7 useful connected objects (and 7 to avoid)

When the end-of-year frost turns to June heatwave, it’s best to be prepared. A smart thermostat will help you to automatically regulate the temperature in your home. Depending on the climate, it can choose to activate heating, air conditioning, dehumidification and more. It can also record your habits to eliminate unnecessary expenditure.

The connected watch is one of the most popular of all connected objects. Its various sensors will tell you whether you’ve had enough exercise or are in good health. It can also connect to your smartphone to show you an overview of your notifications. And of course, it’ll tell you what time it is at any given moment.

We’ve all heard the joke about children ringing your doorbell and then running off as if no one was home. You can avoid being fooled if you can simply check who rang the doorbell on your cell phone. And if you combine the doorbell with a connected lock, you’ll be able to let your visitors in without getting up.

Who hasn’t figured out the practicality of a smart TV? In fact, we’ve created boxes that transform conventional TVs into smart TVs. In addition to giving you access to a wide range of content on a large screen, it can also serve as the main hub for controlling all your connected objects from the comfort of your sofa.

A truly connected home can’t do without connected lights. It’s pretty handy to be able to switch the light on and off in the kitchen while you’re in bed on the second floor. There’s also the possibility of adjusting the brightness or color of the lighting to enjoy a warm ambience in the living room.

Being burgled is traumatic enough, and a good security system is essential to avoid this unfortunate experience. Connected surveillance cameras transmit images directly to your smartphone, alerting you to any intrusions. You can then check what’s going on and set off the alarm to deter intruders.

Everyone likes to wear clean clothes, but nobody really likes doing laundry. To make this chore as easy as possible, intelligent washing machines choose the wash program themselves according to the fabric, quantity and dirtiness of your laundry. They can also adjust the amount of water and detergent to help you save money.

Choosing the right mattress is highly recommended for a good night’s sleep. However, there’s little point in integrating different technologies such as temperature, snoring or sleep cycle detection. These functions are available on less expensive devices, which do the job even better.

Since kindergarten, we’re taught to brush our teeth after every meal and how to do it properly. So if at the age of 30 you need an electronic gadget to let you know that you don’t know how to brush your teeth or that you’ve forgotten to do so, it’s best to go back to nursery school.

It’s all very well to have a doll or robot chatting amiably with your child. But when it starts asking for your child’s date of birth, address or even your e-mail address, it can get a little creepy. What’s more, these toys are at the center of many controversies about privacy, and it’s best to steer clear of them.

The fork has remained virtually unchanged for over 1,000 years, except for about ten years ago when it started to connect via Bluetooth. It then vibrates to warn you if you’re eating too fast, and that’s all there is to it. Basically, there’s nothing revolutionary about it, apart from its exorbitant price.

Connected glasses like those found in science-fiction films are the stuff of dreams for many technophiles. Today, they’re starting to appear on the market. However, don’t expect to see through walls, as functionality is often limited to English/Chinese translation through headphones, accompanied by a camera that’s not yet up to scratch.

Among the first connected objects to appear on the market, smart fridges are still struggling to convince. All they do is alert you to the fact that the fridge is emptying, when you know full well that it was you who ate everything inside. And we’re not even talking about the integrated touchscreens, which look too gimmicky.

If we were talking about public trash cans that intelligently sort the waste of the whole neighborhood, we’d agree that it’s useful. But when it comes to a garbage can that waits to detect your presence before opening itself, we’re not really convinced. What’s more, it’s much quicker to open it manually or with a foot pedal.