Are People Actually Using Smart Technology In Their Homes?

• Despite the wave of new connected home products, many Americans have been slow to embrace the technology.
• A recent Harris poll found that nearly two-thirds of Americans aren’t very familiar with smart home technology.
• High cost remains one of the top barriers for the majority of Americans.

The Internet of Things has been a major buzz-phrase in the technology world and on Wall Street in recent years. But are we already living in a world of connected homes, or is that still years down the road for the average American?

Americans skeptical
According to a couple of recent studies, Americans aren’t as aware or accepting of smart phone technology as some may expect. A Harris survey recently found that 64 percent of Americans admit that they aren’t very familiar with smart home technology.

Another recent study conducted by Nielson found that only 53 percent of household decision makers report knowing what connected home technology can do.

The numbers
The Harris poll indicates that the most common connected home device is currently wireless speaker systems, which are found in about 17 percent of households. Wireless speakers are followed by smart thermostats (11 percent) smart home security systems (9 percent) and domestic robots (8 percent).


Cost barrier
The survey found that much of the nation’s unwillingness to go smart at home is cost-based. Harris found that 88 percent of Americans consider smart home items to be too expensive, and 37 percent of those respondents would consider buying smart home technology if/when prices drop in the future.

How to play it
It seems as if it’s only a matter of time before the average home will have so much connected technology that George Jetson could take up residence. Investors that want to get in on the Internet of Things wave should consider buying Cisco Systems, Inc. CSCO, Alphabet Inc GOOG GOOGL and International Business Machines Corp. IBM.

Disclosure: the author holds no position in the stocks mentioned.