The U.S. Leads the Smart Home Market, But Which Company Dominates?

The U.S. leadsThe U.S. currently has about 4.6 million smart homes and that number will spike to 24.5 million by 2020. And over the next five years, the U.S. will continue to outpace the rest of the world, according to Statista. Image credit: Statista.

The opportunityAlphabet, Apple, Amazon, and others have made huge steps into the connected home. And with ABI Research predicting that U.S. smart home revenue will hit $34 billion by 2020, the competition is heating up. Image credit: Apple.

Apple’s major push into the smart home market is the company’s HomeKit system, which allows third-party hardware to work together as one, with Apple’s devices at the center. Users can give Siri voice commands, which can control individual devices or control entire “scenes” in the home. For example, a person can tell Siri, “I’m going to bed” and the doors will lock and the lights will turn out.

Apple

Image credit: Apple.

AppleTV can also work as a hub for its smart home system, allowing users to control devices even while they’re away from their home. To get device makers on board with HomeKit, Apple created its “Works with HomeKit” standard, so both users and device makers will know the system will work well together with other smart home products.

Apple

Image credit: Apple.

AlphabetAlphabet’s Google has made some major moves in the smart home space as well. In 2014, Google purchased the smart home thermostat and smoke alarm maker Nest Labs for $3.2 billion. Since then, Nest has released its own developer standards so that non-Nest products can communicate with its own devices, and purchased security camera maker Dropcam.

Image credit: Nest.

AlphabetBut Google has also created its own Internet of Things operating system, called Brillo. While Brillo is designed to do more than just manage smart home products, Google will use it for its smart home products as well. And most recently, Google debuted OnHub, which is a Wi-Fi router that will likely become the heart of a Google-powered smart home.Image credit: Google.

SamsungSamsung’s SmartThings works across iOS, Android and Windows Phone platforms. You can write rules for the connected devices to do specific things when you sleep, wake up, leave, or come home. Samsung recently released a new version of its SmartThings Hub, which can connect everything from a washing machine to garage door opener.

Image credit: Samsung.

SamsungAside from working across all the major mobile platforms, SmartThings also uses an open platform to connect a plethora of devices made by Honeywell, First Alert, D-Link, Kwikset, Bose, and many others. By combining Samsung’s own smartphones, appliances, and wearable devices with other device makers’ products the company is building one of the strongest smart home systems.

Image credit: Samsung.

AmazonAmazon’s current smart home ambitions are a bit less developed than Apple and Alphabet’s, but no less clear. The company’s voice-activated Echo plays music, tells you the weather, and can answer questions, but it can also be used as smart home hub. The Echo can connect to Philips, Samsung, WeMo, and other device makers to control lighting, thermostats, and door locks with voice commands.

Image credit: Amazon.

Amazon’s trying to extend the Echo’s reach by putting the device up for sale in retail stores this holiday season. The Echo will be available in 3,000 retail locations, including Home Depot. By offering the device at physical locations, Amazon can target users who are already in stores looking at smart home devices. Image credit: Amazon.

Amazon

Who’s in the lead?The smart home market is still in its early stages right now, which makes picking a winner difficult. After all, these companies don’t exactly break out a smart home revenue segment we can compare. But Samsung’s SmartThings is constantly increasing the amount devices that are compatible with its system and has one of the most complete home automation platforms right now. If we pair that with Samsung’s prolific mobile and wearable devices, it gives the company an advantage in the smart home space right now. Image credit: Samsung.

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