I want to get into home automation, you know the whole locks and lights and security cameras. I have done a fair bit of reading and one thing I am seeing is that people start with one product, then another and eventually its all a mess of mishmash. Is there one central "hub" that I should start with and expand with that? My wife and I were thinking of going with the Nest products because of the ease of integration with various products. The main problem is in one of the LTT videos it is discussed that you have to pay in order to archive footage, which is not something I want to pay for. I guess what I am saying, is with all these products I am a bit lost and not sure where I should start throwing my money? As far as voice commands to activate things, I see google home and amazon echo are the standards. With the Google home does it have to be tied to an email account? For example, if it uses my account, will people in the house be able to say something like, "Read current emails" and have them read off? Or if my kids are trying to be funny and say "add to schedule, go to the park". I appreciate any feedback.
edit - I almost forgot the budget, I am starting with $500 USD. Will eventually add on more and more. Just not sure where to start.