A Word on Gifting Smart Home Products
Most of our gift guides don’t require a lengthy introduction, but smart home products are slightly different from other tech products like Bluetooth speakers or pair of touchscreen gloves.
First, you must consider how the recipient will use the devices. Giving your brother a pack of smart security cameras you know he’ll jump at the chance to set up is a lot different than giving your grandmother a video doorbell that requires her to use additional equipment like a smartphone or a smart display. She might love it if you gift her both together and set them up, but it’s something to consider.
Second, and related to that grandmother dilemma, it helps to know what (if any) smart home gear the gift recipient already has. If you know your friend is all in on the Alexa platform or the Google Home platform, it helps you pick out gifts that will mesh with their gear.
The same goes for other sub-platforms within the smart lighting. If you’ve heard them raving about how much they like their Nanoleaf or Philips Hue lights, buying them something from those companies is a slam dunk.
If you know they have smart home stuff but are unsure what platform they use or what gear they have, it’s easy to find out. Start a conversation with them about smart homes and ask them if they recommend the gear they have.
We can’t speak for everybody, but around here, we love talking about our smart home gear and will happily rattle off everything under the sun in our homes and what we think about it.
Smart Home Speakers
Smart home speakers are an all-around slam-dunk when gifting smart home gear. They have been, and remain, the most popular smart home product category, and for good reason.
They’re inexpensive, fun to use, and who doesn’t like on-demand music and voice-based smart home integration parked anywhere they want it in their home?
Smart Displays
Smart displays are just about as popular as smart speakers, and for a good reason. Combine the interface of a small tablet with a smart speaker, and you have an all-in-one station for everything from listening to music to watching cooking videos in the kitchen.
Smart Lights
While smart speakers and smart displays might be the most common smart devices around, they are followed closely by smart lights. And when it comes to flashy fun, you really can’t beat smart lights. From mood lighting to syncing the colors to music to changing the lights for the holidays, you really can’t beat the wow factor of smart lighting.
Smart Security Cameras
Installing security cameras used to be a huge hassle, and you wouldn’t give somebody something requiring them to hire a professional to drill holes in their home and run cable. But now you can get smart cameras that run for months on a single charge, no cable pulling required.
RELATED: How to Mount Your Smart Cameras Without Drilling
Smart Plugs and Energy Monitors
Smart plugs might seem like, well, not a very exciting gift compared to a sleek smart speaker or a cool set of smart light panels. But it’s all about knowing your recipient and smart plugs and related accessories can be a perfect gift for a person who would like to make an existing thing in their home (like a table lamp or a window fan) smart.
They’re also a great gift for the curious folks on your list who love knowing how much a certain thing was used or how much power it used in a given month. And they’re great to have around during the holiday season!
Looking for more gift ideas? Take a look at our other gift guides:
25 Gifts Your Techy Friends Actually Want in 2022 The 25 Best Geeky Stocking Stuffers for 2022 The 25 Best Gifts for Cutting the Cord for 2022 The 25 Best Tech Gifts Under $100 for 2022 25 Gifts for the iPhone User in Your Life for 2022 25 Gifts for the Android User in Your Life for 2022 25 Awesome Board Game Stocking Stuffers for Under $25 in 2022
