is a senior reviewer with over twenty years of experience. She covers smart home, IoT, and connected tech, and has written previously for Wirecutter, Wired, Dwell, BBC, and US News.
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I am not, by any definition, a coder, but when I started seeing people’s vibe-coded smart home projects all over my social feeds this month, I was intrigued. From a “master command center” built on a Lutron system to AI controlling a smart oven, people were unleashing AI in their smart homes, using Claude Code to build tools that would normally take weeks to create by hand. The barrier between “I wish this existed” and “I made it” suddenly looked remarkably thin. So, what did I wish existed in my home? A decent smart home dashboard.
I’ve been reviewing smart home devices for over a decade, and the constant switching and swapping of lights, locks, sensors, and more has resulted in a Frankenstein-ed home that’s entirely unmanageable through a single interface or app.
I run three platforms regularly — Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Apple Home — alongside tinkering with Samsung SmartThings, Home Assistant, and Homey. Plus, I have over a dozen bridges and hubs bringing more devices into play, including Lutron Caseta, Philips Hue, Aqara, Ikea, and Aeotec.
Too few of my devices talk to each other, and when they do, it’s not for long. Network drop-offs and broken integrations abound, making it an ongoing headache to set up and maintain automations and sensor-based routines.
My smart home feels more Mary Shelley than Jetsons
I’ve struggled for years to get the lights in my Minka-Aire ceiling fans (paired via a Bond Bridge) to work reliably with the Philips Hue lights in my kids’ bedrooms, and I’ve got oddities like a Wi-Fi-connected Sleep Number bed that knows everything about me but talks to nothing.
While the smart home standard Matter is starting to address some of these interoperability issues, it’s largely failed to help with existing devices. All of this has left me with a smart home that feels more Mary Shelley than Jetsons.
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