X

Take a photo tour of the CNET Smart Home

Our new house is a blank slate, but we'll be adding and testing new smart home tech in here every week. Here's what we're starting with.

img-1204
img-1204
Rich Brown
smart-home-exteriors-01.jpg
1 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

We bought a house!

For the past two years, the CNET Appliances team has been testing and reviewing smart home gadgets at our Louisville, Kentucky office and in our own homes. That's about to change, with the launch of the CNET Smart Home: a 5,800 square foot house on an acre lot where we can test products in a realistic and controlled environment. Click through to take a tour of the new place!

smart-home-exteriors-04.jpg
2 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

From the front

From the front, the CNET Smart Home looks like any other house on the street. It's a two-story home with a roomy yard and an attached garage.

smart-home-garage-5.jpg
3 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Two-car garage

There's plenty of space in that two-car garage -- moving forward, we'll be testing out connected car tech and smart garage door systems here.

smart-home-pool-and-backyard-6.jpg
4 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

The back yard

The back yard comes complete with a swimming pool, a sizable garden and plenty of shade.

smart-home-pool-and-backyard-5.jpg
5 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

The patio

Does it make sense to swap that grill out with a connected model? That's the sort of thing we're looking forward to testing out.

smart-home-interiors-18.jpg
6 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Stepping inside

Here's the main entry and living room, just inside the front door.

smart-home-interiors-20.jpg
7 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Empty (for now)

Soon, we'll begin the process of filling this place with furniture, appliances, and, of course, smart home tech.

smart-home-interiors-17.jpg
8 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Dining room

Here's the dining room -- that overhead lamp is just begging for some smart bulbs, don't you think?

smart-home-interiors-42.jpg
9 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Breakfast nook

Towards the back of the house, you have this little nook just off of the kitchen, with access to the back yard and a doorway that leads down to the basement.

smart-home-interiors-05.jpg
10 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

The kitchen

And here's the kitchen -- lots and lots of space for connected cooking gear in here, and plenty of overhead lighting, too.

smart-home-interiors-02.jpg
11 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Family room

The kitchen connects to this family room with a gas fireplace front and center.

smart-home-interiors-04.jpg
12 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Out the back

This double door leads out to the back.

smart-home-interiors-16.jpg
13 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Laundry room

There's a laundry room downstairs, as well. Are smart washers and dryers worth the splurge? We'll find out.

smart-home-interiors-34.jpg
14 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Heading upstairs

Here's the landing area at the top of the stairs, with doors that lead into a kids' bedroom, a game room, a master bedroom, and a bathroom.

cnet-smart-home-master-bedroom.jpg
15 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Master bedroom

Here's the master bedroom, complete with vaulted ceiling. No bed yet, though.

smart-home-interiors-30.jpg
16 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Master bathroom

There's another private bathroom connected to the master bedroom.

smart-home-interiors-29.jpg
17 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Shower or tub?

As bathrooms go, it's definitely on the classy side -- we're curious to test out smart bathroom tech like Wi-Fi-enabled scales, interactive mirrors, and automated lighting.

smart-home-interiors-26.jpg
18 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Down to the basement

Down in the basement, you'll find plenty of storage space and a couple of extra rooms. We've got plans to build a smart home dream theater down here -- stay tuned for more details on that project.

smart-home-interiors-24.jpg
19 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Smart bar?

There's also a bar area -- believe it or not, we've already tested a couple of smart booze gadgets for making homebrew and cocktails.

smart-home-interiors-21.jpg
20 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Great room

Here's the view from the basement bar. It's a cozy spot for entertaining guests.

smart-home-interiors-37.jpg
21 of 21 Tyler Lizenby/CNET

Back door

The property is a bit hilly, so there's another door down here in the basement leading out to the side of the house.

More Galleries

17 Hidden iOS 17 Features and Settings on Your iPhone
Invitation for the Apple September iPhone 15 event

17 Hidden iOS 17 Features and Settings on Your iPhone

18 Photos
Take a Look at Apple's iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro: New Colors, Prices and More
iphone 15 in different color from an angled view

Take a Look at Apple's iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro: New Colors, Prices and More

19 Photos
I Got an Early Look at Intel's Glass Packaging Tech for Faster Chips
Rahul Manepalli, right, Intel's module engineering leader, shows a glass substrate panel before it's sliced into the small rectangles that will be bonded to the undersides of hundreds of test processors. The technology, shown here at Intel's CH8 facility in Chandler, Arizona, stands to improve performance and power consumption of advanced processors arriving later this decade. Glass substrates should permit physically larger processors comprised of several small "chiplets" for AI and data center work, but Intel expects they'll trickle down to PCs, too.

I Got an Early Look at Intel's Glass Packaging Tech for Faster Chips

20 Photos
Astronomy Photographer of the Year Winners Reveal Our Stunning Universe
andromeda

Astronomy Photographer of the Year Winners Reveal Our Stunning Universe

16 Photos
Check Out the iPhone 15's New Camera in Action
A photo of a silhouette of buildings on the water taken on the iPhone 15

Check Out the iPhone 15's New Camera in Action

12 Photos
Take a Closer Look at the iOS Settings You Should Change Right Now
A smart man holding an iPhone 14 Pro Max

Take a Closer Look at the iOS Settings You Should Change Right Now

10 Photos
Disney Treasure Cruise Ship: Bookings Now Open for $9K+ Maiden Voyage
disney-treasure-tomorrow-tower-suite-3

Disney Treasure Cruise Ship: Bookings Now Open for $9K+ Maiden Voyage

16 Photos