Parks Associates (www.parksassociates.com) has announced new research showing that 40% of smart light bulb owners use Amazon Echo or Google Home to control their devices.

"U.S. consumers bought an estimated 14 million voice-controlled smart speakers with personal assistants in 2016," said Dina Abdelrazik, research analyst, Parks Associates. "Voice interfaces supported by personal assistants—like Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Microsoft Cortana—seek to connect all the moving parts of a connected lifestyle and are simplifying the user experience. In every vertical, whether it be connected entertainment or the connected car, voice has the ability to unify devices to provide a coherent experience and drive greater adoption of IoT technologies. Simplicity, improved user engagement, and personalization will all lead to a stickier consumer.”

The research group notes that Amazon Echo and Google Home are the most used devices for controlling the majority of smart home products. However, Samsung Smart Things, Apple HomeKit, and IFTTT were more commonly used for control of water shutoff valves.

"Voice control is a catalyst for growth in the smart home industry," said Patrice Samuels, senior analyst, Parks Associates. "Marketing efforts involving voice control solutions are helping to drive awareness of smart home products. The convenience offered by voice control solutions is also helping to increase use and perceived value of smart home products. This increased usage ultimately allows consumers to maximize the value from their devices, which ultimately drives higher satisfaction and NPS."