7 Smart Mini Gadgets You Didn't Know Existed

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The world of smart home technology is more than just smart plugs, LED lighting, and video doorbells. There are all sorts of smart gadgets you have never heard of before, and they're often extremely helpful products you didn't even know you wanted or needed.

But when people think about starting or adding to a smart home, they think about the big, sweeping changes, as if every device needs to revolutionize your space. That doesn't need to be the case, though. There are smaller, more understated smart gadgets that add a lot to your quality of life without changing everything about how your home works. Depending on what you're looking for, these little tweaks can make a huge difference. Maybe it's a matter of improving something in your home you've already automated, or helping with a little task fell through the cracks of the systems you've already set up.

If you're curious about what may be out there, here are seven mini smart home gadgets you didn't know about.

Smart plugs are a well-known staple of smart home technology, with a versatility that lends to all sorts of cool and unique uses. One downside to smart plugs, however, is that many are created specifically with AC ports in mind. With an increasing number of tech coming with USB plugs in place of AC ones, this can quickly become frustrating. Picking up an adapter for the appliances you want to hook up to a smart plug is far from ideal.

Smart USB plugs are functionally the same as a standard smart plug — the only difference is they have USB-A and/or USB-C ports. Using them, you can set up schedules and more with your smart home ecosystem, and there's no need to get a USB-to-AC adapter to use it. Finally, unlike something like a smart surge protector or power strip, a smart USB plug is a lot smaller, making it easy to plug into a wall outlet with a USB port and use without fuss.

A smart notebook is an interesting middle ground between two distinct types of media. We all have note apps on our phones, but for some, it can feel better to write notes or to-do lists in a more analog format. A disadvantage of that analog format, however, is that you can end up with your notes scattered in a bunch of different locations, making it hard to find what you need where you need it.

With most smart notebooks, you write onto the reusable paper, scan the notes into your phone, and wipe the sheets off, making them ready to use again. All of your notes end up in one place, and you end up using less paper to boot. Smart notebooks are built to optimize your notes to work with other note and storage apps as well, so it's more than just a normal document scan you sent to your phone.

The Rocketbook Mini is only $20 (making it one of the best Amazon gadgets at that price point) and the smallest of the company's smartbook line, so it's easy to slip into a bag or pocket and available to jot down notes any time.

Hygrometer thermometers are simple pieces of tech can be used for a bunch of useful smart home hacks. Many of these sensors are water-resistant, and they track temperature as well as humidity wherever they're placed. As such, they're useful for knowing the exact conditions outside of your home, allowing you to adjust heating and cooling accordingly. Knowing the humidity in a room can also help you determine if a room is too stuffy and needs some airflow. 

However, there are also a bunch of weird but genius smart home uses that implement these little devices. For example, you can use a hydrometer thermometer in conjunction with a motorized blind kit to open and close the blinds depending on the temperature in the room. If it's too hot, the blinds may close a bit to block out the sun, or open if it's too cold.

At only $40, SwitchBot's three pack of hygrometer thermometers is one of the cheaper ways to give this sort of smart home device a try.

Point and click cameras are just one type of retro technology being embraced again in the modern age. The ease of just taking a picture without pulling out your smartphone and fiddling with an app in the moment is appealing to a lot of people. That makes something like Kodak's keychain digital camera, so small you can put it on your keyring, even more appealing.

The tiny Kodak Charmera is more than a novelty — it's a $35 fully functional digital camera that make it fast and easy to snap shots. You can take pictures and video in 1440p resolution, and with a microSD slot, it's also easy to get the pictures onto your computer or smartphone to share after.

Finally, with a bunch of other features, like an optical viewfinder and LED flash, it may be a good option for those looking for an eay to pocket digital camera.

For those that live in a busier home, having some sort of white noise to block out ambient house sound while you sleep could be essential. There are a variety of solutions, from white noise machines to sleep earbuds and headphones, but one you may not have heard of is a pillow speaker.

Pillow speakers are small and thin, made for the express purpose of being slid under your pillow. From there, you can play music quietly, allowing you to listen to it without disturbing someone else in the bed or room. It also removes any possible discomfort someone may feel from wearing sleep headphones or using ear plugs, which is particularly great for side sleepers.

The Kinglucky Pillow Speaker is $30 and offers some additional features, such as automatically turning off after a set time — great for those that need help getting to sleep but don't need white noise all night.

There's a lot to be said about smart gadgets that help your plants thrive. Timers, research, and so on can only go so far, so tech-savvy gardeners look to smart home solutions to help. This is where smart planters come in.

A small smart planter can help anyone who's worried about caring for their the plants growing on their desk. This robot pot can water your plant automatically, monitor soil quality, and even control parts of your smart home to provide optimal conditions to help grow. The planter can adjust for up to 40 different plant types, as well.

When you don't need the robot planter to remind you to care for your flora, it can be used as a clock, pomodoro timer, and more. It's a small, versatile smart device that can help with adding some greenery to the home.

A smart button is such a genius smart home tech idea, but it isn't the most talked about. This is a smart home upgrade that comes at an exceptionally low price, but unlike a smart plug or smart switch, a smart button can control multiple devices at once. So, for example, if in the morning you want to turn on lights in the bedroom and kitchen, get water boiling for a cup of coffee, and adjust the air conditioning, you can program a smart button to do all of that with one press.

The only catch is that most smart buttons can only connect to a brand's smart hub, so the GoveeLife Wireless Mini Smart Button Sensor only works with the GoveeLife hub and devices that can connect to it. This can make these feel more constrained compared to a smart switch, but if you're already invested in a single smart home ecosystem, it can be worth looking into so automate your home even further.