Fall is here, and with it comes a change of leaf colors, cooler air, and the scent of firewood and apples. But if you’re like my household, that also means switching decore from summer beaches to autumn vibes.
This year, I’m taking it a step further and going beyond just swapping out the shower curtain by using smart accessories to bring those autumn vibes indoors. Here are the accessories I use to make my space cozier in the fall.
1
Smart Light Bulbs
When walking into a room, the first thing you notice—even before setting foot inside—is the color. This is usually done by installing a single-colored light bulb or covering a regular bulb with a lamp shade.
While many people might opt for a lampshade, I’ve used smart light bulbs. This lets you switch colors right from your phone, no manual swapping required.
What’s excellent about smart light bulbs is that they can go anywhere with a socket, such as a lamp or a ceiling fixture. However, because they rely on power from the socket, turning them off using the physical switch will make the bulb unresponsive. This makes it important to leave them on all the time.
Our living room has a ceiling fan that can hold four light bulbs, so I put three smart bulbs in the sockets. The light covers more of the room from the ceiling than a table lamp. After installing and connecting them to HomeKit, I grouped all four bulbs in the Home app to control them simultaneously.
When setting the lights’ color, I don’t keep them at one color all day; I have multiple automations that change the color at specific times.
At 9 am, I set the lights to a warm white tone for the morning. Then, at around noon, I set the color to a more neutral white to capture the daylight.
Once 4.30 pm. hits, I have the bulbs change to a more orange-gold or copper tone. This helps mimic the color scheme of a fire, minus the smoke. As it’s time to wind down for bed, I have the lights turn a dim amber or reddish-gold.
Setting up these automations for my smart bulbs lets the atmosphere shift throughout the day, bringing the fall theme inside without me having to lift a finger.
However, these colors are my preference, and may differ from yours. You may not want to go by the time of day, but instead, set the lights to a color scheme that matches the surrounding decorations—like any pumpkins or wreaths.
Nathaniel Pangaro / How-To Geek | Apple
Smart bulbs are highly customizable and relatively inexpensive, meaning you can buy several without breaking the bank. They’re a great way to bathe your room in the perfect fall hues and take your seasonal setup to the next level.
2
Smart Plugs or Humidifiers
If smart bulbs aren’t your fancy, but you still want to automate the scene in your house, you should look into smart plugs. Like smart bulbs, they can come in a pack and are usually inexpensive.
I have smart plugs active up and down my house, and they help me by making dumb accessories smart. I’ve had fans, heaters, lamps, coffee makers, and bug zappers plugged into them so I can easily turn them on and off from my phone.
They have also come in handy when decorating my house for the fall, especially regarding scents.
My mother loves getting the Bath & Body Works Wallflower plug-ins every season. While they make the room smell nice, they can be overpowering when constantly plugged in—especially in a smaller space.
This is why I’ve started plugging them into smart plugs. When I want to come home to a house that smells like pumpkin spice or autumn leaves, I can turn them on before I return.
On the other hand, if I don’t want the scent to be too strong throughout the day, I can turn them off until I’m ready to enjoy them again.
However, these take a little time to fill the room with their scent, so I have to plan when turning them on. For example, if I want to come home to a house that smells like fall, I’ll switch on the smart plugs connected to the Wallflower right before leaving my location.
The same idea applies to a smart humidifier paired with scented oils. A humidifier is beneficial during the fall since it helps add moisture to the dry air.
Adding autumn-scented oils improves air quality and fills your space with cozy, seasonal fragrances. And since the humidifier can be smart—or you can just plug a basic one into a smart plug—you can control when it dispenses the scent from your phone or through automations.
I’ve been using a VOCOlinc Cool Mist Humidifier for years, and I love adding fall-scented oils to the water to make my room feel cozier. Additionally, the humidifier’s body doubles as a light, meaning—like with smart bulbs—I can program it to display warm colors to enhance the fall atmosphere in my room.
Smart plugs can control any basic accessory from your phone or voice, such as scent dispensers. For example, you could plug in indoor decorations to go off at a particular time or heated blankets, so you don’t need to reach to switch them on.
If you have an accessory or device that needs to be turned on each time it’s used, a smart plug can usually help automate the process. It’s simple to set up and use, and the best product for making any basic accessory smart.
3
Temperature Sensors and Smart Thermostats
You can see the cozy vibes with smart bulbs and smell them with plugins connected to smart plugs or smart humidifiers, but you can also feel them. With the help of temperature sensors and smart thermostats, you can control the temperature of your space to make it perfectly comfortable and cozy.
Temperature sensors allow you to see the current temperature in your room from your phone, and they usually come with accessories you might have already bought.
- Connectivity
-
Bluetooth, Wi-Fi
- Voice Assistant
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Siri
For example, if you have a HomePod or HomePod mini, both come with built-in temperature and humidity sensors. In the Home app, tapping Climate at the top lets you view the range of temperatures collected from each sensor in your home. Selecting Temperature will then show the specific readings from each sensor.
However, if you don’t have a HomePod, some third-party accessories include built-in sensors or attach them externally. For instance, when I got the SwitchBot Hub 2, it included a USB-C power cable with a temperature and humidity sensor attached, which could be connected to HomeKit through Matter.
Temperature and humidity sensors are useful not only for checking a room’s current conditions but also for triggering automations. For example, a smart plug connected to a heater can turn on automatically when the sensor detects that the temperature has dropped below a certain level.
Since Apple released iOS 16.3 and enabled the temperature sensor in the HomePod mini, I’ve used it to turn on my heater whenever the room drops below 60 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s a great way to warm up the space before I walk in, and it turns on automatically without me lifting a finger.
If you’d like to get even more advanced, installing a smart thermostat will also do the job. Like with a heater plugged into a smart plug, you can have the sensor talk with the thermostat and have it control it when your room reaches a specific temperature.
You may want to consider a smart thermostat rather than a heater because a heater typically warms only one section of a room, depending on its size. Conversely, a thermostat is connected to your home’s system and can heat the entire area—not just a single spot.
Whichever route you choose, getting your room to the perfect temperature on those chillier days will make your space feel much cozier. Combined with the proper lighting and scent, you’ll create the ultimate cozy fall atmosphere without doing too much—or any—manual work.
4
Smart Speaker or Streaming Box
Nothing is better for maximum coziness than listening to relaxing music while snuggling up with a good book or sipping warm tea. The best way to do this is with a smart speaker or a streaming box loaded with your favorite services.
Whether it’s a Google Nest, Amazon Echo, or Apple HomePod, having a smart speaker you can control verbally can help bring fall vibes into your home. You can simply ask it to play a fall-inspired playlist, and—depending on the music streaming service you have connected—it will start playing.
I enjoy setting up my space with the proper lighting, scent, and temperature, and then putting on a cozy movie on my Apple TV. Whether it’s a classic Halloween movie on Disney+ or a Charlie Brown special in the Apple TV app, the atmosphere adds to the vibe and helps me feel the autumn vibes.
- Operating System
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tvOS
- Resolution
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4K
Immerse yourself in stunning 4K HDR with Apple TV 4K. Stream your favorite content with exceptional clarity and color, powered by the A15 Bionic chip. Enjoy seamless access to apps, games, and Apple Originals, all with the convenience of Siri voice control and personalized recommendations.
If I’m not in the mood to watch something, I turn to the lo-fi station on Apple Music. It helps me mellow out and enjoy my comforting surroundings, both inside and outside.
- Subscription with ads
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No, all are ad-free
- Price
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Starting at $11/month ($6/month for students)
Listen to your favorite songs, artists, and playlists on Apple Music. Stream music in lossless audio, download songs, and play them offline.
However, when it comes to streaming boxes or smart televisions, you don’t have to use them only to stream specific content—they can also enhance the visual atmosphere of a room. For example, if you want the look of a low-temperature fire but don’t have a fireplace, you can simply search for a video on YouTube and cast it to your television screen.
Whether listening to autumn-inspired music, watching a holiday classic, or setting a visual on your television, having a smart speaker or streaming box can help enhance the coziness of your room this fall.
Creating a cozy atmosphere in your home this fall doesn’t take much. With the right accessories and corresponding automations, your home can adapt to you and the mood you want to be in without lifting a finger.
While everyone experiences the fall season differently, nearly everyone enjoys getting cozy as the temperatures drop. With a few plugs, sensors, and lightbulbs scattered around your home, you can make this fall the coziest you’ve ever felt.