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Connected home: 7 best gadgets to keep your home safe

From cameras and lightbulbs to sensors, we took a look at the best of the new and easy to use smart home products that can get your house connected and keep you safe.

Andrew Griffin
Monday 30 June 2014 16:41 BST

Connected products for your house have stopped being the domain of geeks and the ultra-rich, and have finally become useful — far from being gimmicky toys, they can offer safety and peace of mind. We choose from the best.

We’re a long way from Jetsons-level automation just yet, but the connected home does give the opportunity to make your home safe as well as smart.

All of the products we liked used the smartphone or tablet that you probably already carry in your home, and many could be entirely automated so that once they were set up they would be easy to forget about. Cameras offer the opportunity to keep tabs on your house — offering peace of mind, a deterrent, and evidence if anything awful should happen. The other smart products we looked at either monitor your home to ensure you’re safe or automate processes that keep you secure.

Click on the gallery to see the IndyBest buys

VERDICT

Nest’s products are seamless and stylish — they give important and slick technical features but also look good, so you won’t feel like you’re making any compromises to have the technology in your home. The company’s Protect, a powerful solution to a simple problem, is a perfect example of that. If you’re after a camera to keep tabs on your home, the Dropcam is the best solution — though which you opt for will depend on your budget.

Buy now

1. BT Smart Home Cam, £99.99, Amazon

2. Philips In.Sight, £130.90, Amazon

3. Dropcam Pro, £199, Amazon

4. Nest Protect, £89, Amazon

5. Nest Learning Thermostat, £179, Amazon

6. LiFx, £79.95 per bulb, Amazon

7. Belkin WeMo Switch, £34.99, Amazon

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