Smart Home Device Sales Up 41 Percent in 2015, Voice Control on Rise, Says NPD

Home automation sales jumped 41 percent in 2015 over 2014, said an NPD report Tuesday. Sixty-four percent of smart home product owners have used a smartphone to control or monitor their home automation devices, said NPD. High usage of smartphones as controllers is due to high Android and iOS app compatibility, said analyst John Buffone. As apps and devices become more intuitive, voice recognition and voice control will play a more prominent role in the growing smart home market, Buffone said. Nearly 73 percent of smart home owners use voice commands to control their system, and 61 percent of those want more voice control capability, NPD said. New products including the Amazon Echo are driving increased use of voice control in the smart home, it said.