Behind every great project is a great set of tools. I’ve got a pretty varied collection of tools in my arsenal (albeit not as comprehensive as discussed in LifeHacker’s Essential Tools post), but the go-to set if find pulling out most often is actually the simplest and cheapest at 9 bucks – the 25-Piece Tri-Fold Mini Tool Set
It’s not as cool as the Worx semi-automatic Screwdriver, but it’s compact and has pretty much everything you need for light home automation projects. My only complaint from the Amazon listing is that they seem to have removed the wire cutter and replaced it with a tape measure – which may or may not be to your liking.
