Control4 Home is one of the best home automation systems because it's easy for dealers to plan systems for almost any home, and has a wide range of smart product integrations and features. The company has excellent customer service and educational resources to help you choose the features you really need for your home.
Its systems are compatible with smart security equipment, such as security cameras and door sensors, and with a range of voice assistants such as Alexa, a voice service found on many of the best smart speakers.
Control4 has a unified software interface that makes it easy to control the devices in your home, and is available as both a bespoke controller and an app, which is compatible with all the best smartphones.
Control4 Home Control review: overview
Control4 does a very good job communicating with its customers. You can find quite a few customer education resources on the Control4 website, and you can chat to advisors online and via email. Among the free educational materials on the website, the most notable are the idea gallery, project planner and videos. The idea gallery showcases a wide variety of customers and how they chose to automate their homes; some examples include small homes, RVs and businesses.
The project planner gives you a way to express your goals and what you’re looking for so the company can match you with the right local dealer. Control4’s videos are similar to the idea gallery but also talk about how the system works, not just what it can do.
Control4 offers better after-purchase support than a majority of home control providers. Instead of just having a page listing its email address and phone number, the company has extensive resources online to help you learn how to use your system, including guides, tutorials and videos. There’s also a customer portal on the website that lets you control system preferences.
Control4 systems have a two-year warranty, which is shorter than those of some other systems, but average when compared to the industry as a whole.
Control4 Home Control review: features
Hundreds of hardware partners make it easy to customize a Control4 home control system to fit your needs. In addition to general support for hundreds of products, the company also has certified partners whose equipment strongly integrates with the home automation system. Some of Control4’s certified partners include Apple, Harman Kardon, Roku and Weather Underground... the list goes on.
Control4 is big on giving you complete control of your home entertainment too, so you can add TVs, sound systems, and most of the common softwares and apps that they use. This isn't just about security or ease of use: Control4 can actually help you set the mood with lighting (take a look at our guide to the best smart light bulbs), and sound set-up, for ideal viewing and listening experiences throughout the home.
Control4 NEEO Series controllers are the brains of the system and are also capable home theater controllers by themselves. Every piece of Control4 equipment comes ready to install, so your dealer can add to the system over time without the need to rebuild it from the ground up. This modularity is one of the best things about this home automation system and makes it popular among dealers.
All Control4 dealers are trained by the company and certified to install its home automation systems. The company offers a comprehensive set of tools to help its dealers operate to a high standard of quality. You can find a dealer using Control4’s dealer locator, which shows all of the dealers near your city as well as whether the dealer has Authorized, Gold, Platinum, or Pinnacle status.
Control4 Home Control review: performance
This system is compatible with over two dozen security brands, and many of these brands are compatible with the best home security systems. While Control4 doesn’t directly offer security monitoring, you can sign up for a service called 4Sight, which enables you to control the system remotely and view security camera feeds. Control4 also offers a feature called Mockupancy that controls your system in random fashion when you’re not home. This gives your home a lived-in look that can deter potential burglars. Control4 is also compatible with a variety of environmental hazard sensors such as smoke detectors.
Using the best home management systems, you can control your smart home with a mobile app and touchscreen controllers. Control4 is one of few smart home systems that has a mobile app with a user interface that is very similar to that on its touchscreen controllers. This is particularly helpful because you don’t have to learn multiple ways to control your system – you might have to learn two or three different control schemes to use other systems properly.
Control4 Home Control review: verdict
Control4 is one of the top home automation systems for residential use. Among its best features are modular installation, a large network of hardware partners, and a unified touchscreen interface. While its warranty isn’t very long, it’s a capable system that we thoroughly recommend.
