Home automation has moved from being super hard to now being an almost plug-and-play exercise. But there is no so much gear around that it can be challenging to work out what you need. To help you get started, I've put together a starter kit so you have an idea of what you can do.

Waking up to an alarm clock, even your smartphone, almost feels like an ancient practice at this point. If you’ve bought into the smart speaker craze — mainly, one of the Google or Amazon speakers, or Apple’s wood-staining HomePod — then you have so many more options for getting yourself ready for the day than the annoying braaap-braaaap-braaaaap of an alarm.

‘Tis the season for commercials featuring your favourite smart home speaker showing off what it can do—which means you may have experienced your Google Assistant, Alexa, or Siri responding to questions that come from your TV. And it’s annoying to have to shout, “Hey Google, stop,” or the equivalent phrase for your smart speaker, every time this happens.

Not all smart speakers are created equal. In fact, some barely meet the qualifications to be called “smart” in the first place—but they’re getting better at answering your questions, assuming they can understand what you’re saying.

Google Assistant got a bit of an upgrade on iOS this week with the introduction of support for Siri shortcuts. Now you can record a phrase like "OK Google" within Siri, and then have that phrase open the Google Assistant app on your phone.

While Apple and Google play well together in some areas - such as the multi-billion deal that makes Google the default search on iOS - they are on less friendly terms in others. Apple and Google, and a few others, are locked in a pitched battle to dominate automation through smart assistants such as Siri, Alexa and Google's platform. But an update to the iOS version of Google's Asistant proves that where there's a will, there's a way to bring enemies together.

When you're out sick from work, there's often a lot of stuff that needs to be done before you can take some cough syrup and pass out on the couch next to a bowl of soup. Skip that work with this Siri Shortcut.

If my home had a Game of Thrones-style family motto, it would be "Honey, can you call my phone?" It's the usual way to find your misplaced device. But it doesn't work very well if you leave your phone on vibrate.

By design, changing the volume on Apple’s AirPods requires either using the volume buttons on your phone, or using Siri to increase or decrease the volume. While your iPhone adjusts the volume in six per cent increments, Siri adjusts the volume in 12–13 per cent increments. Obviously that reduces the number of times you need to request a volume change, but it also removes fine-grained control. How do you get it back?

The smartest move when it comes to passwords on your smartphone is to use a password manager such as 1Password. A password manager can not only create a super-secure password, it can remember it and use it to log into your accounts for you, making the whole password thing both safe and simple.

If talking out loud to Alexa (or your digital assistant of choice) feels unnatural, you're not alone. I've had Siri for as long as she's been alive, yet I can count on one hand the number of times I've spoken to her. It's always seemed easier to open an app on my iPhone or type in a Google query and get exactly what I'm looking for, rather than navigating a line of verbal questioning that eventually leads to my desired answer — or not.

During WWDC 2018, Apple showed us a new trick with Siri in iOS 12: the ability to assign shortcuts. Instead of hoping Siri properly understands what you mean, you can assign a specific phrase (or even a word!) to a set of predetermined actions.

Apple's annual development event, the Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) kicks off in a week. While we didn't score a media invitation to this event, we're keeping tabs on what's coming and that means a few rumours are starting swirl. So, what can we expect?

Amazon has managed to make Alexa the brand people think of when it comes to digital voice assistants, but the Google Assistant is the smartest of the bunch according to a new study. With that said, they all have serious shortcomings - particularly when it comes to responding to questions - that the industry has yet to iron out.

As I was driving around this past weekend, I asked Siri for the directions back to my house - a frequent conversation we have. Only, this time, Siri played ignorant: "I don't know your home address. In fact, I don't know anything about you."

Apple's stab at the cluttered 'smart speaker' market is due to hit Aussie shops in under 24 hours. We take a look at the price, specifications and where you can buy it.

iOS: One of the first things you'll want to do with any new iPhone is train Siri to recognise your voice - it's also never a bad idea to retrain Apple's AI assistant if she's giving you trouble. Your first instinct is probably to hold your iPhone in your hand (or even up to your mouth) while you go through the training process, but you're actually better off putting the device down and taking a few steps back first.

Face ID on the iPhone X is great for quickly unlocking your device, but there are times when you don't want it to work -- like if a friend grabs your phone, a mugger steals it, or you have to deal with the police.

One of the most useful things you can do with Siri on your iPhone is dictate a text message and send it to a friend, but that can also reveal one of the most annoying flaws about Apple's software assistant: Siri really sucks at pronouncing uncommon names. Thankfully, there's a solution if you're tired of hearing Siri mispronounce the same names over and over.