Smarthome News & Trends
What's happening with PIXIE and smarthome automation technology - opinions, ideas, hacks, hints and tips to help you deliver better outcomes.
How to diagnose a smart home that’s misbehaving: a guide for electricians
The smart home callout most often arriving in a sparky's day looks something like this. A homeowner installed something themselves from a hardware store, wired it into a wall plate, paired it with their phone, and now half the time it works and half the time it...
The smart home buyer’s checklist: ten questions to ask before you spec
A smart home is a ten-year decision. The wiring goes in during construction or a substantial renovation, the devices stay on the wall for at least the lifetime of one phone cycle and usually several, and the buyer typically lives with whatever they specified for far...
Choosing your smart home ecosystem: Apple Home, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, Samsung SmartThings
The ecosystem layer is the part of a smart home a buyer actually touches every day. It determines which app sits on the phone, which voice assistant answers when called, which speakers carry the audio, and how scenes and automations are built and changed over time. In...
Matter and Thread explained: the promise and the reality for Australian smart home buyers
Matter was supposed to fix the smart home. The standard was announced with extraordinary industry support, the four largest consumer technology platforms agreed to work together for the first time in a decade, and the promise was that buyers would finally be free of...
Smart home protocols compared: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Mesh, Thread, ZigBee
The protocol layer is where most smart home reliability is won or lost, and it is the layer least talked about by the industry that sells the gear. A buyer choosing between two products that both "support smart home control" might think they are comparing roughly...
How a smart home actually works: the four-layer model
Most smart home confusion comes from collapsing four different things into one. A brochure for any "smart home system" is, almost without exception, talking about at least two of them, and possibly all four, but rarely says which is which. Once a buyer can see the...
Smart Home Explained, Part 1 of 7
Most smart home buying decisions get made by comparing features, but the gap between a system that works and one that frustrates almost never sits in the feature list. It sits in the architecture: the engineering choices made before the first switch goes on the wall,...
Lithium Battery Charging Protection Power Point for Aged Care and Retirement Villages
A simpler way to reduce charging risk without apps, programming, or resident confusion. Mobility scooters, e-bikes, and power chairs are everywhere. The challenge for maintenance teams is not just charging them. It is keeping charging simple, consistent, and easy to manage across multiple rooms, apartments, and common areas.
Smart Ducted Aircon & Zoning: Real Energy Savings or Just Clever Marketing?
Zoning saves real energy. PIXIE makes binary dampers behave smart. Premium per-room systems are about comfort and fine-tuning, not magical bill cuts. If you are an electrician or installer, your customers are asking: do zoned ducted systems really save power, or is it just marketing? This article gives you a clear, honest answer, and the evidence to back it.
LED Flicker in NSW & QLD Solved: The Definitive Guide to Zellweger Ripple Control and How to Fix It for Good
The definitive guide to Zellweger ripple control, why your LED lights flicker at the same time every day, and the four robust ways to fix it for good.
Sports field lighting control that plays to win: why PIXIE Portal changes the game
Tired of lost keys, clunky time clocks and lights left on all night? There’s a better way to run your ovals, courts and club facilities; simply, reliably, and with full accountability. We know that most most clubs, schools and councils really want from lighting...
Smart Home Canberra: The Homeowner’s Upgrade Guide to Whole-Home Comfort, Control and the Missing Middle
Got a smart speaker and a few bulbs… but your home still doesn’t feel smart? You’re not alone. Across Canberra, households are discovering what you probably already suspect: retail gadgets are a fun start, but they rarely turn a house into a smart home. This guide is...
Smart Home Canberra for Electricians: The PIXIE Retrofit Playbook for Renovations and the Missing Middle
Want more profitable smart home jobs with fewer call-backs in the ACT? Canberra is full of homes that started “smart” at retail and stalled. Owners have speakers, a few bulbs and a camera or two. What they don’t have is a home that behaves. That gap is your...
How do I change my smart home from NERO Environexus to PIXIE?
Thousands of Australian homes are asking the same thing right now: how do I upgrade from NERO Environexus to PIXIE after the NERO/Environexus cloud and servers stopped working? If your NERO smart home has lost app control or remote access, you’re not alone. This guide...
How to Fix LED Lights Flickering in Australia
Fixing LED downlights flickering in Australia is explained with simple step by step process, depending on where in Australia you live and if you have an LED dimmer.
PIXIE’s Smart Socket Power Point Making Homes Smarter
The PIXIE Smart Socket Outlet is a Bluetooth enabled, twin GPO (or double powerpoint) that works with both the PIXIE and PIXIE PLUS Apps. Each of the socket outlets can accept any electrical appliance like irons, hair straighteners, pedestal fans vaporisers and...
3 Smarthome Essentials for Australian Property Developers
Smarthome technology is becoming an essential inclusion for Australian property developers, whether as an option or inclusive in the basic offering to attract customers and provide value for money beyond the 4 walls and luxury inclusions in kitchens and bathrooms.
The Perfect Smarthome System for Property Developers in Australia
Finding the perfect smarthome system for property developers in Australia is a challenging task today with many choices on the market. As with most technology, not all smarthome systems are created equal either, and some are not really even that smart. Maybe that’s ok...
5 Reasons Smarthome Timers are a Must Have
Smarthome timers are a must have addition to any home automation installation or upgrade. Timers and schedulers are one of the most versatile components to introduce automatic actions throughout your smarthome that both save energy and enhance your lifestyle. And...
Top 3 Tips to Choose a Home Automation System in Australia
It's 2024 and there have never been so many choices for home automation systems in Australia. But not all home automation systems are equal on performance, price or support - the 3 key decision makers for home owners considering installation of a home automation...