MyPlace Africa: Smart Home vs Home Automation

From voice recognition to the ever-increasing usage of AI, technology continues to become part of our daily lives. At Advantage Air, the team are always answering questions about their smart products and how they work. This article will discuss some of the technologies and distinguish between key terms.

Smart Home vs Home Automation

Home Automation was a term used in the mid-80s, when the development of advanced systems that empowered automating specific household features was discovered. While conceptually brilliant, Home Automation has a reputation for being both expensive and complex.

There is usually a separate room or cupboard which houses a server for the system and all the required cabling in the home runs back to this one central location. This kind of installation is very expensive and often requires large maintenance fees on an annual or biannual basis.

Fortunately, technology evolves and the concept of Home Automation has been developed further. Enter the Internet of Things (IoT) and smart products.

Smart products are those that incorporate things such as microprocessors, sensors and software that allows them to run autonomously.

This is different to a Connected Home, where automated devices and appliances are generally set up to be controlled by something the user wields like a remote control.

A great example of how a smart product can provide you complete control is MyPlace by Advantage Air. MyPlace works off a single easy-to-use integrated system and connects with existing items in your home such as lights, garage door, fans, blinds and most 220V items. It also has its own app, which means you can control your system at home or remotely.

How MyPlace fits into the Smart Home

A Smart Home is a home in which a number of these smart products are present. It’s only when these products talk to each other on a network that you have a Connected Home. Once again, take the MyPlace touchscreen and app for example.
While it comes with automated components, it offers the homeowner so much more.

MyPlace is a connected device which allows you to control all the functionality remotely from either the included wall mounted touchscreen or from your smartphone.

However, it’s more than just a connected device – it’s a true smart product. This is evident because the MyPlace controller is in fact also an Android tablet. This allows you to control your air conditioning and lighting from within the same proprietary app and load up the tablet with all the other apps you use to control your other products within the home.

No add-ons necessary with MyPlace

Unlike some DIY systems currently available on the market, MyPlace doesn’t require any add-ons. You can control your home from the single hub, and because it’s also from Advantage Air, the MyAir smart system works off it.

You can adjust your reverse cycle air con from the same smart home touchscreen and app, and can use the same tablet with your other smart home products and your other apps.

Automated products, in contrast, require these extra add-ons, and while the hub can usually control the connected devices in your home, they’re not included. If you want to ensure the smooth running of your home from the start, Advantage Air’s MyPlace is designed to be a complete home hub that won’t surprise you with any hidden costs later on.