Smart App-artment
Conflake's smart app-artment in central London aims to show off the best in home automation technology.

From the smartphones we carry to the infotainment systems in our cars, advancements in integrated technology are helping to make our lives easier.

Now technology experts are increasingly turning their attention to the home with plans to produce more affordable integrated systems that will control our laptops, lighting, TVs or sound systems at the push of a button.

It's a trend that is set to grow, according to smart home expert Elizabeth Mead from research firm IHS analyst. "In the UK we're not seeing that much happening yet - but it's definitely on the cards," she said.

One firm set to showcase what could become the benchmark for living rooms is home technology company Cornflake which has created its Smart APP-artment, in central London.

The company, which usually deals with high-end homes and wealthy clients, has created a geek's dreamhouse jam-packed with £750,000 worth of gadgetry and more TV screen space than your local Currys shop window.

Operating your coffee machine with your iPad, remotely turning off TVs in other rooms and controlling the lighting and window blinds from the comfort of your couch are just some of the labour-saving functions on offer.

Gary Lewis, director of Cornflake says: "It's fair to say that some of the people we work with are some of the richest in the world. However it does come right down the scale to quite normal people, developers who are building homes today. People still want tech in their houses."

But for the smart home revolution to kick off in the mass market, it will need to become much more affordable and Mead believes that the huge increase in smartphone and tablet take-up is going to be key in seeing home automation take off in a big way.

"That is absolutely fundamental to the smart home of the mass market. Smartphone and tablet penetration is extremely high at the moment and still rising. Because they are already in the home, these are the perfect devices that mass market [home automation] systems can actually run on," she said.

IPad London