November 24, 2017

Genuinely Staying Connected Through The Internet

Staying connected in our home, to each other, the world around us, family, friends, etc. is so important to us. We love being able to FaceTime family who isn’t near us, see what all of our friends are up to on Facebook and Instagram, and chat with each other over a show playing on the TV or a new game. I think the world is loosing connection, real genuine connection so I wanted to share 3 ways that you can for genuinely staying connected with family who isn’t near you through the internet in your home.

I think we all know by now that our world is pretty much run by the internet whether we want it to be or not. We embrace it in our home and all the thousands of learning and educational options that there are for King on the internet, TV, iPad, etc. When we moved into our new home, having strong wi-fi signals was a must with me working at home. I needed something that I could rely on with no dead spots which helps me staying connected at all times – as often times I am hurrying and replying to an email or DM from my phone, and something that would connect my home together with all the devices that we have. We also are FaceTiming family (especially Matt) daily, leaving heartfelt comments on our families social media posts about going to the zoo that day or whatever adventure they were on, and chatting back and forth through text messages through our wi-fi at home.

Staying connected is something so important to me and making sure that our home could keep us connected to not only the world, shows, the news, etc. but also to our family is something that is super important to me.

We love Samsung products in our home so when they reached out with an opportunity to see how I liked their Connect Home mesh wi-fi router (and SmartThings hub) and to try it in our home I jumped on it. I knew if I didn’t like it (chances were slim in my mind) that I would tell them I couldn’t do the post and know that I tried something to fix a couple internet problems that we were having. When it came in the mail I was literally giddy and made Zach hook it up immediately. We placed one in our kitchen, a hub in my office, and the 3rd hub in our bedroom where our smart TV is. Each router has a range of 1,500 feet, so depending on how large your home is you can either just have one, or easily customize as many as needed!

The amazing thing with the Samsung Connect Home is that it creates a super strong system throughout your home with your wifi-network making sure that you have amazing connection and speed in every room and that you are staying connected at all times. It can even help turn any home into a smart home. Also acting as a SmartThings hub, it helps connect to so many different smart devices that we already have like our Philips Hue Lightbulb, our Amazon Alexa, and it was so easy to install. As you can see below they also are small hubs so they don’t take up a ton of space like traditional routers and it has a super sleek design which matches my house so I am obsessed.

We did a post about our amazing Samsung Frame TV (you can read it here) and we are still in love. The only issue we had with it was our internet wasn’t crazy fast in our bedroom, so it was hard to connect to it via wi-fi because of our old signal. I found that using the Connect App and having a Connect Home hub in our bedroom by the TV has changed the way we do TV in our bedroom. I can control all of our smart produts with the Connect App – including our Frame TV! I have been so sick with pregnancy that King has had the TV to keep him company where I am hanging out in the bathroom more often than I would like to admit. Having the remote on my phone so that I can start a new show for him from the other room (the bathroom if we are being honest), turn the volume up or down, is so nice and knowing that the internet is running strong and keeps things connected has been amazing and life changing for me. I also love that during nap time I can use the Connect App to connect to the video camera in King’s room to check on him as he naps while I am laying in bed gives me so much peace of mind. I am connected to everything that I need to be at a time that I need it most.
So, I wanted to share 3 tips with you on genuinely staying connected through the internet in your home to family and friends. I think often times we loose connection through the internet and just scrolling through our friends photos or family members conversations.

1 – Leave genuine comments and carry real conversations. This I think is huge and I have to often times make a conscious effort to make sure that I am not just scrolling through and thinking something in my mind but not saying it. People want to hear from you, they want to have a connection, leave a comment that is genuine and heart felt.

2 – Check in on the people you care about – and not just through social media all the time. Send them a text, even better FaceTime them. They want to hear from you, hear your voice, and see your face.

3 – Don’t forget that real life exists. The internet really is taking over our world and can do so much good if we let it, but it also can pull apart so many different relationships that we already have or want to make. Go visit people, send them a card in the mail, give them real life and concrete things to let you know that you love them. How do you work on staying connected to others in this time? How would Samsung Connect Home help you connect with loved ones and create a smooth-running smart home?