Residential Tech Today

For years, the smart home has been defined by apps, voice assistants, and automation routines that required homeowners to tell their devices exactly what to do. As artificial intelligence moves into the home, that paradigm is beginning to change. Instead of responding to commands, intelligent systems are learning routines, anticipating needs, and operating quietly in the background.

For years, Devialet’s Phantom speakers have been known as much for their sculptural design as their room-filling sound. But despite their popularity with audiophiles, they were never truly built for custom integration projects. That changes with the new Devialet Phantom Ultimate CI, announced this week ahead of CEDIA 2026. Rather than adapting its consumer speaker with aftermarket accessories, Devialet redesigned the Phantom around the needs of professional integrators.

The Home Technology Specialists of America is preparing for a new phase with a planned leadership transition that reflects continuity as much as change. HTSA announced it has launched a formal search for a managing director, a move designed to strengthen the organization’s leadership structure while preserving the culture that has helped to make it one of the custom integration industry’s most influential buying groups.

Welcome to the latest ResTech Roundup, your quick briefing on the innovations, product launches, partnerships, and industry shifts shaping the new smart home. Here’s what caught our attention this week: CEDIA Expo attendees will get an early look at Savant’s latest artificial intelligence initiatives during the company’s Sept. 3 media breakfast in Denver.

Artificial intelligence has become one of the most talked-about technologies in residential integration, promising homes that understand context, anticipate needs, and create experiences that feel increasingly natural. For integrators, dealers, and technology professionals, AI is opening new opportunities to rethink how connected systems work together and how homeowners engage with them every day.

Cooking a steak, or any protein, on a grill without a grilling thermometer transforms what should be an enjoyable culinary ritual into a high-stakes psychological thriller. The moment the protein hits the screaming-hot grates, a wave of clock-watching paranoia sets in as you try to calculate cooking times based on vague online recipes. Unfortunately wind, uneven heating by charcoal or gas burners, and slight differences in meat thickness make time a completely useless metric.

As we put the finishing touches on our 8th Anniversary CEDIA Expo Issue of Residential Tech Today, a few last-minute opportunities remain for brands, manufacturers, dealers, integrators, and installers looking to expand their visibility before, during, and after the show. Whether your goal is thought leadership, product recognition, lead generation, or brand awareness, these programs are designed to extend the value of your CEDIA investment.

Welcome to the latest ResTech Roundup, your quick briefing on the innovations, product launches, partnerships, and industry shifts shaping the new smart home. Here’s what caught our attention this week: OpenAI’s first consumer hardware product could be a portable, screenless smart speaker designed to function as an AI companion inside the home.

As televisions become larger, thinner, and more integrated into the home, manufacturers are paying increasing attention to what happens when the screen is turned off. That evolution continues with a new partnership between SKYWORTH USA and Chicago-based manufacturer hydroframes., bringing customizable frames to SKYWORTH’s Canvas and Canvas Elite™ Art TV lineup.

The FIFA World Cup has always been about bringing people together. Families fill living rooms, friends gather for neighborhood watch parties, and homes become the center of celebration for one of the world’s biggest sporting events. As anticipation builds for the 2026 tournament across North America, many homeowners are also rethinking how technology can elevate the viewing experience. Today’s connected home extends far beyond a larger television or a better sound system.