The sky’s the limit for smart home security – here’s what to expect in 2021

Anthony Pu is the Team Lead for Product Marketing and Go-To-Market at Ring.

Over the past year, the pandemic has transformed our everyday life, turning our homes into our workplace, school, daycare, fitness studio and restaurant – all in one. With this increase in time spent at home, more people are recognizing the importance of adopting connected home security technology to keep their households and families safe and secure.

What does this mean for 2021? Let’s take a look at some of the things we expect to see as the smart home security industry evolves over the next year.

Accessibility for the masses

Smart home security products like video doorbells, alarms and floodlight cameras were hot commodities among early adopters and techies, and now, even more households have caught on to the benefit of these devices.

According to the Statista Research Department, the Canadian smart home market is forecast to grow with a compound annual growth rate of 10.7 per cent between 2019 and 2023, and this trend is showing no signs of slowing down.

As home security companies continue to cater to consumers who are new to this space, we will likely see more products built around accessibility and ease-of-use. These devices are likely to be more cost-effective and boast easy-to-use features – like a video doorbell that hooks up to your existing doorbell chime wires.

Bringing innovation to new heights

2020 was a year during which new, innovative technologies were being released almost weekly. At this point, smart security devices seemingly have all of our basic needs covered, so what comes next? Consumers will be looking for products they’ve never seen before – products that provide solutions to problems they never knew they had. This means companies will need to thoughtfully invent and deliver products that address an unmet consumer need.

PHOTO: Ring

One such product on the horizon is an autonomous indoor security camera that flies pre-set, personalized paths (set by you) so you can easily monitor the inside of your home while you’re away — from checking to see if the back door is locked, to ensuring the oven was turned off after your morning cookie bake.

Voice activation and touchless controls

While 2020 introduced us to a new way of living, including following social distancing and stay-at-home guidelines, smart home security has made many things like connecting with visitors and delivery drivers easier – especially as e-commerce orders nearly doubled over the last year.

All of that necessary online shopping and food delivery meant a lot more people coming to your front door, and this is likely to continue throughout 2021. We will see more people relying on video doorbells and voice controls to safely communicate with their delivery drivers without the need for close contact.

Customizable features

Every consumer has different needs, and they should be able to tailor their home security devices to fit their lifestyle and home. Features like motion detection and customizable motion zones in advanced video doorbells are among the trends we can expect to see become even more advanced in 2021.

When it comes to smart home security, innovation knows no bounds, and 2021 will be no different. We will continue to see companies push the boundaries of innovation to better serve consumers and their changing needs.