The global Internet of Things (IoT) market is growing quickly, and for good reason. IoT technology is revolutionizing the world, from hospitals and office buildings to hotels and smart home.

The lights turn on automatically when you leave your bed in the middle of the night, but not too bright, as you don’t want to be blinded. Once you return to your bed, pressure sensors turn the lights off once again.

When you arrive at your house, the garage door automatically opens and the heat kicks on by itself when you walk in. The next day, when you’re leaving, the lights turn off and the heating stops, completely autonomously.

With the touch of your thumb, you can view every camera (powered by PoE, of course) in your home, no matter where you are. In addition, your appliances and devices are all synched together, working at peak efficiency and saving energy.

IoT brings inanimate objects to life in your smart home – lighting, heating, cooling, appliances, and more can be controlled with voice commands. IoT is paving the way for a more energy efficient, smart future. Expect to see IoT becoming more and more prevalent in your day-to-day life in the near future.

In fact, 2019 has seen the biggest increase in IoT device sales yet. If you haven’t purchased one yet, you’re going to be left behind! In this article, we’re going to be taking a look at this year’s top IoT trends in smart homes.

Safer Homes

Advancements in AI are making cameras smarter than ever before. Operated via PoE, smart home security cameras will be able to more than ever before.

For example, aside from being able to pan, tilt, zoom, and use facial recognition software, they can also be turned into smoke detectors. Using advanced AI algorithms, these devices will be able to detect smoke quickly, even faster than traditional smoke detectors.

In addition to facial recognition, cameras will also detect certain types of food, and adjust the stove/oven temperature accordingly based on the recipes of your choice. That’s not necessarily a safety feature, but it’s still pretty cool…

Smart LightingGoogle Home Mini & GE C-Life Smart Bulb

Smart lighting is one of the coolest advancements in smart home technology. Lights can be turned on and off – or dimmed – automatically upon entrance or exit. Furthermore, the smart home can detect who is walking through the door, and adjust the lighting based on their predesignated preferences.

Instead of having to fumble around in the dark for the light switch in the middle of the night, they’ll turn on and off autonomously.

Better still, installing smart lighting has never been easier. GE Lighting’s latest line of smart light bulbs makes installation quick and painless.

After simply screwing in the light bulb, all you have to do is wait for it to appear in the Google Home app, and then you’re good to go – you can use your voice to control the lights in your house.

Smart Appliances

Computerized devices are even making their way to our appliances, including refrigerators. From see-through glass designs to integrated touch screens, to expiry tracking devices, our kitchens will never be the same.

High-tech smart refrigerators can detect the kinds of items being kept inside. This way, they can track important things like expiration dates and usage amounts. The fridge can scan RFID codes, and send the data it gathers to the internet where you (the homeowner) can easily take a look.

Saving EnergyGeeni IoT Smart Plug

Energy costs are on the rise, not to mention the debate on climate change. Needless to say, saving energy is important, both for our planet and our wallets. It’s a hot topic in 2019, and it’s not going away.

With that being said, it’s clear that the importance of efficient energy usage in smart homes cannot be overstated. However, before you can save energy, you must first be able to monitor your energy usage.

Luckily, IoT smart plugs are a great way to do just that in your home. Plug them into your power outlet before connecting a device, and they’ll give you an overview of your home’s energy consumption via an app on your smartphone.

They make energy consumption tracking easier than ever, as they push all of the data directly to the internet in an easy, uncomplicated manner. You can quickly look at your home’s power consumption, down to the specific device.

Something is using too much electricity? No problem, simply unplug it, or turn off the power with the touch of a finger.

Superior Air Quality

Advanced systems are being developed to effectively monitor air quality inside the home. These devices monitor the air in your home, keeping an eye out for things in the air such as allergens, smoke, and other volatiles.

They run through a purification process to remove the unhealthy particulates from the air, making for a fresher and healthier living space. These devices can even alert you to serious, life-threatening issues such as a gas leak or carbon monoxide.

The air monitor will give you directions on what to do in the event of an emergency, which could mean the difference between life and death in some situations.

Subtle Integrations

Some of the devices in our homes stick out like a sore thumb – for example, cameras mounted everywhere can be a bit offputting.

Now, smart homes are being outfitted with more decor-friendly cameras, particularly at the front door. Instead of mounting a big security camera, many smart homes use a doorbell outfitted with a security camera.

It’s a lot less obvious and more pleasing to the eye, while still doing an exemplary job.

Smart Speakers

Another popular IoT smart home trend is smart speakers. They’ve become increasingly popular over the past few years since their inception, and the way things are looking, that’s not going to change. More speakers – such as Amazon’s Alexa – are being purchased all the time, as the total number of households with a voice-activated device on the rise.

With the proper infrastructure, you can configure these devices to do a lot more than what they’re capable of out of the box. Once installed properly, they can be used to control PoE lighting, HVAC, cameras, appliances, music, and more.