Hi HA Dave!...…... I dropped out of the home automation scene for decades except for minor modifications. At the time, few knew more than me. I see now that my knowledge is decades old.....
Don't tell the electrons.... they don't know things have changed
Some of the guys here have great electrical-technical, and/or programming knowledge. I' am just an old wire-twister from years back.... who has a real love for Home Automation. I see myself as proof... that anybody can make this stuff work.
I find WiFi unreliable in much of my home despite recently installing Google's wireless mesh system. I do have a wired Echo Dot with Alexa.
I too have a few receptions areas that could be better. A mesh can be a fix.... sometimes just changing your router setting to a higher power will work. I had ran some CAT5 before we had WiFi that was reliable (or fast). Now.... G5 is on the horizon... and who knows what else will happen. Meanwhile.... I am using a CAT5-6 connection with the Home Theaters Samsung BlueRay player with build-in streaming. BUT the Roku device (in the same place)… works fine with the available WiFi. Go figure.
Please tell me more about AI.
Tell you more about AI?!?!?!? That's like asking me if I have grandkid pic on my phone (
).
Before Amazon marketed their Echo dots (and I discovered it on-line). I was running a couple window XP laptops.... one ran X10 Active Home Pro CM15A and a small software product (BVC) that exploited Microsoft's SAPI5 Voice Recognition. So
I had complete voice control over lighting and one of my TV's.... as well as several computer control macros (little programmed actions). The other little laptop ran a software server product called Melloware that communicated with a matching app on my iPhone.... which gave me global phone remote control.
Now... with AI at the heart of my setup... I feel like the old system would compare to a
Zenith Space Command Remote.
If the MyQ garage door gets left open.... the app lets me know. I can double check using my phone to access the home cameras. And if the security system was forgot I can control that via my phone too. A call from the step-daughter.... and I can dis-arm the alarm... and open the garage door for her while I am out. And while the wife and I are away... the NEST thermostat automatically readjusts to a preset temp.... and knows when were close to home and RE-sets in time so we never arrive to a too cold or too hot home.
When I do get home I disarm the alarm with a voice command (a password must also be spoken). And although (the Amazon) Alexa (I have 4)…. can and does control lights, alarm, thermostat, TV, Theater,
and more. Mostly Alexa is digital voice assistance... telling me what's on TV, setting up reminders and timers, checking my on-line calendar, reciting needed facts and trivia. And the echo software.... still limited as it is.... integrates a hodgepodge of different brands of X10 and Wifi Products.