Independent Research
Local-Only Smart Home
Cloud-free smart home comparisons, buying guides, and implementation playbooks.
Technical buying guides and product comparisons for privacy-minded users who want local control, data ownership, and a cloud-optional smart home.
What we cover
- Local NVR camera systems with no mandatory cloud
- Home Assistant–compatible hubs with strict local control
- Offline-first smart lock and doorbell comparisons
- Network hardening: VLANs, firewall rules, IoT segmentation
Latest guides
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Alexa vs Google Home vs Apple Home: Privacy 2026
Alexa vs Google Home vs Apple Home vs Home Assistant for privacy in 2026: where voice hits the cloud, hub requirements, Matter support, and local-first control trade-offs.
Best Video Doorbells Without Cloud Subscription 2026
Best subscription-optional video doorbells in 2026 for privacy: microSD and hub storage, HomeKit Secure Video, RTSP to Frigate, and how to avoid forced cloud tiers.
Home Assistant OS vs Container: Privacy & Maintenance 2026
Home Assistant OS vs Container vs Core in 2026: add-on store vs Docker control surface, Supervised deprecation, and how each path affects privacy and updates.
Home Assistant Recorder: SQLite vs MariaDB vs InfluxDB
SQLite vs MariaDB vs InfluxDB for Home Assistant in 2026: what Recorder actually uses, when to migrate off SQLite, SD wear, and pairing Influx with Grafana without leaking data.
UniFi Protect vs Blue Iris vs Frigate NVR 2026
UniFi Protect vs Blue Iris vs Frigate in 2026 for local surveillance: vendor lock-in, ONVIF openness, AI on Coral, and which stack keeps footage off third-party clouds.
Cloudflare Tunnel vs DuckDNS vs Nabu Casa for HA
Compare Cloudflare Tunnel, DuckDNS, and Nabu Casa for secure Home Assistant remote access in 2026: trust boundaries, TLS, port forwarding risk, and TCO vs DIY reverse proxies.