If you happen to have been born in the latter quarter of the 20th Century you will have seen the advancements in technology develop at first hand. It`s fair to say that what passed for futuristic dreams when eager young space cadets lapped up the adventures of Buck Rogers in the 1970`s are now every day and taken for granted in today`s society.
There is still some way to go as cars don`t yet fly, clothes aren`t made of tin foil and nobody is getting beamed up to work of a morning (more`s the pity!) but take a closer look at some of the ideas set out in those old sci-fi shows and you`ll recognise the genesis of some of today`s consumer electronics. Let`s take a look at how the microchip has begun to conquer your home and has declared victory in just about every single room….
The growth of wireless 4G availability across the UK and the huge penetration of mobile phone ownership has led to some smart money saving options for those on the ball. If you forget to set the heating timer you can do it via your mobile phone, a core programme in a series you have been diligently following can be set to record whilst you find your work schedule conflicting with your viewing. Very handy, efficient and convenient.
It seems that the days of the internet only being a massive encyclopedia of web pages are over and the world wide web has evolved into a way of keeping the individual connected to everyone and everything - the place we seem to want to be connected to the most is our home. Advances in smartphone technology has given rise to services such as the British Gas Hive which can control heat light and power if you invest in the right gadgets
A smart doorbell, well Ok why not or more to the point why? Surely in this age of interconnectedness anyone who wants to call around would call / text / email to see if you`re in before venturing up your garden path? More than likely yes they would, if you happen to be a customer of internet giants like Amazon you`ll be all too aware of the sheer frustration of arriving home to find you`ve been left a card saying ``we`ve left your parcel with a neighbour / in your green bin / under the cat`` etc. Imagine the cool feeling if you got a call when the delivery driver turned up and you could tell him where to leave your parcel.
Then there is the criminal side of matters. Unfortunately as we all know the world isn`t perfect and it may be that being able to turn a spot light on or, or tell them you are in the garden (while you`re actually out and about….) might just allow for some peace of mind. Equally the ability to record security footage from a series of security cameras around your home onto a remote server that can`t be tampered with by stealing a local hard drive might be enough to dissuade the casual opportunist with a crowbar from having a go.
Some may recall those more straightforward days when we only had three TV channels and video recorders were the only way to watch a relatively new film? To be fair many people have never seen a video recorder, but you may recall grandad had one at some time…. For those too young to remember, there was a time where if you wanted to watch your favourite TV show you would wave goodbye to your friends and go indoors to watch it. Then offer up a prayer to the gods of soap operas that your mum wasn`t watching Crossroads or Corry on the other side.
These days of course it`s a much simpler affair, you don`t even have to bother setting the sky box to record your favourite show just ask Alexa where you can stream the show from when you get home. Yes we`re back to our old friend Amazon, not content with sending physical media though the post, for just under £8 per month they will stream your favourite show / movie / song direct to your chosen electronic device. It`s not just Amazon, internet giant and all round anorak of the internet Google have launched a similar service and to keep them and Sky on their toes there`s always Netflix to consider, which has moved well beyond just films.
According to the BBC it`s the iPlayer service that is still the most widely used for internet streaming amongst adults, but that market share is being narrowed every year as the big internet players grow fast and start to produce their very own content.
We`ve talked about defending our homes, making it a more comfortable place to be and how we can use technology to entertain ourselves but how about the mundane things like making it a safer place to be. How many injuries have been caused by going down the stairs in the dark and collected a discarded piece of Lego en-route to the light switch? If only there was a way to turn the light on without having to cross, in darkness, the minefield of junior`s playtime.
You`ll no doubt be shocked and stunned to find that what was once the stuff of James Bond espionage dramas has now found its way into your home and for a small fee a motion sensor can be fitted to various lights that sees you coming and turns the lights on for you. Sadly there isn`t one that spots your teenager creeping in at 3am - so you`re still going to get the rude awakening on a Sunday morning but no doubt someone will come up with a solution in due course.
Speaking of getting in late, imagine you`ve arrived home after a long journey, you`ve been driving for hours in the pouring with rain. You arrive at the end of your driveway with the lights on ready for you, the central heating alerted to your proximity an hour ago and blazing away, your evenings TV programming teed up and ready and waiting for you to sit down on the sofa. However there is a challenge first, you`re going to have to leave the sanctuary of your car, brave the wind and rain and open the gate, then the garage door and close them again before reaching the front door. By which time you`ll be soaked to the skin and in no mood to enjoy all those modern conveniences.
Well if you happen to have your smartphone to hand, or if you`re driving tucked away in the glove box you can now simply tell you home automation system to open the gate and the garage door so you can drive straight in and avoid all those miserable moments of getting soaked through just grappling with the garage.
So as they say it seems ``the future is now``. My Sort of Loan can arrange a home improvements loan to automate as much of your home as you like so once you`ve decided just how Star Trek you want to go and what it`s going to cost, give us a call and let`s see how we can help you turn your home into The Enterprise.
