House Digest's 2024 IFA Innovation Award Winners Showcase The Future Of Home Technology

IFA (Internationale Funkausstellung) Berlin is the largest consumer and electronics show in Europe, celebrating incredible technological advancements that improve humankind's daily lives. Since 2024 marks the 100th anniversary of this massive occasion, summoning a multitude of technological giants, small startups, and creative individuals to the bustling city, you just know House Digest had to be there to see what was on display this year. Thankfully, there is no shortage of amazing entries, but a handful of new products stood out to us, including two brilliant cleaning devices, one remarkable ambient lighting system, and a wearable device that may help you implement healthy changes in your home environment.

With our eager readers in mind, House Digest selected a number of products as recipients of our IFA Innovation Award. Whether you're already a smart technology fanatic or a total innovation newbie, it's worth getting to know these unexpected smart home devices that could make your home more efficient than ever. Here are the winners of House Digest's IFA Innovation Award and the features we adored about each exciting product. 

Strip lights are a great way to bring some personality into your space, and the Govee Strip Light 2 Pro makes it easier than ever to try out clever ways to use LED strip lights to brighten up your home in style. Govee is no stranger to the LED lighting market, but their latest innovation at IFA Berlin brings their beautiful and reliable products to a whole new level. The Govee Strip Light 2 Pro is equipped with even more built-in features for customization, including the groundbreaking new LumiBlend™ Color Control System, which gives colors – especially pastels – more depth and distinction.

Like the Govee RGBIC Pro, the Govee Strip Light 2 Pro is compatible with the Govee app, and contains multiple IC chips in each light strip. This allows users to select up to 10 unique colors per meter, opening the door to even more gorgeous gradients and multicolor lightscapes. Govee's original RGBIC Pro Strip Light offered 64 scene modes, but the Strip Light 2 Pro is equipped with 100 preset scene modes, making it easier than ever to set the mood at the push of a button. The product's 16 music modes can also sync with ambient noise or your playlist, perfect for enhancing your daily environment, celebrating seasonal changes, or illuminating a party.

From our thermostats to our refrigerators, security systems, and even lightbulbs, it seems like the smart home revolution has made everything in our homes more efficient, customizable, and monitorable. But what about the most important thing in your home — you? Another incredible innovation unveiled at IFA 2024, the RingConn Gen 2 Smart Ring is a wearable device that can help you keep track of vital health indicators, such as your heart rate, blood oxygen, calories burned, stress levels, and more. Following the success of the original, at a remarkable 2mm thickness, the RingConn Gen 2 Smart Ring stands out for its comfort and subtlety.

The RingConn Gen 2 Smart Ring is compatible with both iOS and Android systems, and directly reports your physical information to the subscription-free app. This smart ring employs AI-powered sleep health tracking, which can monitor everything from sleep duration to REM cycles and sleep apnea. Keeping track of your health, especially sleep quality, can help you understand when to implement healthy changes to your home, such as a new mattress or posture-friendly pillow. Titanium alloy material and an IP68 waterproof rating of up to 100 meters mean that you can enjoy continuous health tracking while taking a shower, washing dishes, working in the garden, or performing other daily household tasks. 

Officially unveiled at IFA 2024, the Eureka E20 Plus brings new improvements to their already impressive E10 models. Firstly, Eureka doubled the suction power in this new smart vacuum, from 4,000 Pa to a whopping 8,000 Pa, making it better than ever at picking up dirt, dust, and pet hair. Speaking of hair, a new and improved anti-hair tangling brush makes the E20 Plus 14% less prone to tangles — no more flipping your smart vacuum to pick hair out of the bristles! After auto-emptying, a 2-liter transparent base station allows you to see when it's time to dump your dust bin, and the pull-up bin handle makes it easy to dispose of waste without dirtying your hands or your home.

Even better, this device isn't just another robot vacuum; it also has a built-in mopping function. With DuoDetect AI™ 3D Obstacle Avoidance and a mop head that raises itself 10mm, the Eureka E20 Plus can swiftly maneuver around corners, under cabinets, and over rugs. It also integrates seamlessly into existing smart home systems, including Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri. This powerful robotic cleaner is available on Eureka's website for just under $500, making it a great value given its innovative tech.

Let's face it — sometimes we let our carpets go a little too long between deep cleanings. Luckily, the Tineco Carpet One Cruiser is an all-in-one carpet cleaning revolution that can refresh your rugs in no time. Several features of this product's clever design set it apart from the competitors, including a 2-in-1 SpaceAdapt Water Tank that sits directly above the brush head, keeping the machine artfully balanced. Unlike other clunky carpet cleaners, the Tineco Carpet One Cruiser's 3-level SmoothPower technology takes all the heavy muscle out of cleaning. With a gentle push or pull, the bi-directional assist wheel will propel itself in the direction needed and effortlessly revive carpet fibers with powerful 130W suction. 

Of course, an award-winning carpet cleaner should do much more than just soak your floors. The Tineco Carpet One Cruiser also has a PowerDry setting that can significantly speed up the drying process, blasting freshly cleaned fibers with air heated to 131 degrees Fahrenheit. After giving your carpets a thorough makeover, the Tineco Carpet One Cruiser's Flashdry Self-cleaning System will cleanse and dry its suction inlet, brush roller, and roller cover in minutes. You can purchase this innovative carpet cleaner for just under $700 on Tineco's website.

For coffee lovers who can't seem to create the perfect café-style lattes, we saw DREO's new BaristaMaker at IFA 2024 and were amazed by its versatility. Unlike some other at-home milk frothing machines, the BaristaMaker is able to create a decadent microfoam with oat milk, almond milk, and other plant-based options, as well as cow's milk, meaning dietary restrictions (or personal preference) won't stop you from enjoying the perfect cup of joe. Featuring an innovative patented propeller design, this one's a dream come true for those who love frothed beverages but are tired of the average device's one-size-fits-all approach.

The BaristaMaker offers options for foam, microfoam, and cold foam, making your coffee possibilities endless. Though the BaristaMaker is currently only on Kickstarter, DREO will begin taking pre-orders for the nifty appliance on September 15th, and it will cost just $99.

A cold beer after a long day is something many people look forward to. If you like the idea of at-home brewing, IFA 2024's sleekest at-home beer brewing system, the iGulu S1, is one to check out. The iGulu S1 smart appliance utilizes inventive technology to recognize pre-set recipes and brew your beer by simply scanning the recipe card or choosing a programmed option. Not only does it make the perfect beer every time by adjusting temperatures and brewing times automatically, but it can also be used to make other fermented drinks such as mead, kombucha, and cider.

This impressive brewing machine can be controlled through an app, allowing you to customize your beverages. The S1 also has built-in safety features; with a built-in pipe to release pressure, a pressure safety valve, and an alert system when the pressure is low or high, you can ensure your brew is safe and your drinks are delicious. Its mix of user-friendly simplicity, advanced technology, and sleek design makes for the perfect brew, solidifying it as a House Digest IFA innovation award winner.

For those who constantly lose their wallets, backpacks, or other valuables, the SwitchBot wallet finder card uses creative technology to ensure you can quickly find what you need. Unveiled at IFA 2024 in Berlin, the SwitchBot finder is a tracking device fitted with a pre-charged battery that lasts for three years. While some other trackers can be too bulky to fit inside of a wallet comfortably, the wallet finder card is only as thick as a typical coin. Additionally, this SwitchBot tech has an IP67 waterproof rating, meaning it won't be affected if you drop your wallet in the snow or get soaked in the rain.

This wallet tracker can be paired with both Android and Apple phones and is compatible with Apple's Find My network. Because of this, the SwitchBot can send notifications to your phone if your wallet leaves your location, and you can ping the card to make a sound to help you find your wallet. If you happen to lose your phone but have your wallet, pressing a button on the finder card two times will ping your phone, allowing you to find everything you need quickly. Later this month, the wallet finder card will be available on SwitchBot's website and Amazon for only $24.99.

As something that is designed to oscillate and vibrate faster than the human mind can comprehend, toothbrushes need to be constructed ruggedly in order to survive daily use. Luckily, Laifen introduced what it bills as "the world's first titanium electric toothbrush" at IFA 2024, and we can't wait to try one out. Constructed with aerospace-grade titanium, the Wave Titanium Electronic Toothbrush promises to take your oral hygiene to a new level via a unique brushing method that combines up to 66,000 high-frequency vibrations per minute and 60-degree oscillation to work its bristles into the tiniest crevices of your teeth.

Those who are tired of their electric toothbrush's bulky charging dock taking up too much real estate on their bathroom vanity will be pleased to hear that the Wave comes equipped with a USB-C charging cable. Even better, a single charge can last up to month for folks who brush twice a day. Factor in this tech-savvy toothbrush's incredible app that features a plethora of settings and levels, and you can see why it was an easy choice for House Digest's IFA innovation award.

Dreame, a giant among robot vacuum brands, had a hugely influential showing at IFA this year, snatching a House Digest IFA innovation award due to its incredible demos of its ProLeap System and VersaLift Navigation technologies. Obstacle avoidance and navigation issues are two pain points that typically keep good robot cleaners from being great. Thankfully, new Dreame cleaning products launching with this tech promise to have a leg up on the competition.

Those who witnessed the ProLeap system at IFA know what to expect: Your new Dreame robot vacuum will be able to lift itself over obstacles thanks to a combination of a motorized swivel arm and wheel, overcoming small steps and toys with ease. However, Dreame's VersaLift Navigation was equally impressive. While the technology is far from simple, a cranking mechanism creates 360-degree environment scanning so that your cleaning robot doesn't run into trouble while diligently doing its job. Combine this with a DToF sensor, AI camera, and 3D mapping, and you can see why we are so excited to see the new robotic vacuums Dreame will be putting out in 2024 and beyond.

Mammotion's LUBA 2 AWD Series of robot lawnmowers was also a big hit at the world's biggest consumer and electronics show. The company has essentially transformed lawn care from chore to charming with a variety of too-easy features. To set up your LUBA for the first time, you can just steer steer it like a remote control car to map out its virtual boundaries in about 18 minutes. Some robot lawnmowers can take about three hours to set up, so this is a serious step up. The LUBA's 3D Vision and RTK Fusion-mapping system require no perimeter wire to cover an area of up to 1.25 acres. These smart mowers have all-wheel drive to handle rough terrain, potholes, and slopes of up to 38 degrees. 

The LUBA is also tricked out with app and voice controls and multi-zone and no-go management options. You can set a mowing schedule, choose from different mowing modes, and check your mower's status. One of our favorite features? Lawn printing! That's right, you can customize your lawn with artistic mowing patterns, like hearts or stars. Last but not least, the LUBA utilizes a triple-reductant obstacle avoidance system — ultrasonic radar, 3D Vision, and a physical bumper — to keep people and animals safe, solidifying this product line as a House Digest IFA innovation award winner.