The $3,000 Smart Home Challenge

Season 5 of The Digital Ramble is all about achieving those Smart Home goals with real world budgets. JJ Canon and Kris Gamble tackle the most common rooms and spaces in the home with $3,000 budgets. First up in part 1 is the Kitchen and Family Room. Join us in the comments with what tech you would have in your kitchen or family room.

Family Room by JJ Canon: "The Walls are Coming Down"

The Scenario: The walls are coming down and what once was an isolated Living Room has now been expanded into an open plan entertainment space. The Family Room is pre-wired and this home owner already owns a new big screen TV. They explicitly don't want a big bulky rack full of gear.

The Fix:

• Sonos Amp with Sonos In-Ceiling Speakers by Sonance $1,199

• Sonos Sub $699

• Pro-ject Essential III Turntable $390

• Philips Hue four bulb kit - color ambiance $120

• Lutron Aurora Smart bulb rotary dimmer $40

• Installation and set up $550

⭐TOTAL $2,998⭐

Kitchen by Kris Gamble: "Kitchen Wars"

The Scenario: Our neighbors have just completed their new Kitchen and never stop going on about it. We are giving our Kitchen a makeover this Autumn. What smart tech can we add to make their jaws drop?

The Fix:

• Sonos Play:5 £449

• Lutron RA2 Select Dimmers and Pico £850

• Google Nest Hub Max £219

• Smarter Coffee Gen2 Smart Coffee Machine £199

• Installation and set up £600

⭐TOTAL £2317⭐

Episode 31 is sponsored by OneAV. Check out the Cel-Fi range of mobile phone boosters.

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$3,000 is all I can spend - Smart Home Challenge Part 2 - Episode 32

Season 5 of The Digital Ramble is all about achieving those Smart Home goals with real world prices. JJ and Kris tackle the most common rooms and spaces in the home with $3,000 budgets. Part 2 takes us outdoors with focus on garden, outbuildings and protecting your home. Join us in the comments with what tech you would use in the scenarios described.

"Home When Away" by Kris Gamble - £2400 BUDGET.

A new job out of town means I'm only home at the weekend for the foreseeable. I need a tech injection to provide me with additional security front and rear of the house, control over the heating and alerts if anything goes wrong like fire or flood.

• Unifi CCTV and Recorder £600

• Lutron RA2 Select Dimmers and Pico £700

• Google Nest Hello £219

• Nest Protect smoke detector and Fibaro flood sensors £250

• Cable materials £50

• Installation and set up £575

⭐TOTAL £2394⭐

"The Great Outdoors" by JJ Canon - $3000 BUDGET

My back yard and patio lack any wow factor. I'm out of town a lot during the week, but on the weekends I'm planning lots of parties. So I'm thinking my patio needs a tech boost.

1. lawn - mama made a major investment in the yard, she like her yellow roses and I need to keep them alive.

2. tunes - George Straight, Willie, Florida Georgia Line

3. wifi - needs wifi, data bill is killin him

4. cooking - BBQ

5. gotta know - Keep an eye on the deer feeder and his chicken coop.

6. I've got $3000 to work with, what do you think?

• Eero Wifi $399

• 8 zone Rachio Kit $149

• Sonos Amp $599

• Ring Stick-Up Cams with solar $458

• Meater temperature sensor $99

• Installation and set up $700

⭐TOTAL $2,404⭐

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The $3000 Smart Home Challenge Part 3- Episode 33 - The Digital Ramble

"Atmos and 4K Upgrade" by JJ Canon - $3000 BUDGET

Out of date media room needs a 2019 refresh. Currently situation: 5.1 setup with some DefTech tower speakers, wall mounted center, wall mounted rears and an active sub. Desire: Upgrade the projector to 4k and wants Dolby Atmos. Also it would be good to just have one single remote for the room. $3000 budget! Can I get it done?

• Epson - Home Cinema 4010 4K 3LCD Projector with High Dynamic Range - $2,000

• Yamaha - AVENTAGE 7.2-Ch. 3D, 4K Passthrough, HDR Compatible 110W per channel, A/V Home Theater Receiver - $650

• Definitive Technology - DI 5.5 - $500 pair

• Logitech Harmony Companion Remote - $150

• Misc. Materials - 4K HDMI Cables & speaker wires - $120

• Installation - $700
  

⭐TOTAL $4,120⭐

"Holiday at Home" by Kris Gamble - £2400 BUDGET.

My husband and I enjoy the luxurious feel of a hotel room when we get away but with a growing family time away is rare. We’d like to recreate a luxury hotel vibe in our home. What tech can we add to the rooms to create our adult sanctuary? We have a £2400 budget.

• Lutron RA2 Select Dimmers and Pico £550

• Google Nest Home Hub £99

• Sonos Beam £399

• Sonos One £199

• Sonos brackets £50

• Lutron motorised blind £600

• Installation and set up £500
  

⭐TOTAL £2397⭐

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The $3,000 Smart Home Challenge Part 4

Part 4 focuses squarely on new construction and new homes.

👉 What wires do you need?

👉 How much does it cost?

👉 What are the tech essentials for your home?

Join us in the comments with what tech you would use in a new home.

Kris Gamble - "The New UK Home" - you’ve got £2400 to spend on the essentials that a new home being built should have as standard. Small family home, single story, 3 bedrooms.

• Design & Wiring Checklist for Electrician - £300 Must have cables - CAT6, coaxial and speaker wire - £350

• Site visit before boarding - £150

• 2nd fix materials including wiring panel and white outlets - £300

• 2nd fix labor to deal with all those wires - £500

• Wifi System by Unifi - 2 internal and 1 external access point, 8 port Poe switch, router and controller

• All Set Up - £850

⭐ TOTAL £2450 ⭐

JJ Canon - "The New American Home" - you’ve got $3000 to spend on the Smart Home essentials you should invest in for your new home. Smart Home Starter Kit

• Wifi - 1 Eero and 2 Beacons - $259

• Nest Hello Doorbell - $229

• 2 x Nest Protect Smoke Detectors - $238

• Nest Camera Outdoor - $199

• Exterior Lighting for Security - $599 (2) Maestro LED dimmer, (1) Main repeater, (1) Pico.

• Irrigation - Rachio - $227

• Labor - $1200

⭐ TOTAL $2,951 ⭐

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The $3000 Smart Home Challenge Finale

Season 5 of The Digital Ramble is all about achieving those Smart Home goals with real world prices. JJ and Kris tackle the most common rooms and spaces in the home with $3,000 budgets. The season finale is our wrap up show reviewing some of the choices we made in the challenges and the methods you can use for controlling your Smart Home.

Stay tuned to the end for the Gamble Ramble about the Campaign for Smart Homes.

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If you’d like more information about any Smart Home products or services please get in touch with the show via Instagram or Facebook messaging services or drop us a voice message on Anchor. We’d love a review or rating on Apple Podcasts if you get a moment.

🙏Thank you for all of our Patreons that support the show. If you would like to support us, contribute here: https://www.patreon.com/thedigitalramble

🤗Our day jobs: JJ - https://www.digitaldelight.com/ Gamble- https://www.customised.uk.com/

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