Using an app or voice to control your lights is only rarely useful.
Having one switch control all your table lamps, floor lamps, and ceiling lights is useful. Being able to add new wall switches (really remotes) in new locations for ~$25 also nice (excluding the cost of the rest of the system, obviously).
A few years ago, we had no switches or light sources by the entry way; we had to stumble our way to a switch in the dark. I fixed that with remote controlled outlets at first and later upgraded to Hue bulbs and dimmers. In the bedroom, my wife and I both have remotes for the lights (though she actually prefers voice control, ironically).
We have a few useless wall switches that control outlets instead of lights; turning those into in-wall remotes makes it so we can control multiple lights and use the outlets for devices that need continuous power.
We also have our light bulbs automatically change brightness and color temperature based on the time of day. We get daylight-bright light during daylight hours and dim warm light in the middle of the night. It's really nice.
Another nice smart home feature: checking that the range is off. My wife used to stress about this, it's no longer an issue. Don't worry, you can only turn the thing OFF remotely, not on.
The smart speakers are mostly for music, checking the weather, and time. Occasionally for light control.
Smart/energy monitoring outlets we use mostly for tracking down energy hogs and reducing our energy bill.
The security and privacy stuff is a risk, but as long as you stick to major brands IMO the risk is overblown. Those brands are subject to a ton of scrutiny. Fly-by-night alphabet soup brands off Amazon or Alibaba are another matter.
Having one switch control all your table lamps, floor lamps, and ceiling lights is useful. Being able to add new wall switches (really remotes) in new locations for ~$25 also nice (excluding the cost of the rest of the system, obviously).
A few years ago, we had no switches or light sources by the entry way; we had to stumble our way to a switch in the dark. I fixed that with remote controlled outlets at first and later upgraded to Hue bulbs and dimmers. In the bedroom, my wife and I both have remotes for the lights (though she actually prefers voice control, ironically).
We have a few useless wall switches that control outlets instead of lights; turning those into in-wall remotes makes it so we can control multiple lights and use the outlets for devices that need continuous power.
We also have our light bulbs automatically change brightness and color temperature based on the time of day. We get daylight-bright light during daylight hours and dim warm light in the middle of the night. It's really nice.
Another nice smart home feature: checking that the range is off. My wife used to stress about this, it's no longer an issue. Don't worry, you can only turn the thing OFF remotely, not on.
The smart speakers are mostly for music, checking the weather, and time. Occasionally for light control.
Smart/energy monitoring outlets we use mostly for tracking down energy hogs and reducing our energy bill.
The security and privacy stuff is a risk, but as long as you stick to major brands IMO the risk is overblown. Those brands are subject to a ton of scrutiny. Fly-by-night alphabet soup brands off Amazon or Alibaba are another matter.