In years past, those automations were pretty basic -- lamp timers, programmable thermostats and so on -- but that's fast been changing thanks to the recent sprawl of smart home tech aimed at mainstream consumers.
"Smart home" is a very broad term, covering a huge number of connected gadgets, systems and appliances that do a wide variety of different things. "Home automation" is slightly less broad, referring specifically to things in your home that can be programmed to function automatically. In years past, those automations were pretty basic -- lamp timers, programmable thermostats and so on -- but that's fast been changing thanks to the recent sprawl of smart home tech aimed at mainstream consumers.