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The advancement of home security technology has been parallel to the development of the home since ancient times. From the domestication of the dog to act as a guard to the latest smart home security systems, humans have utilized technology to keep their families and possessions safe.

There is a dazzling variety of high-tech security solutions on the market at the moment. It can be hard to filter out what is actually useful and what is just tat marketed towards the insecure.

Always look for reviews of any security product. If criminals have found a way to bypass a system, it instantly becomes near enough useless! Here are three of the most useful modern home security innovations on the market today.

The Smart Doorbell

Want to know who is ringing your doorbell, even when you are out? Smart doorbells are becoming increasingly popular for people worried that they are being monitored or that their house is being scoped out before a burglary.

A smart doorbell is essentially a tiny CCTV system attached to your doorbell. When the bell is pressed, the CCTV activates. The best smart doorbells send live streams of their captured footage straight to your phone via an app. When somebody rings your doorbell, you’ll get a notification inviting you to watch the footage.

This can give you peace of mind when you can’t monitor your home from the inside.

All-in-One Smart Security

According to TechRadar, burglary rates are dropping. The reason behind this is that home security systems have become far more widespread – making burglary a far riskier endeavor for potential criminals.

People are increasingly upgrading their homes into ‘smart’ homes. Technology is networked into an ‘internet of things’ within a smart home, with objects communicating with each other to pool data and make the operation of systems symbiotic. Integrating security into your home’s internet of things makes monitoring the safety of your home much easier. Companies like ADT have developed all-in-one security systems that include CCTV, sound monitoring, and app connectivity.

The Havenlock

While deadlocks and reinforced doors do improve the security of your entrances, a determined burglar can still defeat them with power tools, lockpicks, and brute force. Devices like the Havenlock from Evo Products add an additional level of security to your doorways.

The Havenlock is essentially a wedge that fits just under your doorway. When in the ‘locked’ position, a second wedge raises up and nestles against the bottom of the door, completely preventing it from opening. Because it is nearly undetectable from the outside and impossible to reach, burglars find it unbelievably hard to breach.

The technologically innovative element of the Havenlock comes in the form of its locking and unlocking procedures. You can set the lock to be activated and deactivated via Bluetooth or fob key – ensuring that only the owner of the building can have access. Companies other than Evo Products make similar devices, although they are far more common in manual form for use in garages and lock-ups.

As the head of a household, there are some decorating and designing projects that you should take on by yourself. Either you have some vested interest in the outcome that is personal to you, or perhaps you have some form of expertise involved. However, for other decorating and designing projects, you should include your family as much as possible. All of you should come to conclusions together about what to do next.

So what are a few of these decisions that should be more of a collective opportunity? Whatever color you decide to paint the exterior of your house, there should be a consensus. As a family, you should choose where the main television is going to be. 

If you have a basement, you should get input from everyone in your family about what kinds of rooms you want down there if you plan on finishing the area. And, because hopefully everyone will be cooking and cleaning in the kitchen, any redesigns there should be a matter of public discussion.

Exterior Paint Colors

How your home looks from the outside is a matter of your family’s concern. Because of this, if you’re deciding the color of paint you want to use on your home or the color of your garage door, you should put it up for a vote. Have everyone come outside and look at your house from the street. Look at your neighbors’ homes. Decide what color makes you all happy together, and it will be a decision that everyone stands behind.

Where Is the TV?

If you decide to buy a new TV for your family, there is a decision that will come into play soon after. And that question is – where are you going to put the TV? Some members of your family may be most interested in having it in a living room, while others might want it in an entertainment room. TVs can be the center of attention, or they can be very distracting depending on the flow of energy within your family.

How To Finish the Basement

Maybe you’ve decided it’s time to finish the basement. That decision can be made unilaterally. But then there’s the idea of what to do with that basement as your finishing it. Do you want it to be another living room? Do you want to turn it into a game room? 

Maybe it should be a play area for younger children. Or maybe one person wants a bedroom down there. Whatever the decision, it should be made as a family.

The Layout of the Kitchen

Ideally, everyone in your family should participate in cooking and cleaning the kitchen. Because of this, the choice to remodel your kitchen should be one that everyone makes. The last thing you want is to make a decision on your own about how the kitchen should look and then find out the rest of your family does not approve.