My switches go up and down just like they always did. I can also toggle them from the app (ok so sometimes the switch is up and the thing is off but multi-way switches have been like that forever), track their on/off state, and use them as event sources to do other things.

There is a single magic switch that does "extra" stuff and that one's in the master bedroom. All of them except that one fail open and continue working like regular switches if Home Assistant is unavailable.

The livingroom has a Shelly dimmer that replaced an analogue dimmer and it also turns 2 lamps on and off.

The basement switch was wired to a single bulb and it triggers an event that powers all the smart bulbs in lamp holders spliced into arbitrary circuits on and off so all the basement lights work with the existing switch instead of just the 1 physically wired to it.

I think there's plenty of dumb things you can do with smart home tech but there's also tons of subtle and convenient enhancements as well. Phone alarm emits an event that opens the curtains and turns on a lamp is also a nice one.

Having a dashboard that shows whether (many) things are on or off and their power consumption is super handy. Dropping an Emporia circuit power monitor widget in the dashboard shows if the washer and dryer are running (a little bit of power, a lot of power, a lot of power + a little bit more power)