Similar arguments can be made for most new technologies. When the critique isn't over utility, it is almost certainly over disproportionately high costs. The

Similar arguments can be made for most new technologies. When the critique isn't over utility, it is almost certainly over disproportionately high costs. The important things are to understand why things are done the way they are and how it will progress in the future. I suspect that the long term utility for home automation is for managing energy use, rather than the gimmicky stuff that we are being sold on today. The reason for cramming a microcontroller into it probably has a lot to do with cost. Dealing with automation from top to bottom centrally would mean rewiring buildings and dealing with mains. Dealing with automation at the appliance level means that you can tailor the design to the requirements (e.g. cheaper components that handle less power if the device needs less power). Having a microcontroller means that you can use off-the-shelf components for networking.