those who want an enormous 65-inch screen that can handle equally as well movies and TV as it can gaming. To name a few of its shining features, the LG C1 Series OLED Smart TV has a 4K UHD panel with 120Hz refresh rate, Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, HDR10, NVIDIA G-Sync, AMD FreeSync Premium, and HDMI 2.1.