Smart Home

The iRobot Braava jet 240 won't replace a traditional mop and bucket on really dirty floors, but it does keep floors clean and dust free in between deep cleanings.

While it lacks professional monitoring, Ooma's Smart security system is inexpensive and easy to use.

The Echo Flex plug-in smart speaker ($24.99) might not sound superb, but its Alexa integration and supported accessories make it a practical smart home gadget.

Amazon's second-gen Echo is more attractive and more affordable than the original, and it sounds just as good, too.

August's first wireless doorbell camera looks great, but its software needs work.

While not the most capable, this smart plug is inexpensive, and does all the basics.

For less than $100, the Blink XT2 is a good truly wireless outdoor security camera.

Get the PicoBrew Pico C if you want a relatively easy way to taste beers from around the world.

The Google Home Mini looks and sounds better than Amazon's smallest Alexa speaker, but it’s not quite as versatile.

The smart LIFX Candle Color bulb packs imaginative polychrome technology, letting it light up a space with multiple shades at once.

The SimpliSafe home security kit is easy to set up and even easier to use.

Real live guards watch your property 24/7 through the Deep Sentinel security camera system.

Music lovers with deep wallets looking for a powerful outdoor speaker that doubles as a cooler should check out the Thomas & Darden Kube.

The Netatmo Welcome's facial recognition keeps track of a household's residents and creates individual user profiles for each person.

Alexa makes more inroads into your kitchen with Amazon's smart oven.

While still a bit confused about what it wants to be, the second Echo Show is a huge improvement over the first.

Philips new Hue Play Sync Box lets you create surround lighting effects when playing games and watching movies.

Thanks to its remote sensors and scheduling features, the Honeywell T9 Smart Thermostat can keep your entire house comfortable.

Get the Wyze Cam if you want a very inexpensive wireless security camera with a surprising number of features.

Despite a low price and free cloud storage, this is one budget video doorbell to pass by.

For less than $100, you can get an excellent-sounding Sonos speaker, sold by Ikea.

For $179, Sonos and Ikea present this smart speaker that doubles as a futuristic table lamp.

The Gate smart lock combines a smart lock and video doorbell in one, but its rough edges make it less attractive than separate devices.

This affordable Roomba is easy to set up and use, and it cleans well around furniture.

This smartphone-controlled countertop oven can recognize food and tell you how to cook it.

This countertop oven excels at cooking all sorts of food and can be controlled from your phone. But it's very expensive.

The GarageMate Garage Door Remote Control and App is an ultra-simple and affordable garage door opener that you control from your smartphone, but other openers such as the Chamberlain MyQ and Nexx have many more features.

While setup is a bit tricky, Garadget provides a secure way to open your garage door using your smartphone.

The Nexx Garage smart garage door opener offers a solid array of useful features with loads of functionality built into the app, once you can get through a frustrating setup process.

Kid-friendly Alexa and Amazon's FreeTime Unlimited is a hoot on the Echo Dot Kids Edition, with age-appropriate answers, skills, music and audiobooks, plus solid controls to empower good parenting.