This video focuses mostly on the battery version, which gives you, the customer, a pretty budget friendly option that allows you to keep your existing blinds, but is still cheaper compared to retrofit blind motors from companies like Eve, for example. How do they fare? Watch to find out.

You can purchase the ZemiSmart Matter over Thread roller shade motor (battery) from Amazon.com (affiliate) links below, which cost you nothing extra but help us buy more products for review, to keep you informed on how products perform.

Amazon.com (Matter over Thread, w/battery)

Alternatively, you can purchase directly from ZemiSmart themselves via the link below;

Battery model (Matter over Thread)

Wired model (Matter over Thread)

The post ZemiSmart Roller Shade Motor w/ Matter over Thread (video) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

PACKAGING | CONTENTS

From the outset, ZemiSmart makes sure you know this is a Matter product, with the logo clearly on the front of the box, as well as on the device itself. There’s not a lot to see, but it also makes clear that this requires an ethernet connection, and is powered by USB-C, which is a step up from the micro USB used on the previous hub. In terms of specs, both Zigbee and Thread are catered for, which means this can act as a Zigbee hub for ZemiSmart and Tuya Zigbee devices, as well as as a Thread Border Router and as a Matter controller. Impressive.

There’s not a lot to show for the contents either, and it’s important to note that – not surprisingly – no USB power brick is supplied. Aside from the hub itself, you do get a USB-C to USB-A cable, the manual (with Matter code), and a sim pin to reset the hub, if required.

The gateway design has gone for the minimalist look, which I’m ok with as I’m not going to be looking at it. It is a little odd to have the Matter logo on top, but I’m sure that’s okay with the CSA (Connectivity Standards Alliance) who are behind Matter. The ZemiSmart logo is also present but subtly so. The underside features rubber feet and a third instance of the Matter QR code, whilst the rear is home to the RJ45 port for your network connection and a USB-C port for power. There’s also a small hole for resetting the hub using the included SIM pin. It’s very plain, with no visible LEDs (apart from when it’s powered up) but that’s fine.

To test out the hub, I did ask for three basic sensors – a contact sensor, a motion sensor, and a temperature/humidity sensor. All of these are ZemiSmart branded, as well as Tuya certified. As long as the device type is supported in Matter and is Tuya certified, most Zigbee devices will work with the hub, and be exposed to your Matter platform of choice, although at the time of testing, some additional wireless buttons that I had to hand were not exposed to HomeKit via the hub. ZemiSmart told me that support for buttons is forthcoming.

MATTER | TUYA | APPLE HOME

Whilst this is a Matter device with a Matter QR code, meaning you can add this directly to Apple Home or any of the other Matter platforms of your choice, in reality, if you’re going to use this with your Tuya/Zemismart Zigbee devices, you’re going to need the Tuya app (there are two variants in fact), at least initially. This is because you can’t add sub-devices via your Matter platform, so adding sub-devices needs the Tuya app. If you want, you can add the devices to the hub first, then add the hub to Apple Home (also via the Tuya app), and then delete the Tuya app afterwards. What makes this a bit confusing, is that adding the hub to Tuya doesn’t require a Matter code, as it’s detected using Bluetooth, which is a Matter onboarding process. This does sort of make sense, as a HomePod or Apple TV don’t require a Matter QR code, despite them being Matter controllers too. Adding it to your main Matter platform afterwards doesn’t make use of the Matter QR code it comes with, as a new code is generated within the Tuya app, so for some, this might seem strange. If you wanted to use the QR code, you could add the hub directly to HomeKit, but it won’t then be picked up via Bluetooth to add it to Tuya. Scanning the code in the Tuya app won’t work either, but if you put it into pairing mode in Apple Home, and then generate a Matter code, you can tap it into the Tuya app. Swings and roundabouts…

Adding the hub to Apple Home is predictably very straightforward. As I didn’t have a QR code to scan, I selected ‘More options’ which brings up discoverable devices, including the hub. Adding the code generated in the Tuya app gets the hub into Apple Home, and once that’s added so are the three sensors as you can see above. Apple Home also shows all ‘connected services’, so in this case, it’s just Tuya and Apple Home at present.

I should point out that when I posted my video for this hub, I encountered a strange (non) issue where a page came up in the Home app asking me to add a six-digit PIN. This is normally the page you see when setting up a smart lock in Apple Home, which doesn’t seem to do anything, as it fails along the way anyway. ZemiSmart are aware of this, and in fact, pushed an early update that removed this bug, so I only mention this in the past tense.

So far so good, BUT how about the Matter Controller and Thread Border Router parts…?

THE MATTER CONTROLLER

First off, the M1 is primarily a hub when it comes to exposing Zigbee devices to your preferred platform. It’s also a Matter Controller, but only for the Tuya platform. This is in line with the other platforms, so a Google Nest Hub Max is a Matter Controller solely for the Google Home platform, just as a HomePod mini is such for Apple Home. This is where confusion is likely to creep in if you’re not paying attention. For example, most of Aqara’s hub lineup has been updated to support Matter, but not as Matter controllers, only Matter-compatible Zigbee Hubs. The SmartThings Station is almost the equivalent of the M1 in that it’s a Zigbee Hub, a Thread Border Router, and a Matter controller. It’s still solely designed to work with devices inside the SmartThings universe, be they Thread, Zigbee, or are Matter compatible.

 MATTER OVER THREAD

Like ZemiSmart, Onvis has gotten on board with Thread and Matter. Earlier this year they released a smart plug for the EU, US, and UK that uses Matter over Thread, so in theory this should work with the ZemiSmart Hub, given that it’s a Matter controller and a Thread Border Router.

Adding the S4 smart plug was almost the same as the process in Apple Home, so I had to scan the Matter code, name the device, and it was done.

The only extra step was a screen showing it generating ‘Matter credentials’ which I assume is its way of preparing it for additional Matter platforms. As you can see, it’s now listed in the Tuya app, with a simple user interface. As expected, however, the S4 is not exposed to HomeKit through the hub, as only Zigbee devices are capable of this. Whilst it’s a good example of how Matter devices can be added to any Matter platform, if you’re an Apple Home user, there’s probably little point in being able to add a Matter device to the Tuya app, unless you want to use any app-specific features. Of course, as Apple Home is a Matter platform, you can still add the plug to HomeKit too, but in my case, as the Tuya app is in no way a ‘daily driver’, there’s no point in me having most devices on both platforms.

IN USE | SUMMING UP

As I stated at the start of this review, I have to give some props to ZemiSmart for making such a device and going full pelt into both Matter and Thread. That being said, this is going to be of limited use to many HomeKit users, as you still need to use the Tuya app initially, and beyond exposing Zigbee devices to HomeKit, none of the other features add anything to Apple Home, per se. That said, as it’s a Matter-compliant device, you can delete the Tuya app once you’ve added all your Zigbee sensors, and have it work truly locally. I think where the M1 would come into its own (albeit not by much) is with platforms like Google and Amazon Alexa, but as we’re about HomeKit here, that’s about as much as I can say on the ‘Matter’ (pun intended).

Does it work? Yes, it works well. I haven’t had the three sensors drop out once so far, although initially launching the Tuya app will very briefly show all devices offline, but that’s merely a second before it all shows as online. I think that has more to do with the platform than the device, to be honest, so I wouldn’t put too much store in that.

Design-wise, it’s a better-looking hub than the previous model, but to be clear, this is a different hub, not a replacement. A true replacement for the Apple Home compatible hub (i.e. not Matter) is rumoured to be coming in the new year.

If you did want to use it in place of the current HomeKit hub, then be aware that not all Zigbee devices will be exposed to HomeKit via Matter just yet, like smart buttons for example, but I think that’s a Matter issue for the most part.

Some had felt the Zigbee signal wasn’t very strong in ZemiSmart’s original HomeKit hub, so from my testing, it does seem they’ve fixed this, with 9 metres and a few walls not stopping the hub from working with the devices I connected it to, so if there’s a selling point to be made, this could be it. All in all, a solid step forward for ZemiSmart, Matter and Thread, but of limited use to HomeKit users.

The post ZemiSmart Smart Matter Hub w/Thread (review) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

You can purchase the Smart Matter Hub M1 from ZemiSmart’s own store using the (affiliate) link below, which costs you nothing extra but helps us buy more products for review, to keep you informed on how products perform.

• Zemismart.com

The post ZemiSmart Smart Matter Hub M1 w/ Matter and Thread (video) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

This brings us to ZemiSmart’s Smart Roller Shade Motor with Matter. This product has existed in previous incarnations for a long time now, with Zigbee, WiFi, Bluetooth, and RF433MHz versions, but now the company has jumped into Matter with both feet, resulting in a Matter over WiFi compatible product – the first of many, I assure you. What’s it like though, and does it play nicely with all platforms – including HomeKit? Read on to find out.

PACKAGING | CONTENTS

I’m sure many people don’t really care about presentation, at least compared to me, but aside from ensuring the product inside is adequately protected, I think it’s important to look professional via the presentation of a brand (this is my former marketing career coming out…). ZemiSmart has finally taken this aspect seriously, with properly printed, full-colour packaging that shows the product, comes with consistent brand colours, and most importantly for now, the Matter logo. Gone are the days of generic plain white packaging that could be from any manufacturer, thankfully. As this is Matter certified, you won’t see a Works with Apple Home logo on the box, as there’s not really any need for something like a window covering product.

All the relevant specs are shown clearly on the side of the box;

• Input voltage – 100~240V AC
• Rated power – 22W
• Rated current – 0.1A
• Rated frequency – 50/60Hz
• Torque – 0.8Nm
• Rated RPM – 25PRM
• Load-bearing – 4kg

According to the manual, there’s a more powerful version of this motor, although so far I’ve not seen any evidence of this product being available at the time of writing aside from the mention of it in the manual.

In the box, you get the motor itself, a manual in English, which is a lot more straightforward to follow than previous ones from ZemiSmart, and a pair of brackets to mount the motor. An end cap for the other end of your roller blind tube, a remote control which includes a wall bracket, a double-sided sticker, as well as screws and rawl plugs to fit the wall bracket.

THE MOTOR

As you can see from the image of the motor, this is not battery-powered, instead relying on mains power via the Live and Neutral wires connected to one end of the motor. This may not appeal to many, although you could also argue that the lack of having to wonder when to recharge an internal battery – that could fail – is also a selling point.

The motor itself is designed to fit roller tubes between 36~38mm in diameter, although the company also offer a smaller motor with Matter too if you have a roller blind covering a much smaller window perhaps, designed to work with roller tubes of around 25mm in diameter. That model doesn’t seem to be listed either, although I have it here, so it does exist!

When it comes to connectivity, the motor uses Matter over WiFi, utilising the 2.4GHz WiFi band for the furthest reach. It would have been great to see Matter over Thread here, but it is what it is. Previous versions of this device would have had the WiFi module inside the tube, but for this, the module is placed inside a box externally, with an instance of the Matter code stuck to it. There’s also an instance of this code in the manual.

Aside from the two wires for power, and the cable that connects the motor to the aforementioned WiFi module, there’s also a third wire that utilises the 433MHz radio frequency. This is to allow direct control from, and connection to the included remote. This remote control, which requires two AAA batteries, is a generic type provided by many manufacturers, not just ZemiSmart, but it works very well with the roller blinds, and regardless of whether you actually plan to use it or not, you’re going to need it for initial setup; with previous ZemiSmart roller blinds – HomeKit compatible or not – you could use the remote or the Tuya app to set the upper and lower limits for the blinds. As these blinds are Matter compatible, the Tuya app is no longer required, and can’t be used even if you wanted to use it, so the remote is the only option available to you in order to set up these limits. If you don’t set the limits, the motor will simply not work in any Matter ecosystem, even if it shows up.

ADDING TO APPLE HOME | HOMEKIT | OTHER PLATFORMS

Adding the Matter-enabled motor to Apple Home/HomeKit is exactly the same as adding a HomeKit device, which makes the process immediately familiar. Apple is well positioned for Matter on this aspect alone. As you can probably guess, in the Home app you get the one tile for the motor, along with a slider control to adjust the open/closed position of the blinds. The only differences are that in the settings for Matter devices, you have a separate option labelled ‘Turn on Pairing Mode’. This allows the already added device to be added to further Matter ecosystems. Whilst the Matter QR code can be used to add it to a single ecosystem (in this case HomeKit), once it has been used, you can’t use that same QR code to add it to other platforms, so the ‘Turn on Pairing Mode’ option generates a new pairing code, whilst also setting the motor to pairing mode. Each Matter ecosystem has such a feature, so in theory, you can add it to any platform in any order, and add it to another platform with a new code. Each new platform requires a new code, so the code generated during the pairing code process will only be valid for one platform.

Adding the blinds to other platforms was a bit hit and miss, to be honest, but this is less about ZemiSmart than it is about how Matter works, which is still a bit foggy in terms of what you need to do in preparation for adding devices to platforms other than HomeKit.

Here you can see the same motor in Google Home, and perhaps unsurprisingly, things are much the same as they are in Apple Home.

Here are the details for the same roller blind in the Samsung SmartThings app. Even though the roller blinds use WiFi, you still need a Matter controller for each platform, so in the case of Google I’ve got a couple of Google Nests Mini as well as a first gen Google Nest Hub (with display), and a Google Nest Hub Max (with display). The latter also contains Thread Border Router functionality.

For SmartThings I have Samsung’s latest SmartThings Station, which in addition to being a Matter Controller, is also a Thread Border Router, and a Zigbee hub. Oh, it’s also a wireless phone charger too!

Anyway, you can see that the ZemiSmart motor plays well with all of these platforms. At the time of writing, however, and during testing, I failed to add the motor to Amazon Alexa, which unbeknownst to me doesn’t currently support window cover devices. So much for Matter support on Alexa…

PERFORMANCE

As you might know by now, I’m not keen on getting more WiFi devices into my HomeKit setup unless it’s absolutely necessary, so this particular device – which I could find a place for – won’t be staying, solely based on the fact it uses WiFi. If it were Thread-based, that would be a different story. That’s not to say it’s not a good device – far from it in fact. Of all the roller shade motors I’ve tested so far, this is by far the quietest – although it does depend on things like what kind of weight it’s pulling. The responsiveness was on point, and when using the remote, it was almost literally instantaneous in terms of reacting.

Installation was really easy, although as I’ve done this kind of install a few times, I guess it might be less easy for some people, but inserting the motor into the tube and affixing the included brackets to the ceiling or wall isn’t the biggest of challenges, to be fair.

When it comes to responsiveness in multiple apps, I noticed that the status of the blinds would take a few seconds to update when switching from one app to another, but nothing to be concerned over, and in reality, I can’t see a reason why you’d want to. I think this is really another Matter issue if it can be called one.

It would have been good to see some included adaptors to allow it to work with other tube sizes, but I guess the motor is ostensibly designed to work within certain limits, and so it may be that the motor could be pushed beyond its capabilities if it’s installed in a larger tube, with potentially longer and heavier blinds.

The other point of concern is finding an outlet near enough to the motor. This might not be such an issue if it weren’t so short, which I find a bit of an odd decision. Sure, it’s designed to be short on the assumption that an outlet is nearby, but in reality, many older homes don’t have an outlet placed at the height you’d have the motor placed, so I think making the cord longer and allowing people to cut it to length would have been a more sensible option.

As I’m no longer using this motor beyond the testing period, it’s hard to know fully how reliable and long-lasting the motor is, but given this motor has existed in various forms for a few years now, it wouldn’t be hard to find reviews that reflect on this aspect more accurately.

All in all, if you don’t mind adding a WiFi device to your home, and want Matter, this is definitely a very budget-friendly option to be considered, as you don’t need to change your blinds in order to make them smart, which is a significantly cheaper option than the cost of purchasing new custom smart blinds.

The post ZemiSmart Smart Matter Roller Shade Motor (review) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

There are some companies that start out promising HomeKit support, only to not deliver (Wynd are one such example), whilst others start out with HomeKit support, but then start to lose enthusiasm for it, like Eufy (who’ve been in the news this week for other reasons). ZemiSmart are an example of a company that had no HomeKit products for years, but once they released their first Zigbee hub, have gone all in on restrospectively adding HomeKit to some devices, or just releasing brand new products, or version of them, with HomeKit out of the box. This is something of a pleasant surprise, given that HomeKit has always been accused of lagging behind. Not so, and today’s product we’re reviewing goes one small step further. Read on to learn more.

UNBOXING

ZemiSmart may have made some large strides when it comes to HomeKit, but presentation isn’t one of their strong suits. That being said, if the product is well protected (it is), and it results in lower prices (it does), then who am I to complain? In this case, you get a plain – but sturdy – cardboard box with stickers for the specs and the ‘Works with Apple HomeKit’ badge. In the case of the latter, you could be forgiven for assuming this isn’t genuinely HomeKit certified, but I can assure you it is, despite appearances.

To its credit, the specs are there for you to see in plain view. In this case, I’m reviewing the largest of the three sizes the company offers, which is the 15W model. All models have the same input voltage – 100~240v AC, the same beam angle – 120º, and all use 2.4GHz WiFi for connectivity. The model for this review is the brightest of the three, obviously, but all three are capable of the standard 16m colours, as well as cool and warm whites managed with separate LEDs, which is impressive in a world where cheap lighting products tend to lean on RGB to recreate the white colour temperature range. More on this later.

In terms of what you get in the box, it’s as minimal as you should probably expect; the lamp, connected to a driver, and a simple manual in English. The manual comes with a HomeKit QR code, with the box alone coming with two copies of the code. The driver for the lamp also has a QR code, so four in total. They’re all the same code of course, just in case you’re new to this…

As with nearly all downlights/pot lights/recessed lights, you get a couple of spring-loaded clips to hold it in place. The wires connected to the driver are decently wrapped in a material sleeve that feels sturdy, and the rear (or inside) of the lamp has an aluminium heatsink.

The driver, which regulates not only power to the lights, but also controls things like colour, is quite chunky but looks pretty substantial in terms of build quality compared to the ones connected to the lights being replaced. At one end of the driver are two simple connectors for the neutral and live wires to connect to. These wires are then held in place by the large orange clamps that fit on both ends of the driver. The other end contains a tiny reset/pairing button. This is probably the best option for preparing the bulbs to be added to your smart home, as the other option is to connect the lights to mains electricity as normal, then turn the lights on/off ten times via the switch they’re connected to. This wouldn’t be an issue for a single bulb, but if you did this process for one downlight, connected it to HomeKit, and then did the same for the second downlight connected to the same switch/circuit, you’ll essentially be resetting the first light again. You could also set them to be ready for pairing at the same time, though. I didn’t in this case, as I wasn’t sure if the pairing mode disabled itself after a certain amount of time.

IN HOMEKIT

As these downlights use WiFi, you can add them directly to HomeKit without having to use either the company’s Zigbee hub or the Tuya app. In the screenshots above, you can see I’ve decided to group the two downlights so they appear as just one tile. In the second screenshot, you can see colour controls, but what came as a total surprise to me is that these are compatible with Apple’s Adaptive Lighting technology. If you’re not aware of this feature, it basically allows compatible lights (they need cool and warm white options) to automatically change the colour temperature over the course of the day to aid the human body and mind to feel generally more comfortable. This might sound odd, but essentially, people are receptive to different colour temperatures, which has an effect on their mood, mind, and well-being (it is claimed). So when you wake up in the morning, the lights will be set to warm white, in order for you to adjust to the day and natural daylight. As the morning progresses, warm white eventually makes way for cooler whites, which help with productivity and alertness. As the afternoon progresses to the evening, the lights once again take on a warmer tone, to help you to relax and unwind before bed.

This feature can be deactivated simply by choosing a different colour, but s I’m using these in a room that I tend to use for work purposes, I think I’ll benefit more from whites than colours.

COLOUR

For colours, although these images probably don’t do them full justice, the colours really appear decently saturated or ‘rich’. Equally, the warm white (when used as part of Adaptive Lighting) isn’t overly orange like you find on some bulbs, and the cool white isn’t overly blue either. All in all, I was quite happy with the colour rendering.

IN THE TUYA SMART APP

You don’t have to use the Tuya app, as already stated, but you might want to, in order to take advantage of some of the exclusive features, as well as connect them to Google or Alexa if you like to control them via multiple ecosystems – at least until Matter becomes more ubiquitous. One thing that the Tuya app allows, is showing the lights both as a group and individually. This is also reflected in Google and Amazon. You also get control over the colour and colour temperature, as normal, although if you want to check that Adaptive Lighting is working, you can see the percentage directly in the colour temperature wheel, as seen above.

You get access to scenes, which make use of the bulbs’ colour-changing functionality, as well as schedules and timers. Power Memory is useful for setting the default state a bulb should turn on to, once power is restored after a power failure, and ‘Biorhythms’ is pretty much Tuya’s version of Adaptive Lighting, but possibly more customisable.

IN USE

I’ll be honest, and say that I didn’t have massively high expectations of these downlights. In fact, for a while, I was offered these for review and turned down the opportunity, as I wasn’t keen on taking on more WiFi devices. When I finally thought it was going to be something different enough for me, to review a downlight, which is something I’ve never really tackled before, I was first surprised at how much better the product quality was than anticipated. They were easy to install, even for me, not being exactly an expert on fitting stuff like this. But the surprise at finding these worked with Adaptive Lighting took these to a new level. They work well, although I’d prefer to use Zigbee or Thread eventually, using WiFi does make things easy to some extent, so I can’t really complain. The reaction times are good enough, and the colours are more than decent, as are the cool and warm whites. I really have no complaints, other than at this late stage, I’m hoping that these can be updated to support Matter. When asked about this with ZemiSmart, they were, unsurprisingly, non-commital. To HomeKit users, this isn’t going to make any real difference for a while, but given the company is working on Matter-compatible devices as I type, then we can but hope they do push an update anyway. Recommended – if you don’t mind more WiFi devices.

The post ZemiSmart WiFi Colour Downlight (review) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

You can buy the ZemiSmart WiFi Downlight from Walmart in the US, or you can buy directly from ZemiSmart at a much lower price;

• ZemiSmart.com – $31.50 (4in) | $28.50 (3.5in) | $25.50 (2.5in)
• Walmart – $45.99 (4in) | $42.99 (3.5in)

The post ZemiSmart WiFi Colour Downlight appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

PACKAGING

Starting off with the box, eagle-eyed HomeKit fans might well recognise this from a lamp that was released earlier this year, finding its way onto places like AliExpress. One difference with that product is that it doesn’t feature the ZemiSmart branding, and whilst both this lamp and the model by CozyLife are HomeKit compatible, the CozyLife version uses WiFi, and not Zigbee, like the model we’re reviewing today. ZemiSmart does offer a WiFi version according to the box, but there’s no sign of it on their website at the time of writing. The CozyLife model also comes with a remote control. I personally try to avoid WiFi devices these days unless it’s a real requirement (cameras for example), so I’m glad to see the Zigbee version, even if it requires the company’s own HomeKit-compatible Zigbee hub.

One thing I should mention to put your mind at ease in terms of HomeKit compatibility is that whilst the box doesn’t have a HomeKit logo, with only Amazon and Google Showing up, this is 100% compatible, via the hub of course. This isn’t out of the ordinary, however, as even Hue lights won’t show the HomeKit logo, given that it’s the Hue Bridge that’s the HomeKit part, essentially. The box also goes on to let you know that not only is there a black-rimmed version, but there’s also a white version, which is the one I have here. The basic features are also listed, which include 16 million colours, as standard, scenes, schedules and timers (all via either HomeKit or the Tuya app), as well as the ability to have warm or cool white, courtesy of separate LEDs, so there’s no approximation of white light using RGB LEDs.

THE LAMP

The lamp itself has a very slim bevel surrounding the diffuser, although that bevel is deeper when viewed in profile. You’re unlikely to concentrate on that though unless you have very low ceilings or you’re over 8ft tall… The lamp is rather unadorned so if you like the plain look, this won’t disappoint.

The lamp has an interesting, if not entirely unique method of mounting the ceiling light; The underside has a removable frame or bracket that has two holes for screws that allow you to attach it to the ceiling, without the need to mount the whole unit in one go. This bracket has two wires that you would connect the wires from any previously installed light fitting, with those wires terminating in a couple of connectors.

These connectors then come into contact with a pair of pins on the main lamp body once you slide the bracket into place via the tracks on the underside of the lamp. it does make fitting the lamp easier than I’d found with the Mijia Ceiling Lamp 450 I reviewed a while ago, although Yeelight (who also makes many of Mijia’s lighting products) has different but equally useful methods of connecting the lamp to the ceiling.

One thing to note, however, is that the wires for the lamp aren’t especially strong, so you should take care to make sure they aren’t pulled or put under too much strain, as they could break from the frame. This is unlikely if you’re fitting it and leaving it alone, but it’s worth noting.

In addition to the lamp, you get two screws and corresponding rawl plugs. There’s also a very, very small booklet that doesn’t actually refer to the lamp, but one of their colour bulbs. Even though I’d say this look poor for the company, in actuality, it doesn’t really matter, as the installation is easy as long as you use the Tuya or Smart Life app;

• You power up the lamp, whereupon its brightness levels will pulsate
• In the Tuya app, you click the plus icon and select your hub
• The hub will then automatically discover the lamp and add it
• Once added, it’ll automatically appear in HomeKit

IN HOMEKIT | THE HOME APP

As you can see, the lamp appears in HomeKit just like any other colour lighting product. You get the slider control, along with options to choose your colour or colour temperature.

If you were in any doubt the lamp works with HomeKit, you can see that the lamp is connected to a bridge (screenshot #1), with the hub listed as the Zemismart hub (screenshot #2). Screenshot #3 shows the devices currently connected to the hub – a zemismart light strip and the lamp.

IN THE TUYA APP 

I don’t really use the Tuya app for anything other than updates or adding a device, but it’s actually a fairly well-appointed app, all the same. n the main page, you can control some basic features of the lamp directly without having to go into the dedicated page for the lamp itself. Apart from on/off, brightness, and colour temperature, you also get an option called the ‘Zigbee Light Link Threshold’. Although I’m not entirely sure what it’s for, it would appear to be of use with third-party Zigbee bridges, like Philips Hue, which this lamp is apparently also compatible with, although adding it to the Hue bridge won’t expose it to HomeKit. According to the manual (even though the manual isn’t specifically for this lamp…) the lamp can also work with Amazon Echo devices with a Zigbee radio built-in, as well as the SmartThings hub.

The app has the standard colour wheels for colour and colour temperature, as well as a ‘Scenes’ tab, which you’ll find in pretty much every ‘own-product’ app these days.

There’s a Music tab that animates the light based on the audio picked up from your iPhone’s mic (whoopee…) and a ‘More’ tab that lists options like Plan, Schedule, Timer, Rhythms, and Power-on behaviour. The latter two are of most interest in my opinion.

‘Rhythms’ is actually ‘Biorhythms’ and is designed to be used in a similar way to Apple’s Adaptive Lighting, so it adjusts the colour temperature and brightness throughout the course of the day, in order to provide lighting suitable for the time of day. This, apparently helps you to be alert and productive, or relaxed, depending on the time of day, and the colour temperature. Whilst Adaptive Lighting is all done automatically, in this case, you can program it yourself.

The ‘Power-on behaviour’ option, has more sub-options, so alongside the usual feature that allows you to set how the light reacts once power is restored to the lamp, you also get options to have the light brighten or dim gradually over a period of time. The Other option available is Do Not Disturb, but in this case, it allows the app to turn the light off, with the light blocked from being turned on -presumably via a wireless button – unless the said button is pressed twice. Clever.

LAMP COLOUR RENDERING

When setting up the lamp, I was pleasantly surprised at the colour generated by the LEDs. It’s not that the colours are especially rich, although they’re more than passable, but it was the evenness of the colour throughout the diffuser. There’s no way of detecting the individual LEDs, so what you’re left with is a really solid ball of colour. Personally, I think a ceiling lamp should really focus on decent whites, but for a child’s room, this would probably be more than welcome I imagine.

I mentioned at the start that this lamp has separate LEDs for cool and warm white, and as such the whites are pretty decent. The cool white setting is where you’re going to get the maximum amount of brightness. Warm white is pretty good too, with the white not being overly orange like I’ve found with some RGB bulbs.

WRAPPING UP

It’s fair to say that Zemismart seem to be trying its hardest to churn products out at a fast pace for us HomeKit users, so it’s hard to complain about minor issues that you might find with some of their products, especially for the price. In the case of this lamp, I was once again surprised at how well it performed. The minor negative points are build quality; With a lamp of this type, you’re going to set it up and largely forget about it, so even though the materials used feel a bit on the cheap side, essentially it shouldn’t matter too much. The wires used for the switch should be more robust in my opinion, but once again, as long as you don’t keep moving the lamp hither and thither, it shouldn’t matter too much. All in all, better than expected, even if it doesn’t offer anything majorly exciting or original, but then ceiling lamps are still relatively scarce in comparison to bulbs.

The post ZemiSmart Smart Ceiling light (review) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

You can buy the switch directly from Amazon or ZemiSmart via the affiliate links below;

• Amazon.com
• ZemiSmart.com

The post The ZemiSmart Wave Contactless Smart Switch appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

NOTE: this lock – just like the Aqara A100 – is not suitable for outdoor use, as it has no IP rating at all, so unless you live in an apartment, or your home has a porch or some form of shelter above your door, this is not going to be suitable for you.

PACKAGING | CONTENTS

Not to put too fine a point on it, but if you’re new to ZemiSmart, you may find some of their products come in pretty generic packaging, with the company logo missing on some of them. This seems to be that the products inside are themselves white label manufactured products (or ODM), so you may see some of the same products with a different brand on the front. This doesn’t apply to all of ZemiSmart’s product lines, although in the case of this lock, it would appear to be the case. as long as it works though, that’s the main thing, and as for the box, it protects everything really well. Good enough for me.

It should be noted that whilst the lock states ‘right’, as in the lock is designed for a door that opens from the right on the outside, the lock can actually be set to open either way, which I’ll explain later on. It also mentions ‘double tongue’ which means the lock comes with a latch bolt and a mortice bolt. Some locks the company manufacture are just latchbolt locks.

The box has the two parts of the lock you come into contact with (ie the handles), the manual (in English), the mortice lock that sits inside your door, and a bag full of small bits and pieces – a strike plate with plastic recess, some screws and bolts to fit the two halves of the lock together, a couple of standard keys, and two IC cards for keyless entry.

The two parts of the lock you come into contact with on a daily basis are, of course, the handles. These seem to be made of some kind of metal for the main frame, and glass or perspex for the fascia, to give it a more premium look and feel, whilst also allowing the keypad to register touch.

The top part of the interior section of the lock is home to the battery compartment, with the lock requiring four AAA batteries, with the company stating that they should last anything from between two to five months, depending on usage.

THE LOCK

The exterior has a fingerprint sensor built into the hand, along with the aforementioned keypad that also acts as a doorbell when you press the # icon. The keypad is designed to accept passcodes for entry, but is also designed to work with the two included IC cards mentioned earlier.

These key cards use Integrated Circuit technology as opposed to the more prevalent NFC, but they seem to work just as well, and just as fast, so it shouldn’t really matter. You simply place the card close to the centre of the keypad, and the lock automatically disengages. What isn’t mentioned in the manual is that NFC cards can actually be used, although despite what I’ve seen demonstrated on one of the ZemiSmart videos, only blank writable NFC cards can be used, not credit and transit cards. Non-Apple phones with NFC can also be reported to be, although my attempt at using an Android phone with NFC failed. iPhones can’t be used, as Apple restricts the use of NFC in their products.

On the interior half of the lock, there’s a simple deadlock toggle switch. When set to the locked position, this will stop any use of the unlock attempts, registered or otherwise, from unlocking the door. So fingerprints, passcodes, IC cards etc will not work when this is engaged, including any admins. The only method of unlocking the door when this is engaged is with the physical keys.

The lock comes in just the type, but is available with a choice of six different faceplate lengths, with 240mm being the largest.

Of the two locks, neither actually have motors that move them into a locked position as such. The mechanics inside the lock body are disconnected from the lock under normal conditions, and only connect with them when you use one of the methods of entry. So, once you tap in your code, or use your thumbprint, the mechanism inside connects with the latch bolt (and the mortice bolt if it’s in the locked position), allowing the handle to retract them, before disconnecting, and leaving the locks unable to be controlled again until you use it again.

If the lock is set to open the opposite way you need it to, it’s simple to fix. The two handle sections each have a screw, that when loosened, will allow the handles to rotate 180º, so they’re facing the right way. The latch bolt has a small internal catch, that when lifted, allows the latch bolt to be pulled in and swivelled to face the other way.

Even though I was unable to install the lock on my front door, I was still able to install it on a demo door and use that for testing over approximately 2 weeks. I originally intended to install the lock before my Aqara A100 Zigbee lock arrived, but installing the ZemiSmart lock would have left long thin holes where it didn’t quite cover where the original lock would sit, so it wasn’t an option to have it installed this way, even if it’s very secure where we live. Still, I was able to test the connectivity of the lock to the Zigbee gateway (more on that later), as well as test it with automations, and test the speed responsiveness.

ONLY ZIGBEE AND NO BLUETOOTH? 

What’s interesting about this lock, unlike pretty much most other HomeKit locks on the market, is that it doesn’t use Bluetooth as its primary connection method – in fact, it doesn’t have Bluetooth at all! It solely relies on Zigbee (to the hub, and on to HomeKit) for connectivity. This means there’s no direct connection method between the lock and your phone (which is why Bluetooth has been used so far). This may at first seem strange, but in actual fact, due to the various methods available to you that don’t even require a connection to the hub – i.e. fingerprint, passcode, IC card, key – there’s really very little to worry about in terms of being unable to unlock your door. Even if every one of these methods fails, you still have a key as the ultimate backup. The only thing you do lose – if you can’t connect to your home network and the ZemiSmart gateway – is the ability to unlock the door via your app, either when you’re at home or remotely. This could just as well be the case with all other locks in terms of remote access of course, so this lock is no more vulnerable in this respect, and a direct Bluetooth connection is irrelevant for remote access.

INSTALLATION (VIA APP)

In theory, the lock could be used without any need for smart connectivity at all, because adding codes, fingerprints, users, and setting up the IC Cards is all done on the lock itself via the keypad. Still, I’m going to assume that if you’re reading this, it’s likely you’ll want it to be a ‘connected’ device, even if it’s not connected to HomeKit. For the smart connection, you need to do it through the Tuya Smart app, which requires you to set up an account. Assuming you’ve done that and you already have your ZemiSmart hub set up, you simply need to select the plus icon on the home screen to add a device, scroll to the ‘security’ section and select the Zigbee lock. You then select your hub, and you’ll be presented with a screen asking you to reset the device.

This is where you need to have read the instructions, as resetting the device isn’t going to be very clear with the onscreen ‘reset device step by step’ link, as the instructions are very generic, and don’t necessarily apply to this specific lock. To reset the device, you need to get into the lock’s menu system;

• tap * and # on the keypad
• tap in the default admin code, which is 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, #

You’re then presented with four options;

• tap 1 (admin settings)
• tap 3 (network)

Once you do this, the lock becomes discoverable, you then select it from the list, and it’ll be added to the account and your app, as well as being bound to the ZemiSmart hub.

This also means it’s then automatically exposed to HomeKit and will appear in the Apple Home app too. In HomeKit the lock’s features are quite basic, with no options other than the essentials, although that’s much the case with many HomeKit compatible locks, to be fair. What is missing is any mention of battery levels. This means that there’s nothing really of note to report when it comes to the Home app and HomeKit in general, there are no extras at all. This means that other than automations triggered by, or including the lock, everything else requires the Tuya app or using the lock directly (adding users, codes etc). This, once again, is nothing new for HomeKit locks, as access and codes are usually done in the manufacturers’ apps. The only current exception to this rule is with the Schlage Encode Plus, which exposes a new HomeKit feature called ‘Guest Access’ that gives you a set of passcode features you’d normally only see in the manufacturers’ apps. As far as I’m aware, the Schlage is the only one that offers this feature.

FEATURES IN THE TUYA SMART APP

The Tuya app isn’t without some charm, as long as you know that it’s not a dedicated ZemiSmart app. It’s more akin to Xiaomi’s Mi Home app, where compatible devices from many manufacturers are able to work together. The difference here is that many of the devices you add are seen by the Tuya app in very general/generic terms, as opposed to something very specific to the device. This, as I mentioned when it comes to initially setting up the lock, can be a little frustrating, but it is what it is.

The lock appears on the home screen and allows for locking or unlocking the smart lock directly without opening the specific user interface for the lock. If you do go into the lock’s UI, you’re presented with a large button in the centre to lock or unlock your door. You get a battery level indicator as well as a bar that tells you if someone pressed the doorbell (yes, there’s a doorbell…).

Below all that there are four tabs; Records, which tells you who has opened the door and by which method, Unlock ways Which initially shows users, but once tapping the plus icon, offers two options – ‘Family lock’, and ‘temporary lock’, which I’ll go into shortly, along with a Scene tab and a Settings tab.

I mentioned in my video review for this lock that the app has some bugs, and one of them seems pretty big. For example, if you tap on a user as pictured above, you get options to add a fingerprint, password, or card. In this example, I selected fingerprint, and it then instructs you to place your finger on the sensor on the lock handle. You click ‘begin add’, and it then waits for you to add your fingerprint. It simply doesn’t work…

This is the same for passcodes and cards as well. At first, I thought the lock was screwed, but I eventually realised that – despite what the app shows – you have to add your prints, cards and codes all via the lock’s keypad, by going through its menu system as mentioned earlier, once signed in as an administrator. Once a code, card or print is used, it shows up in the logs. In the logs, each new unlock method has a ‘link user’ button. You tap on that, which then gives you the option to assign that code/print/card to a user. Once assigned, you go back into the logs, and they’ll update to show you the user is now assigned to that unlock method.

The only time you can’t assign an unlock method is when you unlock via HomeKit. In this case, ‘Remote 700 unlock’ will show in the logs, but with no option to assign it to a user.

I also mentioned earlier, that the lock has a doorbell function, but before you get too excited, this is quite basic; if you tap the keypad to wake it up, you can then press the # icon, which will trigger a doorbell sound. This sound is only really for the benefit of the person pressing the doorbell to let them know they’ve pressed the right button, however, as the speaker is located on the underside of the lock.

When the ‘doorbell’ is pressed, any registered user (as long as they’ve also set up a Tuya account) will get a push notification to let you know. The underside also features a keyhole, which I’ll mention more on shortly, along with a Micro USB port. This last item is for when the batteries unexpectedly die. You do need a powerbank or a phone capable of reverse charging, along with a suitable cable, but assuming you do, the lock can be powered up so you can in and set about replacing the batteries asap.

TRADITIONAL LOCK

The lock comes with two ‘traditional’ keys, although these don’t quite fit the description in some ways. These will fit into the keyhole, which you then need to turn 90º for them to work. However, when turning the keys, they don’t actually retract either the latch bolt or the mortice bolt – they simply allow these bolts to be engaged to the handle, which you then pull down in order to unlock the door. They’re still good for emergencies, so it’s all good.

TYPES OF PASSCODE

For users in your family, who are generally going to be using the lock on an ongoing basis, you can assign a fingerprint, a passcode, or register an IC card to them, but for times when you want to give access to people on a temporary or restricted basis, you only have the option to issue passcodes. For family members, as I’ve already outlined, you can add them to the lock without them needing to register an account with Tuya, or even download the app. The same applies to temporary passcodes of course, as only a code that they need to tap in on the lock’s keypad is required. For these types of codes, you get three options;

• Once password
• Repeat password
• Dynamic password

The ‘Once password’ allows you to get a randomly generated passcode that will last for 24 hours, and can only be used once. Once generated, you won’t be able to see the passcode again, so it’s best to copy it within the app and send it to its intended user via email or SMS etc.

For Periodic passwords, you can create your own or once again have the app randomly generate a code for you. You can specify start and end dates, as well as restrict the code’s use to specific times of the day and days of the week. Unfortunately, you can’t leave the expiry date open, so if you have someone that requires limited access, you would have to either give them permanent access or set an expiry date at a much later date, which you can then change later.

This option is also supposed to allow you to send this code via SMS, although when I tried it, it wouldn’t work. This would seem to be another bug unless I’m somehow meant to give it access, but I couldn’t see an option to do so.

the Final option, Dynamic Password, allows you to randomly generate a passcode that will last for 5 minutes, starting from the time it has been generated. This is of use if you’re away from home, and a package arrives, but you only want a one-off code that is just long enough for a delivery person to access your home to drop off a package inside the house. You could do the same with the ‘once password’ option, but as that lasts for 24 hours, there’s always the possibility that it doesn’t get used by the intended party, who could then end up sharing it with someone else who has 24 hours to use it for less than honest reasons, unlikely as it may be.

Despite this lock not really being in the same league as the Aqara locks, based on quality and craftsmanship, these unlock options are a lot better than those currently offered by the Aqara app.

EASE OF USE | WRAP UP

If you’ve seen my video for the Aqara A100 Zigbee or read the review, you’ll know that the fingerprint method of unlocking the door is pretty much second to none. This might not be the case if the fingerprint sensor was located on the keypad, for example, but because it’s placed in the right position for your thumb when holding the handle to open the door, it just comes as second nature to use this method. Obviously, this unfortunately is an issue if you’re missing a thumb, hand or arm, but for many people, I think this is the method they’ll use without a second thought. It’s certainly the case with the A100 and would be for this lock if it were in regular use here. It’s exceedingly fast and usually accurate when correctly reading your print. If it doesn’t get your print, it’ll just play a voice that states ‘failed’, but in my tests, as long as you place your print firmly and squarely on the sensor, this rarely happens.

If we’re talking about speed, then the IC cards are probably even faster, if less natural to use, although bear in mind, you need to get the card out to use it, whereas your fingers are just there! You only get two of these cards, although I’m sure you can purchase more if needed.

Using the keypad is ok, and although it’s not fast, it does afford you the luxury of controlling who comes and goes, at times and dates of your choosing, as well as also being a handy backup option.

The emergency keys are probably the only option you would use as a last resort, partly because it’s very unlikely that all of the aforementioned options are going to fail in one go, but also because the keyhole isn’t really in the most convenient place. I get why, as it is really only meant as an emergency, but nonetheless, it’s probably even slower than using a traditional key and lock, due to its location.

Control via the app is an interesting one because, in the past, all the locks we’ve used or tested (Aqara, Vocolinc, Tedee, Nuki, Terncy, Reagle, August, and more) use Bluetooth as their primary method of communication, either directly via the phone and/or your Apple Home Hub (Apple TV, HomePod/Mini), or via a proprietary Bluetooth to WiFi hub from the company concerned. Because this lock only uses Zigbee, as expected, the reaction times are fast. Not 100% of the time, I’ll grant you, but more consistently than Bluetooth. Much of the time you’re not going to really notice this because for the most part, you’re going to be using the lock directly (fingerprint, code etc), but if there’s an instance where you get a visit from someone you know who doesn’t have a code, opening the lock via Apple Home or the Tuya Smart app, is going to be fast. This, as you can see in my video review is also the case even when you’re not on the same network as the ZemiSmart hub, so the long delay you experience with Bluetooth when you’re out and about is even more noticeable when you see how fast this lock reacts.

Having been in a position to compare this lock to the Aqara A100 Zigbee, it’s afforded me a good way of viewing opposite ends of the market in terms of cost. I really love the Aqara lock for many reasons – built quality, ease of use, integrations (Apple HomeKey and Aqara/Zigbee), as well as the overall design. It would be unfair to compare the ZemiSmart lock to this because the price difference alone makes it clear that the company has had to cut corners to make it affordable to a lot of users, so yes, the build quality and finish aren’t up there compared to the A100, although for a budget lock of this type, it’s actually better – and feels more solid – than I expected, in all honesty. What lets it down is really only the app, with the lack of clarity in how entry methods and how they’re applied to users are achieved.

If I didn’t have access to the Aqara A100, and the ZemiSmart lock could have been fitted without a sliver of a gap being left after installation, I would actually have been happy to use the ZemiSmart lock in place of the smart lock I’d been using for the past two years – namely the Nuki Lock 2.0. As it stands, this is not meant to be, but I would certainly recommend this if you are able to replace your current mortice lock, and just can’t get hold of or afford an Aqara lock, because, despite the flaws, it does many of the same things pretty well. What could take this lock to the next level is to at least add Apple’s guest Access feature. It’s a small thing, but one more feature that would allow me to stay within the Apple Home app. I’ve already mentioned this to my contact at ZemiSmart, so I guess time will tell as to whether this is achievable. My guess is that it’s not, as so far I’ve not seen any other locks with integrated keypads take this feature on.

Full disclosure: ZemiSmart provided HomeKit News with ZemiSmart Zigbee Smart Lock for the purpose of this review. No other compensation was made, requested or has not in any way influenced our opinion of this product.

The post ZemiSmart Zigbee Smart Lock (review) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

This Mortice lock comes with a fingerprint sensor built into the handle, a keypad (that also has a built-in doorbell function), and also comes with standard keys and IC keycards. It even features ‘Passage’ mode, which allows the lock to stay in the unlocked state.

The two things that let the product down for many is that it has no waterproofing at all, so it’s only of use if it’s protected by some form of roof or porch. The features in the app also need a bit of attention, as there are a couple of quite large bugs in there.

I should state that I had to test the lock using a demo door, as it wouldn’t fit my front door well enough for the purposes of demonstrating the features.

• UK users can buy the lock and hub together on Amazon.co.uk (affiliate link).

The post ZemiSmart Zigbee Smart Lock appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.