Credit: Ryan Haines / Android Authority

The Jetsons had the right idea with a sweet mix of gee-whizz gadgetry and intelligent home automations that just worked. However, real life doesn’t quite work like that. As someone who has sunk years of my life into the smart home hobby, there are no two ways about it — getting the results you want can be a tremendous time and money sink unless you plan things right.

Smart homes come in many shapes and forms, from basic switches or lights to going off the deep end like my colleague Calvin who flashes the lightbulbs in his smart home to stay away from offshore internet servers. For me, I needed a reasonably competent middle ground that solved all my requirements, was relatively resilient to breakdowns, and was foolproof enough for the less technically inclined users in my home.