GoKawiilSmartwings Roller Shades 4.5 / 5 Very good pros and cons Pros The Smartwings brand offers some of the best value for money in smart window treatments.
Installation is easy, and the shades are simple to use.
Lots of customization, and solar panels for recharging. Cons The shades give off a plastic smell in the room for the first three days after installation.
There's no way to manually control the shades if the battery dies unexpectedly. $174.99 at Amazon
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There's nothing like having an "open sesame" moment when you wake up in the morning and your window shades automatically roll up. There are various ways to automate existing shades and curtains, and while smart window treatments can get expensive quickly, the Smartwings brand offers some great value for money.
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I've had the Smarwings shades in my home for a few months, but I suffered a back fracture that prevented me from installing them. After finally enlisting my husband to install them, I was actually surprised by how easy the process was. Of course, I couldn't do them with multiple broken vertebrae, but he did it in a few minutes.
My hands-on experience
I've seen and used many smart and motorized shades at work, and I was incredibly impressed by the Smartwings models. I've tried the newest models at trade shows, used older versions at short-term rentals, and have tried several retrofit options at home. Smartwings proved to offer some of the best value alternatives to premium smart shades, namely those from Lutron.
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