The smart home grew in such a dynamic way in 2020, fueled by the rush of adapting to a new normal of more people working from home, students learning remotely, and the challenges of figuring out how to have fun while quarantining. Companies from all corners of the smart home market adapted fairly quickly, so it's really tough to pinpoint the single biggest trends we saw in the smart home in 2020. Instead, we saw a collection of things that were spurred by the changing times.
A cleaner home everywhere
Everyone knows a clean home helps to mitigate the spread of germs, but this year we saw that focus profoundly present in the smart home. Air purifiers were a highly sought out necessity that helped to keep the air in the home clean. Many touted their air filtration systems, which featured UVC light that claimed to kill germs and bacteria in the air and in the water with humidifiers.
The cleanliness didn't stop there, as UVC light was ever-present in abundance throughout the smart home. Consider smart lighting company Lifx, which announced its Lifx Clean smart light bulb: Tests showed that it could kill 70% of bacteria within about two hours of use. While most of these smart home gadgets were practical, we did also see a fair share of over-the-top devices -- all good to ease concerns regarding cleanliness at home.
