When it comes to smart home technology, what many commentators and users see as convenience, others see as accessibility. In other words, using your phone or voice to turn on your lights may be convenient because you don't have to get up. This makes it more accessible for me and other people with disabilities.
The best example of this concept is the AmazonBasics microwave oven. The Alexa-powered device (which, as far as I can tell, hasn't been sold in over a year) was admittedly a bit gimmicky. Why do you need to talk to your microwave to heat your food? The controls are right there. But it's true that the microwave is very mediocre, my partner always laments how small it is and lacks power, but how easy it is to use it for me She happily tolerates the microwave because she knows that. Instead of standing in front of the microwave and squinting at a low-contrast keypad, it can be difficult for me, who has low vision, to distinguish the numbers, even if there is bright lighting in the kitchen. I can be across the room and use my voice to tell Alexa: Warm up leftovers.
AmazonBasics microwave ovens powered by Alexa have brought convenience to some and increased accessibility to others. Photo credit: Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge
This means more than convenience. In fact, between my microwave, my Alexa-based Echo Wall Clock (handy for watching timers), and my old Echo Dot connected to control both devices, my kitchen is definitely the place in the house. This is the most accessible room.
In many ways, smart home technology represents accessibility and assistive technology at its best. It's not just practical, it's empowering. Transform seemingly mundane everyday objects like lamps, garage doors, and microwave ovens into magical wonders bordering on epic.
For many people in the disability community, this change means the difference between inclusion and independence, or exclusion and dependence. These are qualities that many people, especially those in the technology media, don't consider when reporting on smart homes, but they are extremely important if you want to understand technology in a more holistic way.
Apple navigates a rich home
Please take my family. My partner and I are pretty avid Apple users. We both have iPhones. We both wear Apple Watches and AirPods. We have multiple iPads, HomePods, and Apple TVs at home. As a result, we primarily use his HomeKit to control various smart home his devices, including those from Nest (more on this later).
The fact that we're deep into the Apple ecosystem is useful, but more important to me is accessibility.
The fact that we're deep into the Apple ecosystem is useful, but more important to me is accessibility. With one exception (the MyQ garage door opener, which we'll discuss later), you can control all your smart home devices from the Home widget in Control Center.
Truth be told, this says as much about the accessibility of Apple's vertical integration as it does about smart home devices. The big advantage here is that you don't have to think about what you need to do if you need to turn off the lamp in your living room. Just select the device closest to you, like your iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, Apple TV, or HomePod.
Of course, you may need to tweak the technology to get it to work the way you want. Especially if you don't want to invest in a whole new set of devices. One drawback to using HomeKit is that Google's Nest products (Nest Thermostat E, Nest Protect smoke alarm, Nest x Yale smart lock, Nest Hello doorbell, and two Nest Cam IQ outdoor cameras) do not natively support it. That's what I haven't done. These are all older products that predate the Matter standard, which ostensibly promises interoperability between smart home platforms. But we don't want or need to replace it. No matter how old your Nest gear is, everything will continue to work just fine, especially with the original Nest app.
Still, since we're primarily HomeKit users, we wanted everything to appear in the Home app. For us, that solution came with the Starling Home Hub. It's a little box that connects to your network, connects your Nest and HomeKit credentials, and turns your thermostat and other devices into “native” HomeKit products. This allows you to not only ask Siri to lock your front door or adjust your thermostat, but also control them using the aforementioned Home widget in Control Center.
open the garage door
Perhaps the best smart home gadget we have is the MyQ garage door opener. A few years ago, MyQ maker Chamberlain added this when he created his HomeKit version (unfortunately, it was recently discontinued). I called this “the best” because for years our garage door was opened using an outside keypad, but that keypad was never accessible and the little faded marks were hard to see. , the buttons were difficult to press. With the addition of smart openers, you can now open and close your garage with just one tap. (Unfortunately, as of this writing, the HomeKit integration is broken. I keep getting the “not responding” status message. But within his MyQ app on my phone and watch It's still fully functional.)
While devices like the MyQ garage door opener may increase accessibility, it can be more than an inconvenience if it compromises integration with your smart home.Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy/The Verge
However, it's not all roses. The biggest complaint is maintenance. Especially with HomeKit, sometimes your device will show up as “not responding” for unexplained reasons. Starling Home Hub may break if the network goes down or updates. But as annoying as it is to play his IT support technician for my own devices, it doesn't erase the fundamental benefits that all these smart home devices add to my daily life.
another perspective
It goes back to what I originally wrote about convenience and accessibility. From what I've read, the majority of commentators and analysts believe that a smart home is made up of things that people want but don't need to live in. This assumes that everyone uses technology in (almost) the same way, which is not true.
Spiritual benefits are as important as practical benefits
For people with disabilities, myself included, being able to control a light switch or garage door with a device means our home is more accessible. For example, you no longer need to ask for help to turn on a light, giving you a greater sense of ownership and autonomy. Emotional benefits are just as important as practical benefits, which is why accessibility trumps convenience in this situation. What's convenient for you may be life-changing for me.
All of this is not to say that smart home devices are perfect. The important point is that it would be wrong to forever frame smart products as mere novelties, which, in the case of the Alexa microwave, are technology for technology's sake. It makes a lot more sense than that, but most people don't have the foresight to consider other perspectives.
Smart home technology has resonated far more than just convenience. It is accessible and empowering to everyone. That's really true.