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In a recent study looking to gauge the growth of new technology, Realtor.com found the top ten markets for smart homes. Sitting at number seven is Chicago, Illinois likely due to the budding markets of its Northern suburbs including Lake Forest, Glenview, and Evanston. But what exactly constitutes a smart home? A smart home gives you interconnected and remote access to your technology. It can start with a few connected devices and ultimately evolve into a smart home automation system.

SEE MORE: 3 Reasons to Upgrade to a Smart Home

While it may be tempting to create a connected home by collecting the latest devices that hit the market, we recommend embracing a comprehensive solution from the start. This way you won’t have to deal with systems that can’t communicate with each other, are prone to break and aren't primed for growth. Below we’ll take a look at some of the advantages of working with a professional when installing a smart home automation system.

Bringing All Your Technology Together

Many smart home products are praised for their simplicity. All you have to do is connect them to the internet, download an app and enjoy the benefits. The problem with this approach is that you’re going to end up needing a “Home” folder on your iPhone to keep track of all the apps you need to follow your daily routine. There’ll be one to change the lights, one to lock the doors, and one to adjust the temperature.

By now you’ve probably seen advertisements for a variety of home electronics that you can control from a mobile app. There’s one for your thermostat, one for your locks and one for your entertainment. But what if you could bring it all together under one umbrella, practically turning your IPhone or Android into your personal butler. You can do just that with a smart home automation solution in your Highland Park, Illinois property. Below we take a look at some of the best features from the Crestron and Control 4 Apps.

SEE MORE: 3 Reasons to Upgrade to a Smart Home

Four Main Features of the Crestron App

In conjunction with your smart home automation system, Crestron offers a free mobile app that lets you control your lighting, security, entertainment, climate and more. Some other features are also available as in-app purchases.

• Integrate Third Party Apps: Want to settle in for an all-day Netflix marathon? You don't have to navigate through multiple apps just to pick out the show you want and get the lighting just right. Crestron lets you open third party apps within your graphic user interface so you can keep everything under one roof.
• Stay Informed: Receive alerts when a door is left unlocked, someone comes to your front door. or your alarm goes off. This way you can stay connected without having to constantly check-in on your surveillance.
• Upgrade to PinPoint: This add-on lets your system recognize exactly where you are based on your smartphone’s location. This way your user interface immediately adapts your menu to the room you’re in.

Planning to host friends this summers in your Wilmette, Illinois home? Invite them over for an afternoon cookout and show off your beautiful view of Lake Michigan. To liven up the mood, you're going to need an impressive music system that can cover your entire outdoor area. Avidia can design a whole house audio system that not only adds quality sound to every corner of your home, but also makes it easy to access your favorite music at the press of a button. 

SEE MORE: How to Extend the Reach of Your Favorite Entertainment

Invest in Equipment Designed for Outdoor Use

Your beautiful outdoor environment is going to go to waste if you settle for old speakers, or those not meant for outside use. It's tempting to bring out wireless speakers and place them in a corner of your patio or pool, but this will result in uneven and unreliable sound. You need to invest in quality outdoor speakers designed to brave the elements and disperse sound over large areas.

We recommend going with Episode outdoor speakers. You can have Landscape ones hidden away in your foliage or use surface mounted speakers on your walls or pillars. If you’re a big audio enthusiast, you should also invest in their underground subwoofers that add deep, powerful bass.

Create the Right Foundation for Your System

We create a comprehensive wiring plan so you can connect speakers all over your property, all while keeping cables hidden from view. With most clients now using streaming services to access their favorite music, it's also important that we extend the reach of their home network. We install outdoor access points to amplify the signal from your router, so your coverage reaches your entire space. 

Figuring out the right setup for your high-end audio involves various steps. As people focus on finding the highest-quality speakers available, often forgotten is the heart of your stereo system: your receiver or amplifier. Having the best speakers on the planet won’t matter if you can’t get crisp, quality audio to them. Depending on how you want to use your system, your space, and budget limitations, and your personal tastes, we help you figure out if the high-end audio solution in your Lake Forest, Illinois home should be built around a receiver or separate components.

SEE MORE: How to Extend the Reach of Your Favorite Entertainment

 What Is the Difference Between an Amplifier and an AV Receiver?

When choosing between an amplifier and receiver for your high-end audio setup, you're actually choosing between a receiver and what the AV industry calls ‘separates.' This means instead of putting all your components in one box, you buy each separately.

An AV receiver is an all-in-one solution. It includes a tuner, preamplifier, and an amplifier. The tuner pulls in your audio signal; the preamplifier extends the signal to get it to the amplifier which powers up the signal to get it to your loudspeakers. These receivers usually have two to nine channels to meet surround sound demands. Each channel corresponds to a different speaker in the room.

Although a lot of the information on smart home automation systems focuses on the convenience factor, smart technology can also have a significant return on investment. Through efficient use of all the technology in your Glencoe, Illinois home, you can reduce your carbon footprint and monthly energy bills. From lighting control to smart thermostats, here are some ways we can help you go green this year. 

SEE MORE: 3 Reasons to Upgrade to a Smart Home System

Change the Default Settings on Your Lights

With centralized control from a touchpad, tablet or smartphone, it's easy to make widespread adjustments. Except for some rare occasions, you don't need to have all the lights in your home at 100 percent intensity. You can dim each fixture from 100 to 90 percent to significantly cut down on your monthly energy use.

Take Advantage of Natural Light

Another way to give your artificial lights a break is to embrace natural light. You can install photo sensors to gauge the amount of sunlight throughout the day. During the brightest times of day, your shades rise and your lights dim so you're not wasting energy.

Install a Smart Thermostat

Whether you’re trying to keep a large home cool in the summer or cozy in the winter, it takes a lot of energy for your thermostat to adjust the temperature. Smart technology helps in a variety of ways. For one, it’s easy to change the temperature in each room so you can spend fewer resources on those that aren’t being used. Turn up your thermostat when you’re not home and alert it when you’re on the way back so it can have the right temperature ready when you return.

Unveiling your outdoor spaces as the hot summer months approach doesn’t have to be a hassle. Need a quick way to transform your patio, pool or backyard? Add functionality and beauty to your space with a comprehensive landscape lighting system linked to your whole home lighting control. Fashionable lights highlight your Winnetka home's best features while sensors keep pathways lit at all times. Everything is easily managed from the smart device of your choice. Read on for some tips to a successful system!

SEE MORE: Enhance Your Home’s Style With Smart Lighting

1. Connect Your Landscape Lighting to a Smart Control Solution

The benefits of a landscape lighting system are numerous, from increasing your security to adding personality to your home. However, many people shy away from a comprehensive system because it can be difficult to manage multiple fixtures spread over such a large space. We incorporate your system into your home lighting control and smart home automation solutions.

This way you can manage your system from the same user interface you use to control indoor lights, security, audio/video and more. That interface can be accessed from a smartphone, tablet or touchpad depending on your personal preferences. Below we’ll also talk at how sensors, scenes and schedules help you manage your system.