Design

premium sound system

Premium Sound Systems as Part of Home Automation

Are you considering upgrading your whole-house sound system? Like any other technology, sound systems become increasingly advanced as time goes on. In a contemporary automated home, a premium sound system is essential.

Here we consider the added benefits that a sound system as part of your home automation can bring, as well as identify the best manufacturers when it comes to high-quality, whole-house sound.

Remotely Controlled Sound System

Your smartphone, PC, or tablet could be used to control every aspect of the sound in your home. Whether you want to switch tunes, alter the volume, or enhance the bass, with a whole-house system, all the alterations to your sound can be completed on a device. It’s also possible to control your sound system when you’re on the move – if you want a specific tune playing when you arrive home, you can use your smartphone to adjust your home sound system wherever you are.

The Same Music in Every Room

Particularly when you’re entertaining, having the same tune playing in each room lets you set the party ambiance quickly and easily. With a high-grade system, the speakers are carefully placed in each room to get optimal results – this ensures great sound in every room.

Different Tunes in Each Room

If the children want one sort of music whilst you prefer the news or a different genre, an in-house system can accommodate your needs.

No Wires or Mess

Whole-house systems that are installed as part of an automated home are carefully installed in each room. Any wires or cables are concealed, and the speakers are often set into the walls to reduce clutter. The result is an awesome sound that plays as if by magic!

The inconspicuous nature of an automated, whole-house system makes it a perfect solution for beautifully decorated period properties, or minimalist interiors where tech needs to work perfectly, but invisibly.

Have Access to an Enormous Collection of Music

Using a high-quality sound system gives you access to a range of different streaming options, as well as the chance to stream the radio, a movie, or television. If you want a particular recording of a piece, you can usually get it using Spotify, Apple, Tidal, Deezer, or a similar option.

Settle for the Best

As authorized dealers for Bang & Olufsen, Smarthouse Integration have a good appreciation of the difference a premium sound system can make. We believe Bang & Olufsen provides a sound system of impeccable quality, that can be tailored to suit the needs of any home.

Contact us to find out more about the advantages a top-grade, whole-house sound system can bring to your automated home.

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smart blinds

8 Perfect Ways Smart Blinds Will Benefit Your Home Building Project

As smart homes are becoming increasingly popular, one feature on the rise is automated shades. This automated shading, also known as smart blinds, is an easy and convenient way to control your home and save energy. In fact, there are over 40 million smart homes in the United States, many of which utilize smart blinds.

Do you want to learn more about smart window blinds and their benefits? Keep reading this article to see how they can help your home building project!

1. Keeps Your Home Safe

One of the biggest benefits of having smart window blinds is that they keep your home safe in many different ways.

First, it can protect your home from burglary. Burglars often try to access your home while you are on vacation or out of town. However, when you have smart blinds, you can access the controls from wherever you are.

This means that you can open your blinds during the day and close them at night, giving the appearance that someone is home.

Another way that your home is safer with smart shades is that they can keep your children safe! Blind cords are very dangerous for children. In fact, in a span of 26 years, about 17,000 children were in the emergency room from injuries related to window blinds.

Because automated shades don’t have cords, they can prevent this from happening to your children.

2. Protects Privacy

Another benefit of these shades is that they protect your privacy. Especially when you live in an apartment complex or where you have neighbors who can see into your home, smart blinds are a great way to keep your home private.

You can time your blinds to shut at night to prevent people from seeing into your home or you can even close your blinds when you or your children get home from work or school.

If privacy is important to you, smart blinds can help you!

3. Convenient

One of the biggest benefits of having automated shading is that it is convenient. Especially when you live in a home with many windows and shades, it can take a long time to open and close each of your blinds each day.

With smart blinds, you can automatically have each set of shades in your home open and close whenever you want!

They are also more convenient because many models allow you to automate when you want your blinds opened and closed. This means they can automatically open in the mornings and automatically close when it starts to get dark.

You can even control them with the simple push of a button on your smartphone or by using your smart assistant. If you want a convenient way to keep your home running, these are great options!

4. Saves Energy

Smart blinds can also save you money on your energy bills. For example, some models can be set to automatically close when they sense intense heat from the sun. This can prevent your home from getting too hot and will take less energy to keep it cool in the summer.

5. Works With Other Aspects of Your Smart Home

If you have other smart home features in your house, adding smart blinds is an easy way to integrate these features. For example, if you have a smart thermostat in your home, the integration with your smart blinds can help determine when you should open or close your blinds.

This can help maintain the temperature of your home!

You can also integrate your smart blinds with your smart assistants. For example, you can simply tell them to open or close your blinds. This integration makes it easier than ever to open and close your blinds!

6. Protects Furniture

You can also protect your furniture inside your home when you have automated shades. If you have frequent and direct sun exposure on your furniture and decor, it can cause many issues! It can fade and discolor your furniture and may cause it to wear out more quickly.

When you have motorized window blinds, you can have them automatically close when sun exposure is at its peak to prevent the items inside your home from sun damage and fading.

7. Improves Sleep Quality

When you struggle with getting good sleep, there are many things that can help, including automated shades. They can be light-blocking to allow you to sleep in a darker room, rather than having to buy blackout curtains.

Not only can they help you fall asleep, but these blinds can also help you wake up naturally! If you set them to open in the early morning, you can wake up slowly as the sun rises and shines into your room.

This can help you sleep better and more peacefully.

8. Increases Home Value

Finally, adding smart home solutions can make your home worth more if you decide to sell. While each smart home feature can add different amounts of value, these smart shades are sure to be a good selling point for potential buyers!

Find Smart Blinds Today!

Smart blinds are a great investment for any home. Not only can they save energy and money in the long run, but they can also protect your home, your privacy, and even increase your home value. If you want to include automated shading in your home building project, it is vital that you find a reliable company to help.

SmartHouse Integration can help you with any of your smart home needs, including automated shades. If you want to learn more about our products and services, have any other questions, or want to learn more about the benefits of smart shades, contact our team today!

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best home automation

Think Smart (Homes): How to Build the Best Home Automation System

Remember that scene in Back to the Future Part II, where we get a glimpse of Marty McFly’s home in the “future”—i.e., 2015?

It’s full of smart, automated gadgets and features that seemed pretty incredible at the time. Well, it’s now 2020, and smart homes are a reality. There’s a host of sophisticated home automation devices on the market, and they make the science fiction dreams of yesteryear look old-fashioned.

Smart devices are a great addition to your home. They help make your life easier, and they can streamline productivity.

So we’ve put together this little guide to building the best home automation system. Just use these tips to give your home the smart upgrade you’ve always wanted.

1. Set Up a Smart Thermostat

One of the first steps in assembling the best home automation is to install a smart thermostat.

A smart thermostat lets you control your home’s heating and cooling more efficiently. By having a set schedule, you can cut down on heating and cooling costs and save on your monthly energy bills.

2. Use Smart Lights

This is another must in home automation.

Like the smart thermostat, smart lights are a great way to help you save on energy costs. And they come with an array of incredible features. There are smart lights with motion sensors, WiFi-enabled lights connected to your smartphone, and timer-activated lights.

3. Install Smart Shades

Installing automated shades is another easy way to give your home an upgrade.

A product like Lutron’s Serena smart shades offers the convenience of customizable, motorized shades that can be remotely operated from your smartphone, even when you’re not at home.

That way, you can control the amount of sunlight entering your house and save on energy bills, even when you’re half a world away.

4.  Set Up a Voice Assistant

This is where things get really futuristic.

Voice assistants have come a long way, and sophisticated platforms like Josh.ai are designed to support natural language voice commands. These systems integrate with your smart home, centralizing control.

Now you don’t have to worry about controlling each individual device. All it takes are verbal commands to your voice assistant to activate your various smart devices.

That’s what living in 2020 should be about.

Let Us Help You Find the Best Home Automation

Smart home technology is advancing rapidly. The best home automation is at the intersection of new advances in artificial intelligence and ever more responsive devices.

Are you ready to upgrade your home with the best in home automation? Contact us today at SmartHouse Integration, and see how we can help bring your home into the twenty-first century.

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Smart Home Style Tips With Mark van den Broek from SmartHouse Integration

Note: This article was originally published at yonomi.co.

Revamping your home into a connected smart house can seem like an intimidating task. You might wonder if the place will end up looking like an eyesore, with wires and gadgets everywhere you look. But as technological advances have been made and device designs have gotten sleeker, this is no longer a huge worry. In fact, adding some smart tech doesn’t have to take away from your home’s style – rather, it can enhance it. 

We recently talked to Mark van den Broek, the Founder and President of Sarasota-based design firm SmartHouse Integration about how you don’t have to sacrifice smarts over style. Mark and his team outfit some of the finest homes across the US with innovative designs and stellar smart home device installations. Here’s what we learned on how to meld cutting-edge technology and aesthetic excellence.

Place devices with intention 

There’s a smart device for everything these days – speakers, lights, remotes – but where are the optimal spots to put these devices? 

“Integrating your systems is really a bunch of black boxes that are in a room somewhere in the home. Our approach to integration is based on the aesthetics of it,” says van den Broek. “We ask ourselves questions like ‘What speakers should we use to fit a design? How do we best introduce a TV to a space? Is it in a cabinet, behind a piece of art, or does it pop up out of a countertop?’” 

For an attractive design layout from the get-go, he advises working with an interior designer early to properly place electronics.

Keep it simple

van den Broek stresses the importance of keeping it simple. “Today’s automation systems work so they can be designed to be very user-friendly. A good system design combined with the manufacturer’s updated product designs gives you a clean look,” he says. You’ll find that everyday smart home items have been up upgraded with new capabilities, and also with fresh looks. That means buying fewer products packed with more functions.


If you’re looking to splurge, van den Broek advises that you spend more money on the products you will interact with the most. These essential items include lighting keypads, touch screens, and remotes. From that list, he specifically recommends the beautiful Lutron Palladiom lighting keypads, the ELAN 8” touchscreen with facial recognition, and the easy-to-use ELAN remote.

Get a professional involved

When you’re creating a smart home, there are two distinct paths to take – DIY and custom integration. If you’re looking for a small DIY transformation, van den Broek suggests starting with a Google Home or Alexa and connecting them with any devices you add from there on. 

If you want to “go big” and really deck your home out in smart gear, van den Broek advises getting a professional involved and going the custom integration route. “If smart integration is done incorrectly, your home will turn into into a source of frustration, which is the last thing you want. Hiring an expert will reduce your frustration-level substantially and you will end up with a system you dreamed about,” he says.

No matter what stage you are in your smart home transformation, it’s worth knowing that you don’t have to compromise on keeping your home stylish while integrating new devices. Have you implemented custom integrations in your home, or are you happier going the DIY route? Let us know in the comments. 

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