PACKAGING

By now, Aqara has definitely created its own identity in terms of packaging, using Navy Blue and white as the featured colours. It’s hard to imagine how basic their packaging was back in 2017 when I picked up my first water leak sensor, so they’ve come a long way. The front of the box (for the International version at least) shows off the motor itself, along with the compatible ecosystems it can work with – Apple HomeKit, Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, as well as others (IFTTT for example). The front also states in my case, that this is the ‘Rod Version’, as opposed to the ‘Rail Version’. As with nearly all Aqara products, this uses Zigbee (3.0) and as such requires a suitable hub. I found when installing this that only the M2 and M1S showed as suitable hubs, despite the G2H Pro also being present in my setup. The list of compatible hubs is sure to increase, however.

The side of the box gives you some basics, like up to 1-year battery life, a built-in illumination sensor (more on that later), and the maximum load (12kg or 26.5lb). The rear of the box has a scenario suggestion that includes a motion sensor and goes on to detail what types of curtains the Rod version is suitable for – curtains with grommets, or top rings in this case.

CONTENTS

In the box you’ll find the curtain driver, a rod hanger accessory (Rod Version only), a manual in English, Russian, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese, a USB-A to USB-C cable for recharging the internal battery, and a couple of items that I can only assume are to keep the curtains uniformly positioned – a set of eight curtain clips, and a rubber strip that connects to them. I say ‘assume’ as the manual doesn’t actually state their specific purpose. Needless to say, without any explanation, I didn’t bother with them, which seemed to make no difference at all to the functionality of the motor.

THE MOTOR

After getting my hands on the motor itself, I can confidently say that out of all the products Aqara makes, this is definitely one of the more sturdily built items. It helps that it has a fair bit of weight to it, but when it comes to the construction, it feels more akin to one of those portable phone chargers that feel like they’ve been permanently sealed shut! Nothing feels loose or has any ‘give’ that I’ve noticed, and so it really does put it up there with the likes of their door locks in terms of build quality, albeit with less going on.

The front of the motor has a tiny status LED, a button that can serve a few different functions (pairing, open/close etc), and an ambient light sensor. This sensor isn’t exposed to HomeKit, but in all honesty, it’s actually very basic; it’s not able to give you a reading of the amount of light (lux) it detects, and as such when it comes to including the sensor in automations (within the Aqara app only), it can only work off two distinct parameters – ‘weak ambient light’ or ‘Strong ambient light’. It worked well enough for this basic purpose though, so nothing to complain about, and if you really want to control the curtains with more accurate or specific light readings, you can use the Aqara light sensor, sold separately. The underside is solely home to a USB-C port, designed for recharging the internal 6,400mAh battery.

Here are some specs, should you be interested;

• Dimensions: 145.7 × 96 × 46mm / 5.74 × 3.78 × 1.81in
• Rated Current: 1.5 A
• Rated Torque: 0.2 N-m
• Wireless Protocol: Zigbee 3.0 IEEE 802.15.4
• Model: CM-M01
• Battery Type: Lithium battery (non-replaceable)
• Rated Voltage: 5 V
• Rated Power Input: 7.5 W
• Rated Rotor Speed:100 r/min
• Moving Speed: 12 cm/s
• Operating Humidity: 0~95% RH, no condensation

INSTALLATION

Note: If you’re already interested in this product, it’s worth first taking note of the requirements for the Rod Version to make sure this will work for you;

• First off, the curtain rod has to have a diameter of between 25~32mm/0.98~1.26in and cannot be a telescopic rod, where it’s thinner at one end than the other
• If your curtains come fitted with grommets (the rings are embedded into the curtains) there needs to be a 95mm/3.74in space between the outer edge of each grommet
• If you have ring top curtains (the rings are attached to the edge of the curtain), then the thickness of the rings should be greater than 4mm/0.16in

If your curtain rod and curtains fit the bill, you’re good to go.

Installation is quite straightforward, and the Aqara app (which I recommend you start with for the installation) takes you through every step;

• Select the E1 from the list of accessories
• Select your variant
• Select the hub it will bind to

• Place the Rod Hanger Accessory on top of the rod, and clips the arms in place
• Release the hooks on the motor to fully extend them by double-pressing the button on the motor
• Connect the hooks to the Rod Hanger arms, then retract the hooks by once again double-pressing the button on the motor
• Click ‘Done’

If you’ve ever installed a smart window covering before, you’ll know that you need to set the open and closed positions first. Without this, the motor doesn’t know what to do or when to stop. You then get two options as to how to set the motor up;

• Intelligent route setting or Custom travel setting – I chose the latter, as I had specific points I wanted the motor to open and close at
• Set the curtains to the fully open position using the controls on the screen, then click ‘Next step’
• Set the curtains to the fully closed position using the controls on the screen, then click ‘Next step’

You’re now set up and the E1 will also work in HomeKit.

Besides being able to open and close the curtains, you can create special scenes, labelled here as ‘scenarios’ whereby you can set the motor to open or close to a set position over a set amount of time. This option is also available with the Roller Shade Driver E1. If unlike me, you have two of these motors to control a pair of curtains, you can synchronise them via the ‘Create curtain controller set’ option. Finally, you can also set an icon which depicts either a pair of curtains or a single curtain opening from the left or the right.

IN HOME/HOMEKIT

In HomeKit, everything is a little more basic, with a single tile for the driver, a slider control to adjust the amount by which the curtain is open or closed, and a settings page that informs you of the battery level, whether the batteries are charging, and if there’s any obstruction to the drivers’ movement. Unlike some devices that have extra functions or features that only make themselves known in third-party HomeKit apps, the Curtain Driver E1 has nothing extra to share.

EXTRA FEATURES IN THE AQARA APP

Even though it’s nice to have everything – including automations – in HomeKit, there are occasions when it’s arguably better to create some of them in their respective apps and forget about them. This is usually the case when functions for a particular device just aren’t available in HomeKit, like the aforementioned light sensor automations as seen above. In fact, when it comes to some of them, they can be done without even setting up an automation as such, so the function works autonomously. The motor can be controlled physically too, which allows you to gently tug the curtain in an open or closed direction, with the motor detecting this and obliging by completing the procedure.

IN DAY-TO-DAY USE

Whilst my home has roller blinds, I’ve still been able to set up the E1 and put it to some use in a spare room, where privacy and letting a bit of light in are both as important. The room in question uses an Aqara roller shade motor T1C, but once closed, the room has no natural light. The natural light comes through this room’s window via further windows in the washroom, where our washing machines are. This means that if someone enters the washroom, they can see into the spare room. Closing the blinds fixes this, but there’s no natural light. Adding the Curtain Driver E1 fixes this, as whoever’s using this room can still have some privacy without sacrificing some natural light, by closing the curtain.

The question is of course, how does it perform? Surprisingly well. In all honesty, I had the feeling that this wouldn’t be much different to the ZemiSmart offering I reviewed not so long ago, but in actual fact, this is a lot faster, if a little noisier (around 35-37dB), and installation was way easier than with the ZemiSmart version, which wasn’t helped by very generic instructions.

Design-wise, the E1 is a lot bulkier, but then as it’s hidden behind the curtain, it really doesn’t matter, and even if it were visible, I do prefer the design of the E1 anyway. Due to the small extras you get within the Aqara app, this takes it even further ahead than the ZemiSmart offering, and so I’d have to conclude that the Aqara E1 is a better bet all round. That’s not to say the ZemiSmart one isn’t good, it’s just that the E1 is a lot more polished in design, ease of installation, and general use.

Of course, just as with the ZemiSmart offering, if you have a pair of curtains (you almost certainly would) then you need to double the price to accommodate buying two motors, which then makes you consider if it’s probably more cost-effective buying a proper motorised curtain rail. The issue here is that you have to ensure your curtain rail measurements are correct, to begin with, before even thinking about shipping such large items halfway across the globe.

On balance, the E1 does an admirable job, even if (and I’ve said this before), the idea of a motor pulling curtains is a little bit of a clunky solution. You just can’t please some people…

Full disclosure: Aqara provided HomeKit News with Aqara Curtain Motor E1 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 Aqara Curtain Driver E1 – Rod Version (review) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

One such device is their retrofit take on a curtain driver/motor, that sits behind your curtains, whilst gripping onto your curtain rail or rod. The result is that the motor rolls along the underside of the track, almost like a suspended monorail, dragging the curtain with it.

ZemiSmart sent their latest such device for us to test out and review, and whilst you should note that the apartment where I live – and test out products – doesn’t use curtains as such, I decided to purchase a set of curtains and a curtain rod from Ikea to test the motor out anyway (such dedication…). I made sure to test the motor out constantly and consistently for 7 days in a couple of temporary locations, so as to get at least a feel for how the product works, so if that interests you, read on.

PACKAGING | CONTENTS

If there’s one thing that ZemiSmart has yet to sort out (IMHO) is their branding. As it stands, a lot of their products come in either cheap or rather basic packaging, with barely a hint as to what’s inside unless you want to read the rather small print. I guess in many ways, as long as it keeps costs low, protects the contents, and is beneficial to the environment, it shouldn’t matter, so it is what it is. Nothing to see here really, with one exception; It does say “For blind [sic] and curtain”. Whilst it might work with some types of blinds that use a rail or rod, generally speaking, this is for curtains only, and even then that should be singular, as the motor can only pull one curtain. So, if you have a pair of curtains, which you almost certainly do, then you’ll need a pair of these motors.

Onto the contents, and starting off with the motor itself, which is 205mm/8.07in tall*, 40mm/1.57in wide, and 37mm/1.46in deep. Although it comes in two pieces, for the most part, it can be treated as one complete unit, as the cog section doesn’t really need to be removed at any point.

* The height doesn’t include the arms that connect to your rail or rod.

The front is home to just three buttons – open, closed, and stop/pause. The sides contain two ‘holsters’ which hold the arms that connect the motor to the rail/rod.

The underside of the motor is home to a recessed reset button, a micro USB port for recharging the internal battery, and a tiny on/off switch. Conversely, the top is home to the rubber-tread wheel that moves the motor along the rail/rod.

There’s a manual in English, and a couple of USB cables, one of which acts as an extender if needed.

Depending on which package you go for, you will probably get at least one remote control unit. This basic remote comes with eight buttons, the bottom two of which are only used in the initial setup procedure. The remote uses RF433Mhz to talk directly to the motor, whilst the motor talks to the Zigbee hub, which in turn connects to both your home network and HomeKit (you can read our review of the ZemiSmart Zigbee hub HERE).

Even though the remote is basic, I’ve found that it could actually be quite useful, especially if you don’t want to either get your phone out to control the motor or use Siri. One side has three buttons that essentially correspond to the three buttons on the motor (open, closed, stop/pause), whilst the other three are for preset open positions – 80%, 50%, and 20%.

The remote comes supplied with a couple of AAA batteries and a holder that can be wall-mounted, either with some included double-sided patches or with the included screws and rawl plugs. As already mentioned, with the direct connection to the motor, there’s virtually no delay from the button press to the motor kicking in, so don’t underestimate its uses.

ZemiSmart also includes a solar panel with a USB cable connected to a USB port. While this is great, it wasn’t entirely clear as to how you were meant to connect the panel to the motor, even though stickers were included. To me, I’m not sure I could rely on stickers to keep the panel stuck to the motor, although you may have more faith than me that the solar panel won’t fall off a smash into a few pieces. You could always mount it to the inside of a window, and with the included extra-long USB cable, that’s quite possible, as long as you don’t mind a cable dangling from the curtain.

Onto the final parts, which allow the motor to connect to your curtain rail or rod. The company include four separate pairs of arms, two pair of which are the same, just different sizes.

You get one pair of arms for curtain rods, one pair for I rail curtain tracks, and two pairs of arms for U-Rail curtain tracks of different sizes.

HARDWARE INSTALLATION

Installation was pretty easy, at least compared to the company’s Roller Shade motor, which itself wasn’t difficult. As you can see in the first image above, the motor, along with the arms, hold onto the rod, sitting behind the curtain. The motor should ideally be sat between the last and second last rings on the curtain so that it can pull the whole curtain along. Still, I did find that it helped to use a bit of wire to keep the end of the curtain tied to one of the two arms so that when the curtain motor is opening, the end of the curtain isn’t dragging behind so much. Maybe the company can devise a simple clip to do the same in future.

The rubber wheel needs to sit fairly tight against the rod/or rail in order to get enough grip to move everything in either direction. This is aided by the two holsters that the arms sit in, as they’re sort of spring-loaded, and can provide a little give when you affix the arms to the tightest position possible, which you do with the aid of gear teeth within the holsters.

It’s all fairly simple in principle, although if I’m honest when it comes to retrofit devices, this is probably one of the most ‘mechanical’ solutions I’ve seen, and just doesn’t feel right somehow. That’s not to say it doesn’t work, because it does work well enough. It just seems too reliant on a basic motor for my liking. That probably doesn’t make a lot of sense, I know – it’s difficult to explain, but it’s just my opinion of course. This also applies to other products that use the same solution, like CurtainBot or the forthcoming Aqara offering, so it’s not a reflection on ZemiSmart’s product in particular, an more of the basic way it works.

As this motor only pulls one curtain, to pull a pair of curtains coming from opposite ends of a rod or rail, you’re going to need two motors. If you only have the one wide curtain going from one side to another, then you’re good with the one motor of course.

IN APPLE HOME & TUYA SMARTLIFE APPS

Getting the curtains is quite easy, but as it’s essentially a Zigbee child device, just like with Aqara products, you’re going to need to pair it with the ZemiSmart hub first. Once paired, the device will appear in HomeKit and the Home app, although it’s advisable to set up the open and closed limits in the Tuya app first. As you can see, I already added it, and it’s showing up with a single tile.

In terms of HomeKit, as you might expect, things are slightly basic. Aside from the single tile, a long press will take you to the screen with the slider control, which allows for opening the curtains to a specific percentage of your choice. The settings panel offers nothing except the basics and doesn’t feature the motor’s battery level, which is a shame. You can see in the third screenshot that it’s connected to the ZemiSmart hub. Of the two accessories currently connected to the hub, aside from the curtain motor, we’ve got a ZemiSmart light strip, which we’ll be reviewing later.

In the Tuya app, you get the same options as the Home app, but additionally, you get the battery levels, and the previously mentioned options to set the curtain’s open and closed limits.

You can set the direction of the motor, as well as set or remove/reset the aforementioned limits.

Even though we’re really happy to see HomeKit integration, it’s worth noting there are also integrations with other platforms and voice assistants, including the obvious – Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and SmartThings – to the less common – Xiaodu, Xiaowei, DingDong, Tmall Genie, and Yandex. IFTTT is also an option listed elsewhere in the app. Siri isn’t mentioned, but as the devices work in HomeKit, Siri will work with any connected devices exposed to HomeKit this way.

The Tuya app also allows for some pretty neat scene/automation options that involve not just the common types of triggers, like location, or the status of other devices, but also weather conditions, which include temperature, humidity, general weather conditions, local sunrise/sunset times, and even wind speed. To use at least some of these, you’ll need to grant location access of course.

Although I’ve deliberately limited my use of the ZemiSmart hub for logistical purposes (I currently run 19 different hubs of all types…), which in turn means I don’t really use Tuya SmartLife, it’s still a rather underestimated app, with a lot of potential. the UI isn’t all that bad either.

THE MOTOR IN USE / FINAL THOUGHTS

As already stated at the beginning of this review, we don’t have curtains, so aside from me investing in some temporary equipment in order to actually test this device, it hasn’t really been set to good use. I tested it in a couple of locations (to test its signal strength connected to the hub), whilst also setting routine tasks to open and close four times every day. In this limited time, I found it to work without any issues and didn’t get stuck at any point, as I half expected, due to the manner in which it operates, there may well be an instance of it getting stuck. This was of concern due to the possibility of the curtain motor burning out. I’m not aware of any protection against such a situation, so that’s something to bear in mind.

As I also stated early on, whilst I have no issues with retrofit devices in general – I used the Nuki Smart Lock 2.0 for nearly two years and was very happy with it – on this occasion, I’m less sold on the more mechanical nature of how it does its job. That may not matter to you of course and is just a personal thing.

What I would say is that if you’re already deep into the Aqara side of things, like myself, it may be a good idea to wait and see what their forthcoming offering is like. Still, I think ZemiSmart offers yet another compelling option if you aren’t in too deep with any particular brand, and with the hub and devices being region-free, there’s a lot to like.

As regards sound levels, the motor averaged out at around 35dB, although my testing was far from laboratory standards, I’ll admit. The sound and volume levels will most likely vary depending on a whole variety of acoustic situations of course, so it’s not easy to give a definitive answer, but it was quieter than I expected.

Battery life is a difficult one to test, due to the limited time I was able to effectively test it. However, in terms of basic calculations, I’d say that the claim of 5 months between charges is probably about right. It will also depend on the drop length and weight of your curtains, of course, so your mileage may vary.

Summing up, despite being less than enthusiastic about the mechanism of how it works, it was better than I expected, and so, putting to one side the fact that you may need two of these, depending on your setup, it’s still a decent product.

Full disclosure: ZemiSmart provided HomeKit News with ZemiSmart Curtain Motor 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 Curtain Driver (review) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

On the morning of the working day, the curtains are regularly opened, and the sun wakes up for a new day; before going to bed at night, the curtains are closed regularly, and you can sleep quietly. Every time you are lucky, you can make your life more comfortable. Home within reach of a wireless switch, the touch of a button, you can adjust the curtains opening and closing, the natural ease of use, to enjoy a weekend stay in bed, happy moments of a better partner for you.

Gently press the curtain to open and close smoothly
The wireless switch at your fingertips can control the opening and closing of the curtains with a single touch, making it easy to use, making you a beautiful partner to enjoy the weekend and happy moments.

Hand start
The motor can automatically open and close the curtains with a single pull.

Custom opening and closing ratio
Customize the opening and closing percentage of the curtains through the mobile phone app, and set various modes such as viewing and reading. You can also use different smart devices to control different opening degrees with different actions.

Slow start
The curtain motor slows down when it is just started or will stop. On the one hand, the whole opening and closing processes are elegant and smooth, on the other hand, the motor is effectively protected and the service life is prolonged.

Free wiring and socket-free installation is more convenient
Upgrade to increase the power supply function of the lithium battery, even if there is no reserved socket at the window, it can be installed and used, and the curtain can be easily be made intelligent.

The post Aqara B1 Curtain Controller appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

Activated in multiple convenient ways.
Open curtains with just one tap on Terncy Wall Switch or Awareness Switch, or pull the curtain manually to activate the motor.

Low Noise Design.
With its well-designed structure and mechanical components, Terncy Smart Curtain Motor works undisturbedly to give you a soft and simple life.

Instant stopping when Encountering Obstructions.
To prevent the destruction of functions and features, Terncy Smart Curtain Motor stops the curtain from working instantly when the curtain encounters obstructions at its run time.

The post Xiaoyan/Terncy Smart Curtain Motor appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

Not too long ago, Aqara did a round of crowdfunding for an update to their original curtain motor, and the resulting product is the Aqara intelligent curtain motor B1. The crowdfunding effort was supported by over 4,000 people, raising 3.5 million Yuan (over US$500,000), exceeding the project crowdfunding target by 844%! So you can see this was a successful project and a highly desired product. So here today we have one of the B1 units, thanks to Aqara, who have allowed us to test this product in advance of its commercial release. We’ve tested this product for nearly a month now so far and for the purposes of this article, we’re mostly going to take a look the product and its features compared and advantages in comparison to the current version.

The product packaging crowdfunding version that people who supported the product will receive, which is pretty much the same except for the brown triangle in the corner, which will not the there for the retail version – so not a big deal! The back of the package has, amongst other things, the ‘works with Mijia’ logo, so you know this will work in the Mi Home app and other Aqara/Mijia devices. Before we go any further, we must stress that at present, the device will only work with the Mijia gateway, but as we’ve got a pre-release version, by the time (or possibly shortly thereafter) support for Apple HomeKit (via the Aqara Gateway) will be added via an OTA upgrade. We’re reviewing this on that understanding and do not want people to assume it’s working with HomeKit as it stands today when we release the review, but considering the current/previous gen product already works with HomeKit we have no doubt this will be forthcoming and have been told as much by Aqara.

The package contains the Aqara intelligent motor body, the lithium battery for the motor, and an adapter for the 100-240V 50/60Hz Chinese Type-A plug, which will also work in countries that use the Type A/B plugs (also known as North American plugs). There’s also a manual, which is all in Chinese, although there will probably be translations in time for the international release, as per the other devices they have already released over the past 9 months.

The main difference you will immediately notice is that the Aqara intelligent curtain machine B1 utilises a lithium battery along with the power supply (which also acts as a recharging device for said battery. This is a great idea considering that many people – or builders for that matter – tend not to think about putting a power outlet high up next to the window in the event that someone one day will want to plug in a curtain motor (let alone a smart one), so this is a welcome change. These lithium battery cells have a battery life of up to 6 months, depending on personal usage. The front of the battery has four LED battery power indicators that show you approximately how much charge is left. After one month of testing, the battery is still full so that’s a good sign.

At the bottom of the motor portion of the assembly, there’s a plastic cover, to protect the battery interface. You simply need a coin to rotate the bottom cover 90 degrees counter-clockwise to open the bottom cover. After disassembling the bottom cover, you can see a dedicated 4-Pin interface. The two outermost pins are responsible for the power side of things, while the two inner pins are responsible for battery communication and general battery management. In the middle is the power adapter interface. This is for direct connection to the power supply, as the motor can be powered directly by the power adapter without the need for the battery if so required.

The track interface, containing the spindle of the curtain machine, is smaller than the previous generation as can be seen in the images above. When Aqara designed this type of connector, they considered the compatibility with even earlier versions of the product, so users could connect to the track of the previous generation. However, due to the inconsistent track tolerances produced by third parties, you could encounter problems, such as excessive noise during use and motor ‘squeals’ when stopping. Additionally, there may be a risk of the motor falling off when the torque tolerance is too high. Therefore, if conditions permit, it is recommended to replace the curtain tracks with ones that are suited to the newer model.

The motor lock switch has also been much improved on the newer, more compact motor. The motor can be unlocked with a single push, which makes installation more convenient. While the design of the previous model was utilitarian and served its purpose, the new design is more aesthetically pleasing. It’s all in the detail, right?

As shown in the images above, the new motor is much smaller than the previous generation. While the body is white and resembles a plastic casing, the body is actually made of metal due to considerations for strength and noise. The injection moulded case and the compact design of the body, even if the motor battery is connected, is still no longer than the previous generation and without the battery, and connected directly to mains electricity, it’s approximately 25-30% shorter.
Despite its size, the Aqara intelligent curtain machine is more powerful and has a rated power output of  28W, which is 5W higher than the previous generation. Therefore, the B1 has a torque of 2 Newtons per meter, and the single track supports a maximum of 50KG curtains to meet the power requirements of special sunshade coatings or extra long curtains.

The new battery-powered design brings a variety of possibilities to the Aqara smart curtain machine:

• You can use battery power, and the battery power is enough for you to use for up to 6 months.
• You can also plug in the adapter while the battery is still connected so that your curtains can still be opened and closed normally even when the power to the power supply itself is turned off.
• You can connect the power supply directly to the curtain motor, and remove the battery entirely from the ‘chain’ if there’s a power supply nearby, but the length of the motor, including the battery, is an issue.
• If there is no curtain socket near the curtain, you can also simply remove the battery and charge it. It takes about 5 hours from 0%-100%. The curtain machine will remember the last setting when the power is off. It can be restored to the state before the power was cut off. It might even be more convenient to buy an extra battery, so you can switch them over.

The new track for B1 has not yet been received, so the previous generation track is still used for testing. It can be seen that the Aqara intelligent curtain machine B1 can still be installed normally on the previous generation of tracks, but because the new generation of motors is smaller, some parts of the transmission box are exposed outside, and the track noise is slightly higher than the previous generation. Two motor noises are also tested separately here, and the new generation of motors has higher torque and a lower sound. The previous generation of motors was relatively sharp due to the higher speed. The overall noise level can be said to be very, very slight. If you want the ultimate quiet enjoyment, it is recommended to use the official B1 silent track.

Installation, via the Mi Home app, is quite straightforward:

1. Open the Mijia app and click the Add button to select Aqara Smart Curtain B1
2. Select the gateway you want to pair with. (At present, only air-conditioning companions and Xiaomi gateways are supported. Adding the Aqara gateway
3. needs to wait until HomeKit certification for the new motor is passed)
4. Press and hold the button on the motor for 5 seconds, the gateway prompts the connection to be successful.
5. Name the product and specify the room in which it is located. The first time setting will also automatically run the position setting, let the motor know the length of the track and the curtain opening and closing status and position.

The Aqara B1 supports boom and double boom curtains. The motor can also be installed at either end of the curtain so that users can adjust the installation track according to the actual situation. If separate privacy curtains and shade curtains are required, two separate motors need to be configured. If you need a shaped track, you’ll need to contact Aqara Customer Service, although this would be for customers in China only of course.

The Aqara B1 supports full access to Mijia intelligent control, supports linkage with Mijia equipment, can utilise the Aqara cube to switch curtains, and can also use voice control through Xiaoai virtual assistant/speaker. Of course, you can also set the trigger scene, so that Mijia automatically opens the curtain when you get home, or you can automatically close it when you leave.

Additionally, the Aqara B1 will support Apple HomeKit access, and will also be easily controlled by Siri and linked with other HomeKit devices. Compared to Mijia, Apple’s family app has Apple’s original eco-environment support. It’s easier to share control with the family based on whether the family’s iPhone enters the designated location. (Currently, crowdfunding customers need to wait for Apple certification to pass before they can access Apple HomeKit via OTA upgrade).

The smaller size, the metal casing, and the Aqara-style product design, all make this product a superb upgrade to the current model. With forthcoming support for Apple HomeKit and existing support via Mi Home, there are so many options. Even if you just want to simply drag and drop the curtains, the Aqara B1 will automatically open or close when it detects that the user is pulling on the curtains. With a variety of power supply methods, even if the old house is remodelled, or when the decoration is not taken into consideration, the B1 motor with its lithium battery power, with the 6-month life between recharge cycles, allows users to overcome most obstacles.

Due to the included lithium battery, the Aqara B1 can still open or close by gently dragging the curtain, even in the case of power failure. While this is great if there is a power failure, it still means that if you have any automations that use a device to control the curtains, like the aforementioned Aqara Cube or Mini Switch, they won’t work, as the Aqara hub, which itself relies on permanent power, transmits instructions between devices, and so that link is broken while the hub is offline.

The post Aqara B1 Curtain Controller (review) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

Aqara 智能电动窗帘机是双11下单购买，经过天猫的菜鸟仓长久的派送，终于在11月底抵达。包装还是一如既往的简洁。包装内包含电机说明书和未安装好的插头。

**Aqara 智能窗帘机需要配合特定的电动窗帘轨道和 特定的网关网关配合工作，支持的网关如下：**

• 米家空调伴侣
• Aqara空调伴侣
• Aqara网关
• 米家多功能网关

电机的主体采用 100-240V，50/60Hz 的宽频国际通用电压，所以拆分配送的公牛插头似乎是为了方便其他国家更换插头。面板上有一颗蓝色的LED灯，边上一个较大的按钮就是我们的配对/重置按钮。

设置和使用

1. 首先打开 [Aqara Home App](https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/aqara-home/id1248669703?mt=8) ，Aqara 里已经配对有 Aqara 网关。如何你想知道如何配对新的 Aqara 网关，请跳转[这篇文章](https://homekitnews.com/2018/12/01/aqara-hub-101/)。
2. 点击加号图标，选择窗帘电机，并且选择想要加入的 Aqara 网关，然后跟着提示长按5秒以上电机上的配对按钮，直到看到电机下方的蓝灯闪烁。
3. 准照指示完成电机所在的房间选择，并且完成电机首次的位置设置。
   *注意避免电机被障碍物卡住，且电机在移动的时候请勿拖拽窗帘，避免测量的不准。*

在 Apple Home 里可以轻松设置窗帘开启的百分比，最小精细到1%的调节，也可以轻松的设置场景，来自动完成某些场景的设置。例如到家以后自动帮您打开窗帘，Siri 可以设置晚安场景帮您自动关闭窗帘，甚至是在工作日的早晨第一缕阳光照入的时候帮您打开窗帘。这些都是智能窗帘能给你带来的生活享受。

使用感受
Aqara 智能窗帘机支持 Apple HomeKit，可以很好的与第三方的设备联动，避免局限在单一品牌，从而实现更多的玩法。电机噪音基本可以忽略不计，支持障碍物检测，避免烧坏电机的设计也十分贴心。更新到最新版本固件后同时支持米家 Mijia 和 Apple HomeKit，可以和更多的米家产品联动。电动窗帘是一个能提高生活品质的一款智能家居产品。Aqara 保持着一贯的简约的设计风格，在同类的产品里有着超高的性价比。如果你想要一款超具性价比的 HomeKit 电动窗帘，那么Aqara 智能电动窗帘将非常适合您。

产品的不足
电机所附带的电缆是固定安装，无法更具需求跟换更长或者更短的线缆。一旦线缆损坏就需要请售后帮忙更换。如果改成介绍视频里设计的插孔设计会更棒。

附带的插头需要自己安装，安装后比起其他小米插头，这个插头就是天大的丑，如果能换成米家特有的标志性的插头，设计将更美观。

更新后可以与 Mijia 和 HomeKit 配对，但是由于 Mijia 的 SDK 无法支持带有特殊符号，例如：’ 等的 Wi-Fi 名称，导致配对失败。希望可以尽快修复。

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Aqara is a sub-brand of Lumi, one of Xiaomi’s ecological enterprises. Their previous products have a place in the smart home market in China because of their simple product design and high cost performance. With the recent launch of the Aqara HomeKit Smart Home Gateway, Aqara can now officially access the Apple HomeKit platform, and most of the previously released sub-devices can also be firmware upgraded to support the new HomeKit gateway. So today, I’m going to take a look at the Aqara Curtain Controller, a simple but effective motor with smarts, that allows you to open and close your curtains via Siri and the Home app and/or the Mi Home app.

Aqara intelligent electric curtain machine was ordered from T-mall’s warehouse, and finally arrived at the end of November. Packaging is as simple as ever, just like the plain packaging you find with the older Aqara sensors and switches. The package contains the motor, a manual (in Chinese) and an unwired plug.

The Aqara Curtain Controller needs to work with specific types of curtain tracks and gateways. The supported gateways are as follows:

• Mi Home Air Conditioning Companion
• Aqara Air Conditioning Companion
• Aqara Hub (needed for HomeKit compatibility)
• Mijia Multi-function Gateway

The main body of the motor adopts a 100-240V, 50/60Hz wide-band international common voltage, so the wall plug that comes unconnected makes it convenient for customers in other countries to use their own plugs. There is a hole on the side the panel which contains the reset button, and a larger button on the side is for initial pairing.

Initial set up

1. First open The Aqara Home App or the Mi Home app to begin pairing the Curtain Motor in the normal manner for the appropriate app.
2. For both apps, click on the plus icon, select the curtain motor from the list of devices, and select the Aqara gateways the gateway for pairing. If you have more than one gateway, select the one that already has smart devices paired to it if you intend to have other sensors work in tandem with the curtain motor, then follow the prompts for a long press of the pairing button on the motor for more than 5 seconds until you see the blue light flashing below the motor.
3. Finally set the room where the curtain will be located and then proceed to the  motor’s first position setting.

NOTE: be careful to avoid the motor being stuck by obstacles, and do not drag the curtains while the motor is moving to avoid measurement inaccuracy.

In the Apple Home app, you can easily set the percentage of curtain opening, with 1% adjustments, or you can easily set the scene to automatically complete scene settings. For example, when you get home, you can automatically open the curtains based on a trigger from a door or motion sensor. You can set up a ‘Good Night’ scene and use Siri to automatically close the curtains, even to open the curtains when the first sun shines in the morning of the working day, based on a sensor with ambient light settings, or a simple time or sunrise/sunset based automations. The curtains can also act on human physical interaction too, so if you gently pull to open or close the curtains, the motor will sense this and continue to open/close the curtains for you. This is all down to the motor detection small amounts of change in voltage that occurs when you pull on the curtains, which in turn puts some pressure on the motor itself. These are the little pleasures that smart curtains can give you.

As previously mentioned, the Aqara intelligent curtain controller supports Apple HomeKit, and works well with third-party devices already in the HomeKit ecosystem, so you don’t have to be limited to just the Aqara product or any other single brand. Motor noise is basically negligible, and as the controller supports obstacle detection to avoid the burning out the motor. After updating to the latest version of the firmware, it supports both Mijia (Mi Home app) and Apple HomeKit, and can be linked with more Mijia products.

In general, Aqara maintains a consistently simple design aesthetic and has an excellent price/performance ratio in its class. If you want a cost-effective HomeKit electric curtain, Aqara Smart Electric Curtains are a perfect choice for the cost conscious customer.

Having said that, the cable that comes with the motor is fixed and cannot be replaced with longer or shorter cables, so you would probably have to do some wiring ‘handiwork’ to extend them yourself, which probably won’t look great. If the cable is damaged, you’re going to need an after-sales replacement.

As also previously mentioned, the included plug needs to be fitted by itself, which is not the standard for Aqara or even Mijia products, but can have its own benefits if you need to attach your own plug. Compared with other Aqara/Mijia/Xiaomi plugs, this is big and ugly. If they could supply the standard plug unique to Mijia, it would a lot more attractive.

Once updated, the controller can be paired with Mijia and HomeKit, but because Mijia’s SDK can’t support Wi-Fi names with special symbols, such as apostrophes or other punctuation marks, pairing will fail if your SSID contains such characters . Hopefully there will be a fix soon.

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One Button Control | Timer | Linkage Control

• Available in mainland China
• Aqara Hub is required to enable Aqara Curtain Controller to work with HomeKit technology.
• Model: ZNCLDJ11LM
• Dimensions: 70 x 50 x 346 mm
• Weight: About 1.5 kg
• Length of Wire: 1m
• Input Voltage: 100 – 240V, 50/60Hz
• Rated Torque: 1.2 N·m
• Work System: S2 12min
• Input Power: 13 W
• Level of Protection: IP40
• Movement Speed: 14cm/s
• Insulation Grade: Class A
• Executive Standard: Q/QLML016-2017
• CMIIT ID: 2016DP0776
• Operating Temperature: -20° – +55℃
• Body Material: Aluminum
• Wireless Protocol: Zigbee
• Operating Humidity: 10 – 90% RH, no condensation

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