Smarthome in old house - but exactly how?

I agree with Rick, write down what you would like to have, so far I haven't read anything that is supposed to be smart. Lamps that are switched in any way with a phone / tablet / Alexa have nothing to do with being smart. The same goes for the supposed heating controllers that are supposed to be smart. Such nonsense, there is unfortunately nothing smart about that. Unfortunately, the term smart is neither protected nor defined, so anyone can call their system smart if it can be controlled/switched via an app on a "smartphone." If you want it to be smart, you also need smart components that recognize certain situations / conditions and act accordingly. There is still something to be done via radio, but cable would of course be better.

Therefore, I have so far found the overall concept of Bosch SmartHome quite interesting. There, heating boilers from Junkers or Buderus can be directly integrated.

Yes, that is the simple variant I was talking about, and you’re not necessarily doing anything wrong with it, but of course the options are rather limited and rudimentary. It’s basically just everything nicely repackaged with colorful pictures and touchscreens.

That’s also why I’m coming back to the Bosch outdoor camera. I’d just like a single app on the phone/tablet to control everything or access everything. Therefore, the thought was which manufacturer offers the most at once.

Yes, that’s not necessarily wrong either, but the fundamental idea is wrong. Binding yourself to one manufacturer is not productive. Usually, no one who wants more and wants it to become smart or at least functional at all does that. The simplest example from real life: car manufacturers. Apparently, cars come from one factory and everything is "seemingly" from one manufacturer. But if you look closer, Bosch, Hella, Michelin, and Delphi supply the parts and somehow they work together. The same can be achieved in the house. However, this rarely works if you insist on one manufacturer. You inevitably have to let multiple devices from different manufacturers work together. In other words, you need a common base over which communication takes place. Only then can you cautiously speak of "smart." And then there are the general rules that this and that system should not be connected with the other. For example, video surveillance or alarm systems should be separated from the rest of the house’s electrical system and function more or less independently. Unless it’s just meant to satisfy the playful urge.

thank you, I realize that with my thoughts I have (so far) only scratched the surface of what is actually "smart" and what is possible. It is only now becoming clear to me that there is more behind the topic than just a few functionalities controllable via app.

Thanks also to the other contributors. It probably makes sense to first work my way into the depths of the technologies and possibilities before I can really say what I want. Only when I know "what is possible" can I say what I would like from it.

Everything you can imagine is possible. The ideas are not new. Even if it all seems new because even the hardware store around the corner suddenly offers "smarthome". Whatever that may be *scratches head*

Building control systems for the average consumer have existed since the 1980s.