Smarthomes are easier to put together than ever. While they’re still not a necessity, what they are useful for is solving annoying problems around your home.
No More House Shouting
Smarthomes don’t always work well in family situations. Automation is particularly hard in homes with families and music integration can lead to account issues. But one area where Smarthomes shine is communication. If you’ve ever asked a child to tell the family there’s dinner, and all they did was yell “dinner” as loud as they can, you’ll appreciate both the Amazon Echo and Google Home’s intercom features.
Intercoms are normally annoying and difficult to install in a home, require wiring and sometimes making holes in the wall. But with an Echo or Home in different rooms, you can use either the Echo’s Announce or Google Home’s Broadcast feature.
The Echo’s announce feature lets you broadcast a one-way message to all the other Echos in your home (assuming they’re on the same Amazon account), but people can’t reply to the announcement. Google Home’s Broadcast feature is two-way, though; people can reply, and you’ll hear it on the Home device from which you broadcast.
Alexa’s does have a drop-in feature that lets you get a two-way conversation going, but it only works between two Echo devices.
RELATED: Amazon Echo vs. Google Home: Which One Should You Buy?
Never Leave the Lights on Again
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