If you are going to automate your home and start buying smart devices, it is essential not to make mistakes. We are going to show you which are the most common scams and what you should keep in mind to avoid problems. It doesn’t matter if you are going to buy something cheap, such as a plug or a light bulb, or a much more sophisticated appliance that costs a lot more money; In all cases, it is important that you inform yourself very well.
What does it mean to be scammed when you start home automation? For example, they could sell you a device of poor quality that does not fulfill the functions you expect or that only serves you for a period of time and you have to buy a new one. The latter, in home automation, is quite common since technology advances quickly.
Avoid problems when home automation
Whenever you are going to buy something technological, it is important that you take into account certain recommendations to avoid making mistakes. You can apply this to any home automation device that you are going to configure in your home. You will avoid problems in the short term, but also in the long term.
Poor quality devices
Without a doubt, the main mistake when starting to home automation is buying poor quality devices. We can be attracted by interesting offers, by cheap products, but that can turn into a loss of money in the medium or long term. Careful with this. It is important that you carefully review the quality of what you are buying. You can always see tests on the Internet, read comments or ratings from other users. Don’t fall for the first cheap product you see, without first analyzing that brand or model and seeing that it is really going to be good.
On many occasions, we try to buy a very cheap device that works well for us, and nothing could be further from the truth. It is advisable to purchase products from recognized brands, or at least, ones that are recommended on the Internet because someone has previously used them and had a good experience. In the world of home automation, cheap is expensive. Furthermore, it is recommended that you not only have support for your official app, but also for home automation systems such as Home Assistant.
Devices that do not fulfill their function
Does the device you are going to buy really fulfill the function you expect? Another mistake is buying a device without fully informing ourselves about how it will work, what its characteristics are and seeing if it is worth making that investment or, on the contrary, it is better to opt for an alternative. Once again, informing yourself very well beforehand is essential. Check comments and ratings from other users, watch videos where they show what their functions are, check the specifications on official pages and do not trust only something specific that you have read on the Internet, as it could be misleading or a trap.
Not taking scalability into account
This is a mistake. Maybe you don’t want to make a big investment in home automation all at once, but rather go little by little. You may buy a device or a system, with the idea of ​​later adding more devices and getting more out of your smart home. But of course, if you buy products that are not scalable, that are very limited, you could have problems in the future. Our advice is that you check very carefully if something you buy is scalable. What does this mean? It means that you will be able to add more device when you need it. For example, maybe you buy an alarm system for your home and want to add a camera, a motion sensor, etc.
Of course, scalability is also closely related to centralizing home automation in a system like Home Assistant. If the manufacturer you have purchased does not have other devices that another does, then you will have to use two different applications. Over time, if you have purchased several devices from different manufacturers, it is clear that it is highly recommended to set up a system like Home Assistant, in order to have complete compatibility with all brands and not depend on the same manufacturer. To do this, it is essential that the devices we buy have a local API, that is, that we do not depend completely on the cloud to use it.
Having outdated devices
Another mistake is having outdated devices. It is if you buy an old device, with a technology that is not even compatible with other more modern devices, but also have it with outdated firmware. This could lead to security problems, functionality problems and common failures. The ideal is that you buy products that are current and that are really useful in your daily life. Be careful about having outdated things, as you may have difficulty taking advantage of other devices you may pair.
For example, a home automation device manufacturer that is doing really well is Shelly, as it provides monthly updates to all its products, adding new features, correcting errors detected by the community, etc. It is appreciated that there are manufacturers like this, since we will be sure that their products work perfectly and without any problems at the software level.
As you can see, when buying home automation devices, it is essential that you be careful and purchase guaranteed products. This will help you achieve optimal performance and not get scammed. It is also essential that you think about setting up a centralized home automation system, such as Home Assistant, in order to have everything under the same platform and not have dozens of applications (one for each brand of device).
