Right of Reply: It is about meritocracy and milestones at NNPC
CM Maryam invites Chinese tech companies to invest in Punjab
CNET has been covering the smart home space since even before the first Amazon Echo smart speaker launched over a decade ago. Whether it is lightbulbs and speakers or video doorbells and security cameras , CNET's experts have years of experience testing and reviewing smart home devices. We've put together our collective experience to bring you tips that will help you squeeze that extra juice out of your smart home setup. Smart home is here to stay. Although it may have seemed gimmicky with the early smart speakers, smart home devices are much more advanced and useful today. Even if you haven't deliberately bought these devices, chances are you already own devices that support smart home features. Even giants like Apple are working to expand their smart home presence, with the company rumored to be working on an in-house Bluetooth and Wi-Fi chip and even a HomePod with a display . So if you're just getting into smart homes and need to find the best products on the market, or want to know all the hidden features that devices like the Amazon Echo, Google Nest and Apple HomePod have to offer, we've got you covered with this cheat sheet. Below, we've put together a list of helpful articles detailing tips and tricks for the most popular smart home brands -- Amazon Alexa, Google Home and Apple HomeKit. We've also compiled a variety of articles breaking down tips on where to put your devices, guides on how to change the device settings and even how much you can expect to spend. (Since home security , home internet and home energy content have already been compiled into their own respective cheat sheets, I'm leaving out home security cameras, video doorbells, smart locks, thermostats and routers.) What are the best smart home devices? With thousands of smart home devices covering a broad spectrum of types and styles, it can be difficult to even know where to begin. Whether you're trying to find the best smart plug or outdoor string lights , there are loads of options and lists to sort through. Luckily, CNET experts have spent years testing out new tech to determine what's worth your money and what you can probably pass on. To start, you might want to consider the brand. If you're looking for a system that is compatible with thousands of devices, you may want to go with Amazon Alexa. Or if you're looking for devices that can easily connect to your iPhone, Apple HomeKit may be the way to go. Here's the best of each brand: If you don't care about voice assistant technology but are simply looking to find the best of each type of device, refer to our roundups of our favorite smart products: Smart plugs can make any "dumb" home device smarter. How much will a smart home cost me? With so many smart home devices on the market, it would be easy to go overboard and spend a lot of money on different products to deck out your home completely, but you don't have to. How much you'll ultimately spend will depend on how many devices you get, the type of devices and the brand you go with. In each category, there are plenty of great options from brands you may not be familiar with but have a long lineage in the smart home space. It's difficult to tell you an exact number of how much it will cost for your smart home build, but we've tried our best to give you an estimate to help you get an idea of what to expect. Does it matter where I put my smart home device? While you may be tempted to just put your new smart speaker or display anywhere in your home, location does actually matter. There are usually ideal places to put your devices, as well as places you should never put them. The Apple HomePod Mini is a great gateway to starting a smart home for those in the Apple ecosystem as it gives access to Siri and is a Thread border router. How do I figure out the settings on my smart home devices? Some smart home devices are simple and won't need many changes to the settings to be personalized. Others, like smart lights, can be so much more helpful if you take the time to add some customizations. For example, you can schedule them to turn on with a warm glow at 10% brightness when it's time to wake up. The enjoyment you get from your smart home device depends on how well it operates. That means your settings can make or break your experience. Rather than just sticking to the default settings, adjust them for better privacy, audio, notifications, and an overall more optimized experience. Your smart device settings can make or break your experience. Did you like this cheat sheet? Check out CNET's other complete guides:
Wake Forest still experimenting ahead of Detroit Mercy game
Andrew Callahan: It’s time to forget about Jerod Mayo getting firedKen Sugiura: Georgia Tech’s 8-overtime defeat reveals a new reality in rivalry with Georgia
AU expresses concern over post-election violence in Mozambique ADDIS ABABA, Dec. 26, (Xinhua/GNA) — African Union (AU) Commission Chairperson, Moussa Faki Mahamat, on Thursday expressed concern over the post-election violence in Mozambique. In a statement, the AU chief called for a peaceful resolution of the escalating post-election violence in Mozambique, particularly following the recent pronouncement of the final election results by the country’s constitutional council, which resulted in scores of people losing their lives. Expressing condolences to the bereaved, he appealed for calm and urged the country’s security services to exercise restraints amid the violence and maintain law and order. The chairperson of the 55-member continental organization, also called on Mozambique’s government and all national political and social actors to seek a peaceful solution to the current crisis, to avoid further loss of life and destruction of property. He reaffirmed the AU’s commitment to collaborating with Mozambican stakeholders and the Southern African Development Community to end violence, and safeguard constitutional democracy in the country. On Monday, Mozambique’s Constitutional Council, the body in charge of constitutional and electoral affairs, proclaimed Daniel Chapo the winner of the Oct. 9 general elections. According to local media reports, more than 100 civilians have died in the post-election chaos, and hundreds have been injured. GNA ADDIS ABABA, Dec. 26, (Xinhua/GNA) — African Union (AU) Commission Chairperson, Moussa Faki Mahamat, on Thursday expressed concern over the post-election violence in Mozambique. In a statement, the AU chief called for a peaceful resolution of the escalating post-election violence in Mozambique, particularly following the recent pronouncement of the final election results by the country’s constitutional council, which resulted in scores of people losing their lives. Expressing condolences to the bereaved, he appealed for calm and urged the country’s security services to exercise restraints amid the violence and maintain law and order. The chairperson of the 55-member continental organization, also called on Mozambique’s government and all national political and social actors to seek a peaceful solution to the current crisis, to avoid further loss of life and destruction of property. He reaffirmed the AU’s commitment to collaborating with Mozambican stakeholders and the Southern African Development Community to end violence, and safeguard constitutional democracy in the country. On Monday, Mozambique’s Constitutional Council, the body in charge of constitutional and electoral affairs, proclaimed Daniel Chapo the winner of the Oct. 9 general elections. According to local media reports, more than 100 civilians have died in the post-election chaos, and hundreds have been injured. GNAA high-speed passenger train collided with a fire engine at a crossing on Saturday in Florida, injuring three firefighters and at least a dozen train passengers, authorities said. The crash happened at 10.45am in crowded downtown Delray Beach, multiple news outlets reported. The Brightline train was stopped on the tracks, its front destroyed, about a block away from the Delray Beach fire rescue truck, its ladder ripped off and strewn in the grass several yards away, The Sun-Sentinel newspaper reported. The Delray Beach Fire Rescue said in a social media post that three Delray Beach firefighters were in stable condition at a hospital. Palm Beach County Fire Rescue took 12 people from the train to the hospital with minor injuries. Emmanuel Amaral rushed to the scene on his golf cart after hearing a loud crash and screeching train brakes from where he was having breakfast a couple of blocks away. He saw firefighters climbing out of the window of their damaged truck and pulling injured colleagues away from the tracks. One of their helmets came to rest several hundred feet away from the crash. “The front of that train is completely smashed, and there was even some of the parts to the fire truck stuck in the front of the train, but it split the car right in half. It split the fire truck right in half, and the debris was everywhere,” Mr Amaral said. Brightline officials did not immediately comment on the crash. A spokesperson for the National Transportation Safety Board said it was still gathering information about the crash and had not decided yet whether it will investigate. The NTSB is already investigating two crashes involving Brightline’s high-speed trains that killed three people early this year at the same crossing along the railroad’s route between Miami and Orlando. More than 100 people have died after being hit by trains since Brightline began operations in July 2017 – giving the railroad the worst death rate in the United States. But most of those deaths have been either suicides, pedestrians who tried to run across the tracks ahead of a train or drivers who went around crossing gates instead of waiting for a train to pass. Brightline has not been found to be at fault in those previous deaths.
ESTERO, Fla. (AP) — Sydney Shaw scored 20 points and made four 3-pointers, JJ Quinerly added 14 points and No. 12 West Virginia handed Boise State its first loss, 82-47 on Saturday in the Gulf Coast Showcase. West Virginia advances to the championship game on Sunday, while Boise State plays for third place. The Mountaineers have started 8-0 in back-to-back seasons after last year's 11-0 beginning.Inside the Gaetz ethics report, a trove of new details alleging payments for sex and drug use