5 helpful smart home gadgets to buy for back-to-school

Summer is winding down, which means it’s back to school for students across the country. While you’re out there shopping for headphones, laptops, and other must-have back to school tech, don’t forget to pick up a few of the best smart home devices items to make this academic year a breeze. Connected gadgets like smart plugs, colorful light strips, and more can be added to dorm rooms and student apartments for modern convenience via voice control with smart assistants like Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri.

Not sure where to start? We rounded up five smart home products to help you have the best school year yet.

1. A smart speaker to be your personal assistant

If you’re living in a dorm or apartment this semester, an entry-level smart speaker like the Amazon Echo Spot with Clock or Google’s Nest Audio is a great option to control your connected devices by voice. Most smart devices play nice with both Google Assistant and Alexa—just make sure to give the product’s packaging a look to be sure it’s compatible.

Get the Amazon Echo Spot at Amazon

Get the Google Home Speaker at Amazon

2. A smart plug to control the lights from anywhere

Smart plugs are the easiest and most convenient way to transform your run-of-the-mill dorm room into a voice-controlled wonderland. You can use them with hair tools in the bathroom, TVs, lamps, standing fans, and more. There are a lot of smart plugs out there, however, so don’t waste your time with anything but the Wyze Smart Plug. It maintains a reliable connection for 24/7 access, offers remote control via the Wyze app, and supports voice control with Alexa and Google Assistant.

Get the Wyze Smart Plug at Amazon

3. A smart light strip to match your mood

Smart light strips are a fun way to personalize your back-to-school space with a pop of color. With 16 million colors and tunable whites to choose from, the Lifx Smart Light Strip is the one you want. There are plenty of awesome preset lighting settings to choose from or you can create your own mesmerizing pattern. The adhesive strip works with Alexa and Google Assistant, so you can ask either one to turn the lights on, adjust the brightness, and change the color for complete hands-free control while you're busy with homework.

Get the LIFX Lightstrip at Amazon

4. A smart robot vacuum to do the cleaning for you

You can get your cleaning done in between classes with the help of a robot vacuum. We've tested several models from eufy—from a high-end, AI-powered vac-mop duo to mid-tier multipurpose robovacs. For students, we recommend a lower tier like the eufy 11S MAX—not as powerful as some other models, but it gets the job done, and way more in line with a student budget. Regardless of the type you ultimately choose, it's a reliable way to keep all those shared-space floors clean throughout the semester.

Get the eufy 11S MAX Robot Vacuum Cleaner at Amazon

5. A Tile tracker to help you find your lost stuff

With a Tile tracker, you can easily and quickly find your missing items. You can use the companion app or ask Alexa or Google Assistant to locate the items in question. The trackers are tiny enough to fit your wallet, keyring, backpack, and more. If you’re all-in on iOS, check out Apple’s AirTags, a similar alternative to Tile trackers that can help you find your stuff using Siri.

Get the Life360 Tile Bluetooth Tracker at Amazon

Get Apple AirTags at Amazon