If you’ve ever drooled over the tech features of the homes on MTV’s Cribs or wondered what it would be like to have a talking refrigerator of your own, you’re not alone. Tech savvy elements are gaining popularity with home owners around the world.
From multi-millionaires to the average Joe in the suburbs, luxurious technology touches can make everyone feel at home. Apartments, condos, and town homes are becoming more equipped with high-tech options, too. Not only are there more tech savvy home features and options available on the market, they’re actually getting more affordable for those of us who aren’t millionaires. Check out these ten tech savvy homes to get inspiration for your next home improvement.
Interesting Tech Savvy Homes
Bryan Cranston’s Green Beach House
The Breaking Bad star has some seriously badass style. His newly finished beach house, close to Los Angeles, California is breathtakingly gorgeous. Complete with solar panels, sustainable titanium cladding, and programmable automated shades, this home is a coveted high-tech “love shack” (as Cranston called it).
But the real tech innovations lie in the home’s garage. An auto lift (to free up space), a whole house vacuum system, and an ELAN g! Home System (controlling things like lighting and security) create the perfect cutting-edge beachside residence. Cranston’s efforts to make sustainable home improvements can be seen through the Cranston Residence Project.
Bill Gates’ Xanadu 2.0 Estate
Billionaire and founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates, dreamt of a high-tech home concept and made it happen. This 66,000 sq. ft. estate sits quietly on a lake in Medina, Washington. The roof is stainless steel, full of high-definition TV monitors, and has computer terminals where all the electronics can be controlled. The coolest part may be the little pin that you wear, which allows the home to know who and where you are.
Plus, all the music, lighting, and climate controls are controlled with an incredible high-tech structure that is amazing enough to be considered art. With underground burrows and underground garages, there are plenty of features in this estate that just have to be viewed in person to be believable. Until you get a chance to become BFF status with one of the most famous tech geeks in history, here’s a couple of snapshots of the estate:
Harbour Hide in Dorset, UK
This beach house is loaded with tech features that are impressive enough to make you forget you’re at the beach. It’s packed with Android tablets in each room (for controlling lights, music, and temperature—totally setting the mood for anything and everything). It’s even got more technically intense features–like electronic photochromic glass – that darkens or lightens depending on the sunlight level.
And if you love to swim, this place is your sanctuary. It’s got a hidden, endless-lap jet stream current pool that is temperature controlled by a tablet. The round architecture and sand colored exterior is sleek and fitting for its location. Take a look:
Friary on the Severn
This colonial-era home used to be a Capuchin monastery before it was restored to its current state. The residents that bought it decided to keep its historic charm but with modern features. As such, the tech features are out of this world. It has a central control room that manages all the other rooms’ temperatures, humidity, and lighting levels. Pool temperatures can be changed too.
The property boasts ten bedrooms, ten bathrooms, and views of the Severn River (hence the name). Located in Annapolis, Maryland, this beautiful estate is monitored by a network of high-tech surveillance cameras and has extensive electronics—including an elaborate entertainment center and high-speed Internet to connect everything.
HDTV’s Smart Home 2013
This tech savvy home is undeniably well equipped and is part of the giveaway home series from HDTV. This home is the perfect example of a high tech home heaven. The home has control of almost all its features in one spot—the docking station. Door locks, lighting, security, shade, and entertainment systems can be controlled in a touchscreen format at the entrance.
Amazing lighting schedules fit with the resident’s schedule and adjust to the sunsets and sunrises. This home is green too, allowing the homeowners to review energy costs with consumption monitoring. An impressive audio system is linked to streaming and personal libraries and the toilets are self-cleaning. Enough said.
Green Orchard
This home has “green” in its name for a reason. Located outside Bristol, England, the home is covered in solar panels and aluminum, so residents can enjoy the power of controlling the sunlight and temperature in the house. Electronic sliding shutters keep it cool or warm based on the sun’s strength and wood powered heat and energy keep a low carbon footprint.
Plus, there’s a rooftop heat-exchanger mechanism made by Vent-Axia that produces heat, and the insulation is made out of recycled newspaper. Sustainable technology makes this home a great choice for environmental enthusiasts. And it just looks like a house from the future:
Will Smith’s Mobile Mansion
The mobile estate that Will Smith uses as his home away from home will make any home owner jealous. It is by far more high-tech than most average homes, with expanding sides at the touch of a button and two stories of luxury living. It includes a universal remote control system, a wardrobe room (with TVs in the mirrors, of course) and a state-of-the-art screening room for the A-Lister when he is on set or away from his normal abode.
Star Trek inspired doors and a fully loaded bathroom (complete with shower doors that transition to be opaque) make this mobile home a winner in high-tech luxury. Check it out:
D*Haus
Continuing with the unique theme of moving homes, the D*Haus is a revolutionary concept in home design. It literally moves depending on the environment, season, or time of day. Its complex architectural elements allow it to become eight different houses in one. If that concept is too difficult to grasp, just imagine one big Rubik’s cube unfolding. Easy enough. Now, just imagine that Rubik’s cube is a fully functional house (mind-blowing).
The dynamic home moves as the internal walls become external walls while the doors become windows. The coolest part about this home style is its ability to mimic natural surroundings. It can open up (like a flower) based on the climate and the solar panels provide affordable energy—making this home super high-tech and environmentally friendly. Take a look:
Serenity Falls at The Timbers
If you’ve ever wanted a $6 million dollar surveillance system surrounded by gorgeous Colorado forests, this mansion is sure to be your dream home. It has a ton of high-tech security features: night vision cameras (which can be watched anywhere in the world), thermal-imaging cameras, and an intricate tracking system that can detect things like a spike in interior temperature.
Located on a beautiful plot of land—32-acres to be exact—the estate is perfect for all the James Bond personalities out there. It also includes a six stall horse set-up, a recreational basketball court, all surrounded by the beautiful Ponderosa pine forest. Check out the photos of this 007-style mountain oasis in Evergreen, Colorado:
Italian Villa in Laguna Beach
Luxury homes are abundant in the Golden State. But extravagant, oceanfront Tuscan villas? Not so much. This beautiful estate in the Emerald Bay community is beyond picturesque with wrap around decks and twinkle lights for magical nights.
High-tech features include: a temperature controlled wine room, an elevator to navigate three levels of real-estate heaven, and a gourmet kitchen full of state-of-the art appliances. If you’ve got almost $20 million to spare, you’re in luck—this beauty is for sale. View these photos and try not to drool:
Conclusion
So as you can see, tech savvy home features are on the rise in many different types of homes around the globe. Having a high-tech home means much more than just installing a great home theater.
Now, if you want to be envied among the high-tech crowd, you’ve got to have security systems, remote controlled indoor climate, or a set of walls and windows that can change position. Even if you’re not a millionaire, you can still hook your home up with some of these tech features to stay up to date and impress all your friends.
