At the appointed day, they show up, load and lock your fridge. No more waiting in line while some bag lady dislodges a wad of coupons from her support stocking. It will even deliver your local morning e-paper, wire news stories and the local weather. It's like watching the Today Show without having to see Katie Couric get a Colonoscopy while you're trying to wolf down a bagel and coffee. Home automation technology that uses your home's electrical wiring is only as good as the wiring is unified.
Some houses have more that one wiring zone.
If this is the case, the smoke detectors in the basement may not to able to connect to your computer in the home office and email you at work to fink on junior who's smoking clove cigarettes in his room again. Before you invest in a wiring-based system, ask your builder or an electrician if your house has one or more wiring systems.