"Hot" smart curtains, are they worth buying?

A smart blind doesn't just open or close in the traditional way, it can also respond to light, time, movement and voice.

Curtains can coordinate with lighting and air conditioning systems to balance the temperature, even "learn" the homeowner's habits and adjust themselves. Therefore, according to the technology world, smart curtains are becoming a product line that changes the living space experience of Vietnamese consumers.

Variety from high-end to popular

According to smart home consultant Tran Minh Tri, smart blinds can be summarized in three main aspects: convenience, energy efficiency and space personalization. Expert Tran Minh Tri emphasized: "Users often feel the difference immediately when the house knows how to please its owner, a feeling that manual solutions cannot imitate."

Smart curtains deeply integrated with the smarthome ecosystem can have many convenient features.

However, not everyone needs the same solution. It is important to match the right technology to the needs. Expert Tran Minh Tri said that there are 3 main types of solutions depending on whether the user wants to quickly test, renovate existing curtains or invest systematically for the entire house.

First are the products for high-end projects. This is the choice for those who consider blinds an integral part of the living context system. Users often choose high-end solutions from brands such as Lutron Serena / Sivoia QS, Somfy Glydea Ultra, or Forest Shuttle M.

In this group, the curtains do not operate independently but integrate light, thermometer, wind sensors and are in the closely coordinated logic of the smarthome system. They can flexibly adjust the light, air conditioning and have regional scenarios.

The owner of a villa in Truong Xuan residential area ( Quang Ngai ) shared: "When buying a raw house, the design consultant did not pay much attention, but after implementation, every morning when waking up, I do not have to touch anything, the house has adjusted itself to suit the weather and daily schedule."

In practice, dealers like ControlX or KNXStore emphasize that high-end customers do not just buy a set of curtains but buy a "synchronized experience" - curtains open and close at the right time, coordinated with lighting and air conditioning to welcome the dawn or reduce glare at noon.

Experts recommend that if you're planning on implementing a whole-home system and want to avoid "patching" later, it's a good idea to invest in a high-end system up front to save on overall costs and keep the experience consistent.

However, the high cost and complexity of this solution are obvious. Consulting and installation packages of the above brands often cost from several tens of millions of VND to more than 100 million VND depending on the design.

If you don't need the entire expensive ecosystem, but still want your blinds to work properly, you can integrate and "smarten" your existing products. This approach is suitable for users who want to replace old blinds with a smart blinds system in one or a few specific rooms.

Smart curtain utility kit is simple to deploy and affordable.

In this segment, users often look for brands such as Movelite, Glydea. Customers will be consulted and quickly installed. Mr. Le Thanh Minh, representative of distributor Le Minh Autohome, said: "The largest customer group is those who have built houses for a long time but now know and have a need for smart curtains".

The cost for this type of solution usually ranges from a few million to less than 20 million VND, because it is usually only implemented for one or a few individual rooms, of which the bedroom and living room are the most popular choices.

Another solution that helps users install smart curtains at home is to use a motor with control, connected to a hub to operate via application or remote control. Outstanding products in this segment are SwitchBot Curtain 3 and Aqara Curtain Driver.

The SwitchBot Curtain 3 is praised for its easy installation, automatic calibration, low noise, and expansion options such as solar panels. The Aqara Curtain Driver stands out for its deeper integration with the Apple HomeKit ecosystem and uses Zigbee to connect via a hub.

Mr. Pham Thanh Truc, a member of the DIY community, said: "It only takes a few minutes to mount on the rail, calibrate the automatic travel and immediately be able to schedule and control by app". This solution only costs from a few hundred to less than 3 million VND for each door position, allowing users to control the cost themselves.

Hard to avoid trouble

One of the limitations of smart curtain models that makes many users hesitate to invest is the high cost. Smart curtain models are significantly more expensive than traditional curtains, due to the need to invest in additional motors, control systems and smart accessories. This cost can range from a few million to tens of millions of VND, depending on the brand, type of curtain and level of integration.

With systems deeply integrated into smart homes, you cannot install them yourself but need a team of professional technicians. This increases costs and requires a meticulous construction process.

Smart blinds are powered by electricity, so when there is a power outage, you will not be able to control the blinds automatically. Most blinds have a manual pull mode, but sometimes inconvenience can still occur. This also leads to another limitation: motor failure - the most important part and also the weak point of smart blinds. If the motor breaks down, repair can be difficult and expensive, especially with self-contained motor lines. Regular maintenance is necessary to ensure durability.

Smart curtain utilities bring the experience of living in a "customized" house.

Using a motor to open and close the curtains also makes it difficult for users to choose the type of curtain they like, only being able to choose roller blinds or sheer curtains. For heavy curtains such as wooden blinds or velvet curtains, installing a motor can be complicated and not always effective.

On the other hand, if you want to integrate your blinds into your existing smart home system (like Google Home, Apple HomeKit), you need to make sure that your blinds are compatible with that ecosystem. Choosing the wrong one can result in devices not being able to connect or working erratically.

Another risk that few users pay attention to when using smart blinds is that young children can be curious and play with the remote control, causing the blinds to operate unintentionally. Although smart blinds have eliminated traditional pull cords, reducing the risk of entanglement, children still need to be supervised when they play near the blinds.

In short, smart blinds bring convenience and modernity, but come with high investment costs, dependence on electricity and the risk of damage. Carefully considering these limitations will help you make the choice that best suits your family's needs and conditions.