A new home trends study reveals what homeowners are spending on and how much Ready or not, smart tech is steadily streaming into our homes. According to a new study of 1,000 renovating homeowners, conducted by online home improvement platform Houzz in collaboration with industry organization CEDIA, nearly half (that?s 45 percent) are incorporating "smart" systems or devices that can be controlled via a smartphone, tablet, or computer. The most popular product category" Security and safety.
As the report details, 25 percent of those adding smart products are installing safety-oriented devices like alarms, detectors, and cameras. The next most in-demand categories are entertainment products like smart TVs and speakers (18 percent), and climate control (14 percent.) The single most popular feature is the smart thermostat, installed by 12 percent of all surveyed homeowners making high-tech upgrades.
Photo via Nest Labs
Nest?s recent release, the Nest Cam Outdoor, watches your home and sends text alerts.

Now, for the still majority of homeowners who opted out of smart upgrades, the top reason was "just not interested"?we?ve certainly heard from skeptic Curbed readers before. The second biggest reason" "Too expensive/pricey." Fair enough.
According to the survey, not only do the folks getting smart security upgrades outspend those getting non-smart options (for example, 35 percent of the "smart" g...