Tag: technology

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The pros and cons of smart home tech

home tech

Decades of futurists dreamed about and designed their vision of a “smart home” intended to make living easier and more comfortable.  The 1933 World’s Fair envisioned that all homes would have helicopter pads; the 1962 World’s Fair highlights an electronic central brain in the home; the 1964 World’s Fair was about computerizing the home with time saving appliances.  And of course, who can forget Disney’s “House of Tomorrow?”

Retro-futurism seems almost cartoonish today, much like watching an episode of the Jetson’s.  However, like the retro-futuristic home, today’s smart home is meant to make life easier.  Filled with devices and appliances that are connected to the internet, remote access to your home’s systems and appliances is becoming increasingly commonplace.  There is an increasing ability for you to control your home, even when you are not there.  You can remotely monitor cameras in your home, change thermostat settings, and even program the DVR.

Realtor Magazine (Homes Are Getting Smarter, More Connected; January 09, 2014) reported that smart home tech is a growing sector showcased at the annual Consumer Electronics Show.  Besides the growing number of devices that can be remotely controlled, there is also a trend for appliances to send text messages and email.  Although smart home technology today is about producing individual gadgets that are programmable and controlled by smart phone apps, it appears that there is a trend toward integrating devices as well.  As smart home technology advances, home appliances and systems will be integrated with each other allowing them to communicate with each other; which expected to make the home function more efficiently.

All this technology is great, but there appears to be a downside as well.  Although there have been warnings about hacking smart home devices for a number of years, the recent report of hacked smart refrigerators that sent spam has attracted and focused attention on the hackers’ ability to take control of a smart home (phys.org/news/2014-01-cyberattack-hacked-refrigerator.html).  A Forbes article published July 2013 (When ‘Smart Homes’ Get Hacked: I Haunted A Complete Stranger’s House Via The Internet) discussed the ease of identifying and gaining access to smart home devices via the internet. Security specialist indicated that they were able to access and control smart devices (such as lighting, thermostats, garage doors, and security systems); more importantly, they were able to access personal data (including names) and device IP addresses from these devices as well.  The consensus among security specialists about protection from such intrusions is to basically stay “unplugged.”

While we wait for the perfect smart home, we can continue dreaming of the home of the future.  “1999 A.D.” (A 1967 Ford-Philco production; the video featuring Wink Martindale is posted above) is one of the best retro-future depictions of a home that incorporates technology considered to be state-of-the-art by today’s standards, as well as technology that we have yet to perfect.  Central to the home is a computer that collects and maintains information from all home devices, including biometric data that is sent to the medical center for analysis.  3D television, a “home post office” (email), push button meals, and shopping from a home computer is standard in this home.  As technology advances, there seems to be a post-modern sentiment exclaimed in the video that may ring true, “…if the computerized life extracts a pound of flesh, it has some interesting rewards…”

By Dan Krell
Copyright © 2014

Original published at https://dankrell.com/blog/2014/03/14/the-pros-and-cons-of-smart-home-tech/

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Disclaimer. This article is not intended to provide nor should it be relied upon for legal and financial advice. Readers should not rely solely on the information contained herein, as it does not purport to be comprehensive or render specific advice. Readers should consult with an attorney regarding local real estate laws and customs as they vary by state and jurisdiction. Using this article without permission is a violation of copyright laws.

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Future depictions of our homes by viewing the past

How we describe ancient homes gives a glimpse into how we will be depicted.

modern designIf you’ve ever read the accounts of archeologists describing the homes and lifestyles of the ancients, it might make you wonder how future archeologists might describe how we lived in our homes. Would their description early twenty-first century living be accurate, or would their hypothesis fit their conception of their future homes and lifestyles?

Reading the accounts of archeologist Ralph Solecki in a July 11th item in the Wall Street Journal (Archeologist Ralph Solecki Recalls His Neanderthal Cave Discovery) about his excavations in Iraq, a description of a Neanderthal home site emerged. It appears that life and death revolved around a 3,000 square foot cave. Described to be roomier than the average single family home, it sounds as if the cave may have had futuristic style with its large flexible space and a 20 foot ceiling. Of course, the cave was engineered by nature and may have served as a shelter among other things; it appears as if the Neanderthal cave was where life and death was centered.

The home of modern humans seems to have evolved to encompass life by incorporating necessary spaces for various functions; such as separating areas for food (kitchen, dining room), sleeping, and congregating (living room, family room).

Technology has also played a major role in home development and design. Indoor plumbing and recent advances in fiber optic communications are examples of features and amenities that have been included as technology has advanced. Additionally, technology has also allowed for high density living; up until the late nineteenth century, building materials and techniques may not have allowed for the high rise building.

Lifestyle has been the driving force of home design since the industrial revolution and emergence of the middle class. By comparing homes built during various modern eras, you can observe changes in how we lived over the last one hundred years; the pre-war era home is different from today’s two-story modern house (which most homebuyers today consider a colonial). Today’s homes are increasingly informal and relaxed. It might have been thought to be ill-mannered to see the interior of the kitchen from other rooms during the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century; however, today it is common to have the kitchen open to other rooms. Additionally, the average home size has increased significantly through the years, increasing from an average size of about 980sf during the 1950’s to over 2,400sf in today’s average home.

High density living has also become progressively comfortable as well, which has become increasingly attractive to many who seek care free living. Since the first high rise, technology has introduced elevators, air conditioning, and other necessary amenities to today’s lifestyle – such as fitness and business centers.

Homes will continue to transform according to our needs and technological advances. Future homes will undoubtedly offer “flexible” spaces that can be used for various purposes, depending on your lifestyle. Rooms may be used for entertainment and work centers, and also allow for informal dining. It may be possible that the kitchen may become a flexible space as well, as we cook less in our homes.

As future homes could become the open space with 20ft ceiling, it may be that future archeologists would be more familiar with Neanderthal home than ours. And just as we have characterized Neanderthal living as “difficult,” future archeologists might also describe our lifestyle as “difficult” when they excavate our homes.

By Dan Krell
Copyright © 2013

This article is not intended to provide nor should it be relied upon for legal and financial advice. Using this article without permission is a violation of copyright laws.

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The next real estate technology breakthrough

by Dan Krell © 2013
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DanKrell.com

Real estate predictionsBesides face to face meetings, the telephone was the only way real estate agents could communicate with their clients up until about 1990.  By the mid 1990’s the fax machine was a fixture in every real estate office and was a major method to send home listings and contract addenda to clients.  By the housing boom in 2004, large numbers of home buyers turned to the internet to get the latest home listings before other buyers; and during that time, many real estate brokers and agents were taking to the internet finding rudimentary uses for email marketing.

Much like the advances in previous technologies that made the “business” of real estate easier, current advances also seek to make the process increasingly convenient and efficient.  Before the internet was widely used, the increasing abilities of fax transmissions made communication faster and more accurate.  And even though there has not been a major technological advent since the internet, the internet experience has much improved due to the exponential advances in computing power as well as widespread wi-fi access and increasing bandwidth.

Ten years ago, most home buyers and sellers used their desktop computer to access the internet; mobile computing was somewhat in its infancy.  Advances in mobile technologies, including smart phones, have untethered home buyers and sellers; they now have access to real estate information at their finger tips any time of day, wherever there is a signal.  Additionally, real estate websites can now send listing alerts via text messages.   Technically known as “short messaging service” or sms, texting is not only allowing  the “set and forget” convenience of the home search, but allows anyone to communicate contract details and showing instructions with minimal effort.

The internet as a platform has really changed the home buying and selling experience.  Home buyers and sellers don’t have to wait for their agent to send listing information; and because they don’t have to meet with their agents to sign documents, fax machines have basically become obsolete.

Electronic signing is a technology that is becoming increasingly popular, especially for those who have busy schedules.  The technology allows a person to review and electronically sign a document it via the internet.   Too bad for Fed-Ex, as e-signing has all but eliminated the need to send packages of documents to be signed; most notably, the use of electronic signatures has made the process easier for international home buyers and sellers.

It might seem as if technology is not only allowing consumers to conduct the business of real estate with increasing convenience and efficiency, but also lessening the reliance on real estate professionals.  Ten years ago, most home buyers relied solely on their real estate agent for home listings.  Today, however, a majority of home buyers search the internet for home listings and public information.

However, as information is increasingly available, real estate professionals have become even more relied upon to decipher and provide perspective to the information that consumers are accessing.  A real estate agent’s role is continually changing from the information “gate-keeper” to information analyst.

So, I don’t expect real estate agents to be replaced by androids or Star-Trekesque holo-decks in ten years time; however, new technologies will continue to make the home buying and selling process easier and increasingly efficient.  But, who knows, maybe one day the holo-deck could allow buyers and sellers, who are thousands of miles apart, to attend settlement together.

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This article is not intended to provide nor should it be relied upon for legal and financial advice. This article was originally published the week of June 17, 2013 (Montgomery County Sentinel). Using this article without permission is a violation of copyright laws. Copyright © 2013 Dan Krell.

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