5 Smart Home Upgrades That Are Good for Your Pocket and the Planet - Green Homes - MOTHER EARTH NEWS

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The synergy between the smart home and the sustainable home is a beautiful thing. Technology brings conveniences, and by reducing our consumption of water and energy, sustainability brings savings. Put these two powerful features together, and you have the sustainable smart home. This is a home that saves its owner money and the planet precious resources—by automating many of the things we forget to do, don’t know how to do, or don’t realize we need to do.

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XFINITY | Tethering & Hotspots: How to Stay Connected Wherever You Go

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Thanks to our smartphones, we’re always connected: We can keep in touch with the office from the beach, check our email in the school pick-up line, or post a picture of our lunch to social media just for fun. But what about the rest of our devices? When we’re not connected to our office or home Internet, how do we get our laptops and tablets online? Here we’ll look at how to use WiFi hotspots and smartphone tethering to make sure that wherever you go, whichever device you want to use, you can always stay connected.

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XFINITY | Best Cellphone Plans for Kids & Teens

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Handing your child their own cellphone is a big parenting step. It can open up a whole new world to your kids (one which requires much vigilance on your part), but it can also be just a simple tool to help you stay in touch. The right cellphone plan for your child will depend on what they use it for. Here’s an age-by-age guide to choosing a phone and phone plan for your child. 

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XFINITY | The New Rules of Switching Mobile Phone Carriers

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Phone “plans” have completely changed. Today, we consumers have multiple choices, lots more flexibility, plus the freedom to get a new phone when we want one, not on someone else’s timetable. Here are the new rules of switching carriers, plus the simple five-step way you can make a switch. 

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5 Signs You Need a New Phone

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There are those who rush out to buy the hot new phone every 6 to 12 months, and there are the rest of us who are perfectly happy to keep soldiering on with an aging device because, well, it still works. 

But does it really? Today’s phones aren’t about making phone calls anymore (although of course you can still do that). We use them for so much more: they’re our cameras, maps, photo albums, music players, and our connection to the social media world. When you think about all the functions they offer and conveniences they bring, it’s easier to consider “upgrading” when they’re not working so well anymore, or when they’re simply not providing the latest and greatest features.

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What’s the Difference Between iMessages & Text Messages?

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If you use an iPhone, you might wonder why some of your text messages are in a blue bubble and others are in a green bubble. This isn’t for looks, it’s how Apple indicates you’re sending an SMS text message (green) or an iMessage (blue). We can help you figure out what these options are and how to use them.

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5 Myths About Your Smart Phone Battery (and Real Tips for Preserving It)

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Smartphones have the mighty power of super computers in a tiny package that can fit in the palm of our hands. They allow us to communicate, find entertainment, get work done, manage our finances, navigate to our destinations, shop the Web, and so much more. That is… until the battery runs out. 

Avoid battery drain—and the anxiety that comes with it—by learning how to make your phone’s battery last longer and keep you connected when you need it most. Here we’ll bust five common myths about charging your iPhone or Android, plus provide helpful tips on getting the most out of every charge.

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Fact or Fiction: Do you know what data your car is sharing about you? - Esurance

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Connected cars are turbo-boosting everything about our driving experiences. We now have the luxury of tapping into the same 24/7 connectivity we rely on off the road when we get behind the wheel. What many people don't realize is that all the bells and whistles that make your commute smoother and your car trips more comfortable are also capturing data. Lots of data.

Read my deep-dive reasearch article for Esurance on this topic here.

 

How to Create the Smart Bathroom of Your Dreams - AllConnect.com

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You’ve heard of the smart home — homes equipped with technologies that provide convenience, comfort, and security. Now get ready for the smart bathroom – bathrooms that promise the same, along with improved cleanliness and safety. From motion-sensor lights to Bluetooth speakers, there’s a wealth of devices that can make your bathroom one of the smartest rooms in your home. Here are just a few reasons to invest in creating a smart bathroom.

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5 Household Robots That Make Your Life Easier - AllConnect.com

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Robots

Easily take care of common household chores and carve more time for yourself with the latest generation of household robots. Powered by artificial intelligence (AI), today’s robots can wash your floors, monitor your home’s climate, clean your windows, and more. Here are just some of the ways household robots can make managing your home easier.

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The Ultimate Guide: Protecting Your Kids Online - Modern Parents Messy Kids

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Children using the internet is a modern parenting dilemma.

How can we let them enjoy and benefit from this world-changing, infinitely educational tool that can span the globe in seconds while also protecting them from its potential dangers? Setting aside the issue of how much “screen time” children should have, here we will look at how to make that screen time safe, fun and productive—whether you are thinking of letting your preschooler play with your iPad or considering buying a computer or smartphone for your pre-teen.

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How to Monitor and Control Indoor Air Quality in Your Home | care2.com

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Indoor Air Quality

The air that we breathe is, quite literally, our life source. But it could also, quite possibly, be killing us. Air quality is becoming a modern crisis, with the World Health Organization (WHO) classifying air pollution as the world’s largest health risk, linking one in eight total global deaths to air pollution exposure, both indoor and out.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the air inside our homes is commonly five times more polluted than that of the outdoors, and in some cases, up to 10 times. So, what can you do to protect your health, and that of your family, from this silent killer lurking in your home? Detect and correct. Find out what is causing air pollution in your home and then take whatever steps you can to help correct or mitigate those causes. Here we’ll look at how you can achieve this.

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HOW AMERICANS ARE EMBRACING THE POWER OF THEIR HOMES | Earth911.com

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Smart Home

Just a few years ago, living off the grid conjured up images of tiny cabins in the middle of nowhere. Today, the dream of average American homeowners powering their homes with alternative energies is coming true. Solar panels on your neighbor’s roof are no longer an oddity, and electric cars are less of a curiosity and more of an everyday sight. It’s not hard to imagine a time when wind turbines in the backyard will be commonplace and geothermal heating an expected utility in all new homes.

Read the full article here.