Review: Samsung SmartThings Hub

Today I'm going to take a look at the Samsung SmartThings hub.  As the smart home market has heated up over the last couple of years, companies have all been trying to get a piece of the market.  This has led to a bunch of different wireless communication protocols being used.  With a smart hub you can have pretty much a one stop shop for connecting all your devices in one place.  The Samsung SmartThings hub happens to be one of the more popular choices for smart hubs.  I have been wanting to pick up a hub for some time now and was waiting for the right price.  Well happened to walk into Best Buy last week and see them on sale for $49.99 down from the normal $99.99 price.

Review: Insignia Wi-Fi Smart In-Wall Switch - Updated

So I picked up a couple of Insignia Wi-Fi Smart In-Wall switches from Best Buy a couple of weeks ago and I finally got around to installing one of them. Why did I select these switches compared to some of the other ones.  First was price at a $29.99 price point they were the cheapest option I found and second was the fact that these switches did not require a hub.  Installing one of these switches does require working with the electrical wires in your house, overall most people should be able to follow the install instructions, but if you are not comfortable working with wiring then I would recommend hiring a professional to install them.  Let's get started by taking a look at the product and some of my initial thoughts.

Review: Google Home Mini

When the Google Home Mini was introduced with a price point of $49 I was ecstatic that Google had introduced a smart speaker at a price point that was comparable to the Echo Dot.  Then things got even better and they dropped the price to just $29 for the holiday season.  While this is a temporary price drop and the price is scheduled to go back up to $49 on the 1st of January it is still a very affordable option for a smart speaker. I already purchased two of the original Google Homes and have been impressed with how far the Google Home has come in just the first year.