4 hubs to consider to run your home automation system

The term home automation system is a lot like the word groceries. Its a mixed bag that depends on your tastes and what you need to accomplish when you get home.

What most systems have in common is a hub, a small box that contains the systems brain. It works with a smartphone or other device to give you remote control and monitoring. From there, you shop for the system that gives you the features you want a few or many.

These smart home hubs promise to bring a little gravity to your connected universe.

SmartThings

CNET rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent)

The good: With easy-to-install security sensors, wide product compatibility, and no monthly fees, SmartThings gets home automation right. In addition to home security, kits are available for lighting, water detection and energy use. We love that its compatible with IFTTT, the service that enables users to connect different Web applications (Facebook, Evernote, Weather, Dropbox, etc.) together through simple conditional statements known as Recipes.

The bad: The SmartThings Hub is a little limited in terms of range. Also, the newly redesigned SmartThings app feels overcrowded with redundant features.

The cost: Kits starting at $199 at https://shop.smartthings.com.

The bottom line: If youre looking for an easy and (relatively) affordable entry point into home automation, then SmartThings makes a lot of sense.

Lutron Smart Bridge

Read more here:
4 hubs to consider to run your home automation system