It’s Easy to ‘Deck The Halls’ with Whole-Home Control  

The holidays are just around the corner, which means it’s time to cue the music and prepare your home for hosting, relaxing, and maybe even traveling. But before you hang another wreath or string a single light, it’s worth asking: is our outdated home technology adding unnecessary stress to the holiday season? 

If your AV system is lagging, your lighting still runs on manual switches, or your security feels more “1995” than “smart,” now’s the perfect time for a tech refresh.

Here are three smart home upgrades that can make your home more secure, festive, and frankly, more enjoyable for the holidays every year. 

1. Whole-Home Audio That Actually Fills the House

The holidays are made for sound, whether it’s your favorite jazz playlist during dinner, classic carols while decorating the tree, or a movie soundtrack rumbling while you bake cookies. 

A modern whole-home audio system lets you enjoy music in every room, indoors and out, with no delay, no disconnects, and no clunky setup. You can group speaker zones together right from your phone or wall keypad, then queue your go-to playlist with a single voice command. That means no more running around with a Bluetooth speaker that barely gets past the next room.

Plus, when you sync your TV to the multi-room speaker system, you won’t miss a single football touchdown over your sizzling holiday roast.

​​2. Smarter Lighting for Mood—and a Festive Touch

In winter, when natural light is in short supply, your home’s lighting plays a bigger role than ever.

Tunable smart lighting lets you shift your bulbs’ brightness and color temperature throughout the day, starting bright and cool in the morning to help you wake up, and adjusting to warmer tones in the evening to wind down naturally. 

You can set lighting “scenes” like “Dinner,” or “Cozy Movie Night,” all easily controlled from a single app or wall keypad. With one tap of a button, all your lights gently adjust to the perfect color and brightness level. 

Plus, tunable lighting can be festive too. Want red and green lighting for your entryway? Or soft blue and white for a snowy effect indoors? You can make that happen without stringing a single novelty light.

Outdoor lighting control also makes it easy to decorate your house. Set a schedule for your roofline or landscape lights to turn on at sunset and switch off automatically at night, no ladders or tangled cords required. This isn’t just a winter feature—you’ll love using your smart outdoor lighting come summer, too. 

3. Updated Home Security: Because Travel Season Means Risk

Whether you’re flying out for New Year’s or just hitting a few back-to-back holiday dinners, your home is at more risk this time of year. That makes this a great time to evaluate your security system.

Modern home security goes far beyond door sensors. Today’s systems integrate motion-triggered lighting, remote monitoring, video doorbells, and automated locks that notify you when someone enters or when a package gets dropped on your porch.

And for families expecting lots of deliveries (who isn’t?), adding surveillance and smart locks is one of the easiest ways to deter porch pirates and keep your front door under control.

Make the Most of the Season

There’s nothing more frustrating than tech that doesn’t work when you need it most. A quick system update or a few targeted upgrades can go a long way toward making your home more comfortable and secure—not just during the holidays, but all year long. And with whole-home automation, you’ll control audio, video, lighting, and security, all from one convenient system. 

Ready to see what’s possible? Automated Living serves homeowners across Louisville and Indiana with custom AV, lighting, and smart home solutions. Let’s get your home holiday-ready. Contact us to learn more today.