Customized Holiday Lighting Inside and Out
Whether or not you hang holiday lights during the holidays they are everywhere and are symbolic of the holiday season. Use your smart home to sync the lights and music on a smart timer, not only for time of day but also time of year to have them turn on annually. Entertaining during the holiday season? Tap a button to turn on a holiday party scene that controls specific lights to your preferred levels, music begins playing, and even starts the holiday fireplace. Holiday spirit in a matter of seconds! I have a friend who’s home plays “The Night Before Christmas,” audio story at bedtime Christmas eve every year for the kids…how cute is that?
Voice Control That Ups The “Wow Factor”
The holidays come faster and faster each year and with school, holiday planning and well…life.. the season can be breathtakingly busy! Now use your Echo or Alexa with voice control to turn on your lights, lock your door, or change the thermostat as temperatures drop all while cooking dinner, wrapping presents or writing those holiday cards. You can voice control with any command you design including “Alexa, turn on Holiday” or “Alexa, turn on Cooking” can drop the temperature in the kitchen, brighten lights, and turn on your favorite foodie podcast so you can get to work quickly.
Holiday Music That Rings Through the Whole Home
One of the best parts of the holiday season is undoubtedly the music. Listening to festive tunes is one of the best ways to get into the spirit, and with your smart home you can easily stream and schedule music to play through programs like Pandora, Napster, TIDAL, and more. Set music to play when guests arrive for holiday dinner and change the playlist from jazz to the top hits as the night wears on. If your piano has an audio source, hook it up to a multi-room audio system to let caroling ring throughout every speaker in the home – a trick that is sure to make your neighbors say, “I need that in my house.”
Security That Mimics Your Behavior At Home
Porch Pirates
Personally I am always concerned about porch pirates during the holiday season. By “Porch Pirate” I am referring to people who steal packages off your front door step or porch. This is always an increased risk during the holiday season because their are typically more packages being delivered and they are usually higher price items. Living in the Truckee-Tahoe area we can be targeted a little more especially with our second home owner population. Packages seem to sit a little longer on porches here. And let’s face it, most of us buy online and have it sent to our home these days. (Better than driving down to Reno in a blizzard to get something necessary from Target). Nexus Electric has several options of monitoring your porch including camera intercoms that allow you to interact with the FedEx guy at your door and allowing him to leave it inside your home or garage instead.
Theft
In the holiday classic “Home Alone”, Kevin uses a myriad of tricks and traps to keep burglars at bay – but not without destroying a few of the home’s prized possessions along the way. Prevent break-ins without the destruction by programming your home with a Mockupancy security feature. Mockupancy is a type of “occupancy simulation” that makes it look like you’re home, even if you’re not. Your smart home tracks your lighting, entertainment and shades usage while you’re at home and can replay those behaviors (using slightly randomized times) when you put the house in “Away” mode.
For more information on what Nexus Electric and Smart Home can do to protect your home and valuables contact us at 800-618-0874.