For many people, an automated smart home is about little things that add up to big conveniences over time.

What most smart homes also include, however, is a voice assistant, the opposite of a quiet, unseen convenience.

Home Assistant is a self-hosted webpage that lets you control almost any device with switches and dials.

Given the device's current scarcity, it's good that Home Assistant can also run on other hardware.

Once Home Assistant is installed and connected to your devices, you'll have access to your gear through phones, tablets, computers, or a mounted display.

Both tend to focus their support on devices that communicate over Zigbee and Z-Wave radio protocols.