Your smart home journey can start with something as simple as buying a couple of smart light bulbs and changing the mood of a room, and controlling everything in the house without physically interacting with anything. Choosing from hundreds of products and identifying the right ecosystem can easily be confusing. Samsung hopes to alleviate this confusion by providing a single point of control for all your smart home products with Samsung SmartThings. Here's everything you need to know!
What is Samsung SmartThings?
Samsung SmartThings is actually a broad, all-encompassing brand that covers both hardware and software. The biggest selling point of the SmartThings system is Samsung's attempt to provide a single, unified point of control for all of your smart home devices. It does this not just with its own devices, but by supporting an impressive number of third-party products that can be managed with the SmartThings app. Samsung makes it very easy to find the best smart devices for you.
The best Samsung SmartThings devices
Samsung has several devices on offer that fall under the SmartThings brand, but the SmartThings selling point is its compatibility with a large number of third-party products. In addition to ensuring that you don't get stuck in a single ecosystem, this broad compatibility also means you won't have a hard time searching for devices that fit your needs.
There are over 350 products currently listed as "SmartThings Products". “These include everything from smart lights and switches, security cameras, doorbells, sockets, locks, thermostats and speakers, smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, water valve control, vents, garage doors, irrigation and much more. There are too many categories to list them all, but below are some of our favorites.
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Samsung SmartThings Hub e SmartThing Wi-Fi
The Samsung SmartThings hub is now in its third iteration and serves as the foundation for the smart home system you are building. This is also the only essential device for building a Samsung SmartThings system. It wirelessly connects to all smart home devices and allows you to monitor and control them using a single app. The Hub requires an active Internet connection to function.
Of course, if you don't want to face the inconvenience of a separate hub and Wi-Fi router, Samsung brings you the Samsung SmartThings Samsung Wi-Fi. This is an AC1300 mesh Wi-Fi router that doubles as a hub. A single router provides coverage for an area of 1.500 square feet, but more can be added for larger homes.
The Samsung SmartThings hub costs $ 67,99 while a single SmartThings Wi-Fi router costs $ 117,99. You can also buy a three-pack Wi-Fi router for $ 249,94.
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The best Samsung SmartThings sensors
There are a few different types of Samsung SmartThings sensors that Samsung has available to help you get started on your home automation journey.
Il Samsung SmartThings multi-purpose sensor it's a sensor all-in-one that can detect vibration, orientation, tilt, temperature and when something opens and closes. You can place it on doors, drawers, windows, cabinets and more. The fact that it senses vibration allows the sensor to distinguish between when a door is opened or when there is a knock on the door. You can set up alerts for all these activities and anything else you can come up with.
The use of the Samsung SmartThings motion sensor it is self-explanatory. You can configure it to receive alerts in case of unexpected movements in your home or in a particular room. You can also connect it to smart lights to turn them on or off in case of movement.
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Philips Hue smart bulbs
The Philips Hue is probably the best choice for anyone looking to get into the smart lighting game. A hub is required. The wide variety of lights offered by Philips can be controlled from the SmartThings app. If you have a smart speaker, these bulbs can also be controlled using Google Home and Amazon Echo devices.
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When looking at the purchase options, you don't need to get a starter kit, as you won't need the Hue Bridge. A pack of four white bulbs will set you back $ 40,99, but if you're looking to add some color to your life, a premium single bulb (with 16 million colors) is priced at $ 37.
Ecobee4 thermostat
If you are an Amazon Echo fan, you will be happy to know that Ecobee4 has integrated Alexa for easy integration into your smart home. More importantly, in this case, it is compatible with Samsung Smart Things. Included with the thermostat is a room sensor (and you can buy others) that allows you to control and prioritize rooms that need heating or cooling. You can control everything with the SmartThings app even if you are not at home. The Ecobee4 thermostat is priced at $ 198,99.
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Schlage Connect Doorlock
Better home security is one of the best reasons to invest in smart home products, and the Schlage Connect door lock is a great place to start. The door can be locked or unlocked remotely using a smartphone and the SmartThings app. It is also possible to set who can or cannot enter that door by providing access codes which can be entered via the touchscreen. The Schlage Connect doorstop costs $ 199,99.
Ring Video Doorbell Pro
Along with a smart lock, another way to strengthen the security of your home is with a video doorbell. The Ring Video Doorbell Pro opens the door. It lets you see, hear and talk to anyone who comes to your door using your smartphone, tablet or even a smart TV. It supports video up to 1080p and delivers razor-sharp video even at night. Ring Video Doorbell Pro is priced at $ 249.
Arlo Pro 2 wireless security cameras
The final product that should help cover most of your home security needs is the Arlo Pro 2 camera. These wireless cameras are designed to work both inside and outside your home and are equipped with night vision and audio. bidirectional which allows you to scare away intruders. You can watch live video streams remotely and also access up to three days of recordings. Arlo Pro 2 is priced at $ 349,99, but you can enjoy significant discounts with multi-room packages.
How to use Samsung SmartThings
L'app SmartThings
Samsung introduced the SmartThings app last year. In addition to controlling SmartThings products, the new app also allows you to manage other devices such as Smart TVs, Smart Fridges, Smart Washing Machines, and every other smart product currently offered by Samsung.
The SmartThings app has improved a lot since it was released and is now much more capable. If you are new to the SmartThings world, I recommend that you familiarize yourself with the new app from the beginning. However, if you've been using SmartThings for a while, you've probably already set up everything with the SmartThings Classic app. In this case, it is perfectly normal to continue using the old app. In fact, the Classic app still has some features that haven't moved on to the new app yet.
Once you've downloaded the app from the Google Play Store, you'll need to sign in with a Samsung account. If you have a Samsung smartphone, smart TV or other smart device from the company, I think you already have an account. If not, all you need is an email address and password to create one.
Setting up the Samsung SmartThings hub
- Connect the hub to the Wi-Fi router using the supplied Ethernet cable. If you have a new XNUMXrd generation hub, you can wirelessly connect to the router. This step will not be necessary if you have a SmartThings Wi-Fi.
- Launch the app and tap the larger icon (Add Device button) to get started. You'll see a list of compatible Samsung devices and another section hosting third-party brands.
- In the Samsung section, tap “Wi-Fi / Hub”.
- A list of hubs will appear. Tap your device type and follow the onscreen instructions.
Add a device
- Connect and turn on the smart devices you want to connect to the SmartThings hub.
- Launch the app and tap the larger icon (Add Device button).
- You can tap the “Detect Automatically” button to allow the app to quickly find compatible devices. However, remember that this doesn't always work as expected. Until the app receives the required software enhancements, the manual path may be your best bet.
- On the devices page, find your product brand and tap it. For example, to connect the video doorbell, tap "Ringtone", then tap "Doorbell" and follow the onscreen instructions.
- Update and repeat for any smart products you want to add.
Voice control setting
- Amazon Alexa - Samsung SmartThings is fully compatible with Alexa which is why we recommend purchasing an Echo device for voice control. All you have to do is go to the Alexa Skills store, search for SmartThings and enable it. Then go to the Smart Home screen in the Alexa app and tap Discover, which will show you all the devices that can be controlled using Alexa.
- Google Assistant - You can use the Google Assistant via your smartphone or Google Home. In the Google Home app, go to Home Control -> Devices, tap the plus sign at the bottom right and tap SmartThings. Log into your Samsung account and tap Authorize.
Automation setup
- Launch the app and open the hamburger menu (three horizontal lines on the left side). Tap the relevant section and follow the onscreen instructions.
- Scene - Scenes allows you to configure multiple devices to work together with a simple tap on the phone or a voice command. For example, you can set a scene where all the lights and your smart TV turn on in the living room.
- Automation: automation takes the concept of scenes one step further. This allows you to create "first this then that" scenarios. Then, with a motion sensor on a bedroom door, you can automatically turn on the lights in the room whenever the door is open.
SmartApps configuration (SmartThings Classic app)
- Launch the SmartThings Classic app. You need to sign in with your Samsung account if you haven't already.
- Navigate to the Automation tab to access Routines (like Automation in the new app) and SmartApps.
- SmartApps - Routines can be difficult and confusing to set up if you are a beginner. This is where SmartApps prove to be of great help. These are common tasks that smart devices are able to enable with a tap. A great example is “Ready for Rain”, which warns you if doors and windows are open in bad weather.
- Assuming you have the right sensors, there are numerous SmartApp options created by SmartThings and third-party developers. Go to the SmartApps section, find the devices you have and you will be able to find all the available SmartApps.
Unfortunately, SmartThings isn't for everyone. Samsung has done a great job trying to simplify the setup process so that everyone can do it. However, a certain amount of technical know-how is recommended, especially when (not if) you need to troubleshoot. The end result is fantastic - having multiple devices allows you to perform various functions at the push of a button - setting everything up can be a long and tedious process. The SmartThings app is also not perfect and there are a lot of bugs and issues that need to be fixed.
However, smart home technology is now at the "door" ?, at least in the technological age we live in. Samsung SmartThings definitely has an edge in this, thanks to the incredible support available for third-party smart devices. If “smart everything” is truly the future, SmartThings offers a great way to get there.
