Recent Smart Home Stories

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Don't let Google's seemingly bland 2017 device lineup announcement from this past week hide what just happened.

Harmon Kardon's Cortana-based Invoke smart speaker briefly appeared on the Microsoft Store website today.

Microsoft has found itself in a tough position with Cortana but there is plenty of room in the market for a smart speaker...but it may not be with consumers.

As was earlier promised, Google Assistant has begun arriving on Android TV, starting with the NVIDIA Shield.

In a surprise event yesterday, Amazon announced six new Alexa-powered devices for the home, plus coming BMW integration.

I previously discussed the crazy mess of lighting controls in our new home. This week, we're finally almost done fixing it.

After using Google Wifi full-time for a month, I'm still impressed with its easy setup and rock-solid performance.

Tomorrow, Apple will announce new generation iPhones. So this is the ideal time to reveal that I'm switching to Android.

Google hosted a developer show in Europe this week, and it provided an exciting update about the future of Google Assistant.

After just a few weeks of testing cord-cutting services in our new home, I've uncovered something unexpected.

Google recently announced that hands-free phone calling had come to its Google Home smart speaker.

Harman Kardon isn't just sticking with Cortana for its smart speakers. Harmon Kardon is working with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa too.

Based on Amazon's Alexa technology, the Lenovo Home Assistant is sold as an accessory for a family of the company's tablets

Today, Philips Lighting made its smart lighting family of its products even better, with new starter kits, light fixtures, and other additions.

Sony is releasing a gorgeous Assistant-powered smart speaker that takes the wind out of the sails of Apple's HomePod announcement.

Nest has announced a new and more affordable version of its smart thermostat, called Nest Thermostat E.

Google this week is announcing a series of partners who are bringing its Google Assistant technology to their smart speakers and other devices.

Over a year ago, Microsoft secretly agreed to partner with Amazon to integrate their digital personal assistants, Cortana and Alexa.

While it's taking us longer than I'd hoped to get up and running in the new home, we've started planning the improvements that it needs.

Today, Google said it had begun rolling out hands-free calling functionality via Google Home to customers in the U.S. and Canada.

Google is now offering a Preview Program for its Home and Chromecast devices, with access to new features before their broader release.

We're currently using multiple music subscription services and speaker systems, and that has to change.

The next four weeks are going to be busy and interesting. But when it's over, we should be fully moved to Pennsylvania.

This week, I snagged a Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance Starter Kit with Google Home a bit ahead of my expected schedule.

I've never experimented with smart home technology. But I think I've found the right places to start with the new home we're moving to.

We're still about a month away from our move to Pennsylvania, but I've started planning for our cord-cutting future.

We're moving, and I'm using this change as an excuse to re-evaluate the personal technology we use.