5 Best Buy Smart Home Finds That Customers Love

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When it comes to shopping for consumer tech, Best Buy is an old reliable. The retailer has countless locations throughout the US, and sells everything from TVs and computers to appliances and the focus of today's roundup — smart home products. Over the last several years, Internet of Things (IoT) gadgetry has really taken off, to the point where even our grandmothers' houses are decked out with smart speakers and security cameras.

Whether you're looking to build your own smart home, or simply want to add some unique devices to your IoT ecosystem, Best Buy is a happy home to all things web-connected and app-controllable. As a matter of fact, the retailer sells a large stock of smart home gadgets, so we thought it best to whittle it down to five selections of our own. Our selection includes a host of gadget types, including smart displays, smart bulbs, and smart doorbells. As a bonus, we've also included a device that can make your dumb gadgets smart. The following five Best Buy finds are top-rated smart home products that received multiple glowing reviews from customers.

The $69.99 Amazon Echo Show 5 is one of several smart displays on the market, and Best Buy customers are big fans of the latest iteration. With its 5.5-inch touchscreen and built-in speaker, the Echo Show 5 is designed to sit on countertops, desks, and bedside tables, or any other flat surface in your home. Ideally, you'll choose a space that sees a lot of foot traffic, so you and yours can use the Echo Show 5 to check the weather, catch up on calendar events, stream music, and more — all with voice commands or Alexa app actions.

Most smart displays can control smart home devices, and the Echo Show 5 is no exception. The Amazon gadget supports Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Matter connectivity, and is compatible with more than 140,000 smart home devices. Use it to adjust smart lighting and thermostats, or to pick up a live feed from your video doorbell. We also like that Amazon included a built-in camera, which can be used to make video calls to friends and family via the Alexa app or another Echo Show.

We also appreciate the sliding camera shutter and microphone-disable button. Over 1,500 Best Buy customers reviewed the Echo Show 5, and it scored 4.6 out of 5 stars. Most folks praised the picture and sound quality, as well as how easy it is to use.

You can add devices and customize your smart home to your heart's content, but when you're just starting off, it's best to keep the onboarding simple. To that end, we think smart lights are a great jumping-off point, and Best Buy customers love the $53.99 TP-Link Tapo A19 Smart LED Bulb (5-Pack). It is one of the best smart light bulbs on Best Buy, with a 4.5 out of 5-star rating, based on over 130 reviews. Many users report an easy setup, bright, bountiful color options, and seamless integration with assistant tools like Alexa and Google Home.

As the product name would indicate, these are A19-style lights that thread into sockets just like a regular light bulb. All you have to do is download the Tapo app, walk through the setup wizard to add the bulbs to your Wi-Fi (no hub required), and you'll be good to go. You'll have millions of colors to choose from, and adjustable brightness for every hue. The app also lets you create lighting schedules to fool would-be thieves into thinking you're home (a page right out of the "Home Alone" handbook).

Reviews from multiple users and also the writer of this article who uses these TP-Link smart lights say they're incredibly easy to install, use, and customize. TP-Link also sells these smart A19 bulbs as a two-pack, and you can always add more lights to your network as you see fit.

Smart lights are fantastic, and so are smart displays, but you haven't truly reaped the benefits of automated convenience until you also use a smart thermostat. A regular thermostat definitely gets the job done, but we and over 400 Best Buy customers would like to recommend the $169.99 Ecobee Enhanced Smart Thermostat.

Score-wise, the device earned a 4.7 out of 5 stars from Best Buy shoppers, and most reviews applaud the thermostat's ease of use, quick install, and reliable performance. One of our favorite features of the Ecobee Enhanced is its built-in radar sensor, which automatically preheats or pre-cools your home or business before you walk through the door. You can also use the Ecobee app to manually adjust the temperature, create schedules, and monitor HVAC usage and make the most out of your smart thermostat.

The thermostat is even compatible with voice assistants like Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri, meaning you can pair it with a smart speaker or display from these brands and use it via voice controls. The Ecobee Enhanced is compatible with the majority of heating and cooling systems, but we suggest using the Compatibility Checker on Ecobee's support page to confirm it'll work with your HVAC gear.

Home security shouldn't need to cost an arm and a leg, and devices like the $109.99 Eufy E340 2K Video Doorbell with Dual Cameras are great examples of top-shelf surveillance for less than $200. The E340 features two 2K lenses: one at the top of the bell, and the other aimed toward the ground. Both home security cameras work in unison to achieve full head-to-toe coverage with clear, colorful visuals. There's also an onboard motion sensor that auto-triggers the E340's LEDs, which can come in handy if you're arriving home late at night.

Many smart device manufacturers are incorporating AI these days, and the E340 too uses it to alert you when a package arrives or if someone approaches the parcel before you. As you may have guessed, all setup and remote controls are done through Eufy's app, and the doorbell has 8GB of storage (netting you about 60 days of recordings). Other noteworthy features include Alexa and Google Home compatibility, and the option of a battery-only or wired install. Do keep in mind that if you choose the latter, you'll still need to use the E340 battery, in addition to doorbell wiring.

Best Buy shoppers gave this one a 4.5 out of 5 stars, based on over 460 reviews. One particular review blurb stood out to us, mentioning that the E340 has been a great upgrade so far (they upgraded from a Ring Video Doorbell 4). The customer liked that it has a higher resolution camera, better motion detection, and an additional lower camera for packages.

When you want to add automation to the "dumb" devices in your life (e.g., pillar fans, lamps, window air conditioners, etc.), a smart plug is one of the best investments you can make. According to Best Buy's loyal shoppers, you should go with the $29.99 TP-Link Tapo Smart Plug (2-Pack), which is also available in a pack of three or individually. Based on over 1,000 reviews, the masses bestowed a 4.7 out of 5-star score, with most people loving how easy the plugs were to set up and how simple they were to control.

Just insert one of the Tapo plugs into an AC outlet, and use the Tapo app to connect the plugs to your Wi-Fi after completing the initial setup via Bluetooth. The plugs are compatible with Alexa, Google Home, Apple HomeKit, and even Samsung SmartThings, allowing you to power appliances on or off using voice commands or app actions. Speaking of which, the Tapo app is also great for manual controls and customizations, and will let you create schedules and timers for the plugs to follow.

A word of warning: if you're planning on connecting a power strip to one of these smart plugs, please don't. The combined amperage of the strip itself and whatever is plugged into it may cause your Tapo plugs to overheat. Fortunately, manufacturers like Kasa also make smart power strips with individually-controllable outlets.

When putting this list together, we wanted to highlight some of the most important IoT categories, namely home security, lighting, temperature, and hub devices for voice command and touchscreen controls. We also stuck to reliable brand names that a number of readers may already be familiar with, and we also tried to highlight items with fair pricing.