When it comes to utilizing technology at home, Carley Knobloch, the CEO and founder of Digitwirl, believes smart tech devices can help save time on your daily routine and improve the quality of life for you and your loved ones.
However, the personal technology expert doesn’t recommend browsing and buying at random. Ask yourself, she advises: “Where and how is my home or life headache? Is there a piece of technology that can solve this problem for me?” If you approach shopping with a problem-solving mindset, she adds, “that purchase is going to have the most time investment put in and yield the happiest result for you and your family. It’s going to be the one to put in the time to learn how to use…and motivate you to maybe add on from there.”
A connected home
With the world of technology ever-evolving, it’s hard to keep up. What exactly is a smart home? According to Knobloch, a smart home is any home that has any smart tech device in it, whether that’s a stand-alone device such as the Amazon Echo or a device already in the home such as a washing machine or dishwasher that has wireless capability.
What makes these devices – and, subsequently, your home – smart is that you can monitor and control them from a smartphone, tablet or laptop. “Suddenly, you have devices that are smart in that you can turn them on and off remotely and set them to be scheduled to do certain things at a certain time,” she shares. “A whole world of controls opens up that doesn’t involve you having to be in a physical place, like in front of a light switch to control your lights.”
Convenient helpers
Many new smart home devices are created solely for the purpose of adding comfort and convenience to a daily routine, like, says Knobloch, “starting your coffee maker in the morning or knowing when your washing machine or dishwasher cycle is over so you don’t need to keep running to check it.” As many Americans with children, pets or messy roommates know, keeping a living space clean requires near-constant upkeep. A robot vacuum cleaner can serve as an indispensable household helper. Because they are enabled by Wi-Fi and controlled via smartphone, you can start, pause, stop or even schedule the robot from anywhere. Models equipped with advanced laser floor plan mapping and navigation even offer a cleaning summary, with clear images of the areas your vacuum has done its work.
Smart tech for all
When smart home technology and home integration technology first appeared on the market, it came with a hefty price tag and tended to be a package deal. “You either didn’t have any smart home technology or you had a home where every lightbulb was controlled by a central system,” recalls Knobloch.
Today, smart devices are within reach for the average American. In recent years, it is increasingly possible “to purchase one product just under $100,” explains Knobloch, “or just under $200 to $300 hundred dollars that solves one specific problem but doesn’t require you to outfit and blanket your entire home with products.”
Life-changing aid
Smart devices aren’t just for security and added luxury. For those with limited mobility, for example, they can be life-changing. Knobloch points out, “These devices don’t only allow you to monitor your own home with minimal physical effort but allow somebody else to monitor you, your home, and your health and wellness if needed.” She adds, “There are a lot of different systems that allow for the kind of supervision that is respectful and reasonable for somebody who wants to live independently but also wants that safeguard as well.”
For many, the ever-increasing expansion of tech into most aspects of our day-to-day lives isn’t exciting – it’s scary. That’s why Knobloch has devoted her life to improving the relationship between people and their devices, showing them that not only can a smart home raise your quality of life, but it’s also affordable for all. Armed with the right information and the right devices, the tech guru believes that all Americans can live her motto of “finding wellness in a wired world.”
