This is the fourth gateway to be released by Zemismart over close to the last three years, with the original HomeKit compatible hub being released back in October of 2021. This was superseded a couple of years later with a new model that from appearances, looks identical to this latest offering, but not before the company also released the Smart Matter Hub M1, their first Zigbee hub that included both a Matter Controller and a Thread Border Router (video HERE, review HERE).

Now, with the latest release, which in some ways combines aspects of all previous hubs, we get a Zigbee hub to work with Tuya devices, but instead of using Apple HomeKit, or the cloud-based legacy connections for Google and Amazon, it uses Matter. This essentially means this is a cut down version of the M1 hub, so it does utilise Zigbee for Tuya devices, and it can connect to all Matter compatible platforms, due to its Matter credentials, but it can’t work with Thread devices, or act as a Matter controller for the Tuya ecosystem, which would allow for third-party Matter devices to connect to Tuya. It does beg the question as to who this is aimed at though, but despite the omissions compared to the fully featured M1, the M6 does have an antenna that the company told me has a 330m / 1082 ft reach (without barriers) for devices connected to it, which sounds extraordinary.

Like recent previous models, the M6 continues the trend towards USB-C with a power port utilising this method, as well as an ethernet port for a wired connection. There’s no wireless option for the hub.

Despite the packaging stating it’s a Tuya Zigbee gateway, it is a ZemiSmart product, as is evidenced from the branding on the front of the hub. It is primarily designed to work with Tuya certified Zigbee devices, however.

The packaging states the hub model is the T1, which is at odds with the product itself, which is listed as the M6 on the underside of the hub, alongside the Matter QR code. As this is Matter compatible, Apple Home users, as well as Google, Amazon, SmartThings, and Home Assistant users can all benefit from it, with Amazon and Google with the most to gain from leaving the legacy cloud connectivity behind in favour of local control. For Apple Home users, the benefits are more apparent if you’re coming from the company’s original hub, but much less so from the M1 with its Thread Border Router and Matter Controller features.

The package comes with a USB-A to USB-C cable, and an ethernet cable, but no power supply, which is standard these days. The M6 is due for release soon, although we don’t have a confirmed date as of yet, but we’re told the M6 will be competitively priced, which is typically the case for ZemiSmart products, even with the release of a whole slew of products that use Matter, with either Thread or WiFi.

The post ZemiSmart to Release New M6 Matter Compatible Zigbee Hub appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

The Presence Sensor FP1E uses millimetre wave (mmWave) technology to detect even slight human movements, enabling precise presence detection for various home automation scenarios. It can detect presence up to 6m/19ft away and monitor a room of up to 50 sq m/538 sq ft when ceiling mounted. Unlike PIR motion sensors, the FP1E detects human presence even when the person is sitting or lying still. It can quickly recognise when a person leaves a room and trigger automation to turn off lights and air conditioning, reducing energy loss.

The FP1E complements the more versatile Presence Sensor FP2 (review HERE, video HERE) and is streamlined for user-friendliness, ideal for those seeking a precise occupancy detection solution without advanced features like zone positioning. The FP1E uses AI algorithms to distinguish between relevant movements and false triggers, eliminating the need for additional setup. It filters out small pets and interference from mirrors, metals, curtains, and ACs, while its sensitivity is self-adaptive. The sensor’s AI learning capabilities improve detection accuracy by adapting to the user’s home environment over time.

Aqara Home users can use the FP1E to detect human movement or stillness, unlocking various automation possibilities based on movement status and duration. For example, if the sensor detects a person remaining still for over 30 minutes, it can send notifications or change the colour of smart lights as a reminder to stand up. This feature aims to promote healthier routines and reduce sedentary behaviour.

The FP1E is powered by a 5V1A supply (USB power brick not included) and comes with a magnetic and adhesive-backed bracket for easy installation on walls, ceilings, or corners.

The Presence Sensor FP1E is available in Aqara’s Amazon stores in North America (US, Canada), Europe (France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, UK), and Asia (Japan), as well as from select Aqara retailers worldwide, and for a limited time you can get 20% off the list price using the following codes on Amazon stores – UK/EU – FP1EEU20 | US/CA – FP1ENA20

You can read our full written review below;

Aqara Presence Sensor FP1E (review)

The post Aqara Launches New Presence Sensor FP1E appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

The H2 is compatible with standard 55mm wall plate designs found from many manufacturers, and is designed so that it can be fitted as part of multi-gang setups in the home. Unlike some more recent offerings from Aqara (Hub M3, Motion Sensor P3) , the H2 is a standard Zigbee 3.0 product, not Thread. However, if it’s connected to an Aqara hub that is set up as a Matter bridge, you can also expose this to platforms via Matter, ensuring it’s totally local, instead of relying on any cloud connection. Whether you opt for Matter, HomeKit, or legacy connections to Amazon and Google via a hub, the H2 can act as a zigbee range extender due to it being permanently connected to mains power.

The H2 also offers something quite relevant in times where energy prices seem to continually rise, with energy monitoring, so you can keep tabs on your electricity usage, whether that’s a fan, a washing machine, or standalone lamps etc. This feature is currently only available via the Aqara app, although with the release of Matter 1.3 including energy management features, it’s hoped that the feature can be exposed to Matter platforms at some point. The socket is capable of handling 16 amps, 250v @ 50/60Hz, but with options to deactivate the electrical outputs at predefined levels up to 3840w. Unlike some standard outlets, it also features an on/off button along with an accompanying status LED.

You’ll be able to pick up the Wall Outlet H2 from Amazon stores in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and Poland from May 30th.

The post Aqara’s H2 Smart Outlet Coming to Europe appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

You can purchase the Aqara Hub M3 from Amazon stores in your region using the (affiliate) links below, which cost you nothing extra but help us buy more products for review, to keep you informed on how products perform.

For a limited time, you can get 20% off the list price, using the relevant codes below;

• North American stores: USCAHUB3 (applicable to Amazon US & Canada)
• European stores: HUBM3EU5 (applicable to Amazon France, Germany, Italy, Spain & UK)
• Amazon US
• Amazon CA
• Amazon FR
• Amazon DE
• Amazon IT
• Amazon ES
• Amazon UK

The post Aqara Hub M3 with Matter and Thread (video) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

This new collection builds on previous a switch collection, the Z1 Pro, which itself was an iteration of the Z1. The difference between the Z1 and Z1 pro were basically a software-based slider control that could dim Aqara lighting, or even adjust the position of smart blinds or curtains, something the Z1 didn’t have. You can see  video for the Z1 Pro slider function in action with the T1M Ceiling light below, starting at 8’21”;

However, The Q1 series doesn’t really offer anything meaningfully different from the Z1 Pro, merely a design change, albeit slight – the Q1 has squarer edges, as opposed the rounder edges of the Z1/Z1 Pro series.

What the company does offer, is the option to have the buttons on the switch either printed or engraved with meaningful descriptions to help those who don’t know what the different buttons are assigned to. This is both helpful, but also potentially problematic; As all the buttons can be decoupled from their wired relays, you can reassign the button presses to control almost any other Aqara product, so you’d have to be pretty certain that you’re sticking with the description on the buttons.

As with both the Z1 and Z1 Pro series switches, the Q1 is offered in one, two, or three button options, with the latter including a fourth software button that can have single, double, and long press actions assigned to it, which is also exposed to HomeKit as such. All of the Q1 variants come with the slider control to the side.

All of the aforementioned ranges can be used with or without a neutral wire, which seems to be something Aqara have invested in making a reality for a while now.

The Q1 is also offered in two colour ways; Space Grey or White. The older Z1 did offer multiple colour options, as did its own predecessor, the H1M (getting lost yet?). This brings the total number of Aqara switch collections to a staggering seven – if you don’t include the display panel switches, or original and T1 variants!

The Q1 Pro series, whilst listed on their website (under Knight Series) doesn’t seem to be available for purchase just yet, and of course these will only be available in Minland China, at least officially. In the meantime, for international consumers, we still have the Aqara M3 hub to look forward too.

The post Aqara Launches Knight Series Q1 Smart Switches in China appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

The new device uses Zigbee 3.0, so if you’re using Apple Home, you’ll need to use it via one of the company’s own Zigbee hubs. This includes not only their original HomeKit hub (review HERE, video HERE), but also their more recent Matter compatible Hub (review HERE, video HERE) that’s not only a Zigbee hub, but a Thread Border Router, and a Matter Controller for the Tuya ecosystem. For power, the wireless switch uses a single CR2450 coin cell battery (not included), which should give around 2 years of service before needing to be replaced.

The design will of course draw comparisons to the Philips Hue Wireless Dimmer Switch, which features the same four button layout, and magnetic wall plate. However, the big difference between the two is that ZemiSmart state each button is exposed to Apple Home with the standard single, double, and long press actions. If you’re an owner of the Hue Dimmer, you’ll know that it only exposes a single press action to Apple Home, although to be fair, it can do a lot more with other Hue products, just not in the HomeKit ecosystem.

You can preorder the new ZemiSmart 4-button switch from the company’s own website for US$19.90 + $2.00 shipping (to the US), with delivery beginning thirty days from today’s announcement.

The post New ZemiSmart 4-Button Smart Wireless Switch Announced appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

PACKAGING | CONTENTS

As my model is from China, the packaging – at least when I ordered it – is significantly different. Aside from the packaging, there’s really only one small physical difference, which I’ll point out shortly. There is another aspect of the Chinese model that differs that should be taken into account if you’re planning on purchasing this model; Both models work with 100~240V AC @ 50/60Hz, although the Chinese version only lists 220~240V AC. This is almost certainly due to it not being officially certified to work with 110~120V AC, which is the standard in North America and other places, like Taiwan in my case – Why bother to certify a product for a voltage it’s not going to be used for? It’s just something to be aware of, as the international models will be officially certified for both voltage standard in their respective regions, unlike the Chinese model.

There’s not a lot to see in my case, as it’s a simple brown box, and although it’s sturdy enough, with foam inside to protect it, there have been a couple of reports of broken diffusers, so just be aware of this possibility.

The T1M is pretty large, and is in fact the largest ceiling light I’ve owned to date, albeit by literally only one millimetre! The Mi Smart Ceiling Light 450 is 458mm in diameter to the T1M’s 459mm (review HERE, Video HERE). The former only offers warm to cool whites, and doesn’t support Apple’s Adaptive Lighting functionality, although to its credit, the LEDs do have a super low brightness feature, that the T1M isn’t capable of.

To stop the ring light from bleeding into the main light, and vice versa, there’s a white border around the edge of the main light to prevent such light leaks.

Aside from the light, there are three long screws and corresponding rawl plugs for mounting the ceiling light, and for the international model, you also get a bracket with wing nuts that allows you to affix the T1M where the same type of fixture has been used. This bracket is not provided in the Chinese model.

The main light comes with a large array of white LEDs – separate cool and warm ones – to provide most of the standard lighting as well as make use of the previously mentioned Adaptive Lighting. This feature, if you’re not aware, allows the light to adjust the colour temperature based on the time of day; so warm white in the morning, gradually changing to cooler white, to make you more alert and productive (I assume) with the light slowly heading back to warm white in the evening, so you can unwind before sleep. Once activated in Apple Home, you don’t need to do anything, it just works automatically.

The edge of the T1M is what allows it to stand out from most standard ceiling lights, which is the multicolour ring of colour LEDs (labelled as an “Auxiliary Lamp” in the Aqara app). This is essentially the company’s T1 LED strip, although it comes with 26 separately addressable zones, compared to the T1 Light Strips less impressive 10 zones (or 15 if you add a 1 metre extension). This ring light, whilst capable of warm and cool white (via the RGB LEDs), isn’t able to utilise Adaptive Lighting, even if the Apple Home app shows it’s capable of such a thing.

On the inside of the light there’s a small rubber grommet that allows you to pass your wires through to the connector. If you don’t have an earth/ground wire, that’s ok, but you will require a neutral and live wire, which is definitely going to be present even if the light switch connected to the light doesn’t have a neutral.

As far as fitting the T1M goes, you get the aforementioned screws and rawl plugs, and, as also mentioned, the bracket if you have the international model. Whilst you can use the bracket by itself, I’d recommend also using the screws, as the main body of the T1M isn’t as light as you’d imagine, due to the metal body.

IN AQARA HOME

For the T1 in the Aqara Home app, the main screen is separated into two main sections, one for the white light, and one for the ring light. The first of these allows you to control the power to both lights or just the main light itself. Brightness is for the main light only, and below that you have ‘effects’, although with white light, these effects are in some ways a little limited. The Tuneable White tab allows you to control the colour temperature and brightness, and that’s it, in essence.

When it comes to the UI for the ring light (née Auxiliary Lamp) there’s a fair bit more to take in just by nature of the fact we’re dealing with colour and multiple zones. So again, there’s a brightness slider and power button, with tabs for ‘effects’, ‘RGB Palette’, and RGB Spectrum. The latter two are just different methods by which to select your colour.

What’s neat about the main light is that with the Effects tab, you have the option to create a sort of ‘wake up’ lighting effect, so you can have the light gradually turn on over a period of time, to gently wake you up. There are more options, but I’ll leave you to experiment with those yourself.

Onto the colour LE ring light, and the ‘+’ tab gives you two options – Static Effects, and Dynamic Effects. The first of these allows you to colour the 26 different zones to any selection of colours you like, using the LED strip image at the top to do so. On the other hand, Dynamic Effects allows you to create a selection of colours (26 in total), and have them ‘animate’, for want of a better word, to create a sort of light show, with colours shifting and blending into each other. To animate these colours you have six different sync effects to choose from, with each providing a different type of motion to the colours. If you’re using Aqara’s T1 Light Strip, this will look very familiar.

IN APPLE HOME

In Apple Home, things are a little more organised, although you don’t get control of nearly as many aspects of either the main or ring lights, as you may have come to expect by now. you can have the T1M show as a single tile with both sliders together, or separately, as shown above. You get the standard sliders for each light, and as you can see, the main light has an ‘Adaptive Lighting’ option. You might also notice the ring light does too, and you’ll see it as an option in the colour picker screen. However, the ring light is not capable of this feature, even though it can produce white light.

THE T1M INSTALLED – MAIN LIGHT

I’m actually in possession of three of these lights, with two from China, and an international model, although currently, only one of these is installed right now. Where it’s situated, there was no wiring for a ceiling light, so instead, I fed a power cable to it, from an outlet hidden behind our cove lighting area.

Above are pictures I took of the light in three different colour temperature settings – cool, warm, and a mix of the two. Although the images don’t fully capture the look, in general I’d say the cools are about right as they’re shown, whilst the warm white is probably not quite as warm as is seen in the image above.

In terms of the representation of the brightness, the same applies with brightness levels; the light at 25 and 5 per cent, is probably going to be brighter than it’s shown in the images, but it’s here to simply demonstrate its dimming capabilities.

RING LIGHT

Many have asked if the ring light is enough to light a room, and of course that really depends on the size of the room. Still, the bottom line is that whilst this will be enough for you to not worry about tripping over things in the dark, it’s not going to be adequate for decent illumination on a day-to-day level. This shouldn’t come as a surprise, as it’s really to augment the main light, or in reality, for accent lighting and notifications.

As stated before, this ring light is capable of up to 26 different individual colours along its circumference, although in the Home app, you can only control solid colours, unless you resort to other means involving the Aqara app’s scene export feature. However, the colours are pretty accurate compared to the swatches in the Apple Home UI, and are really nicely saturated. Of course, colours are going to provide less illumination than whites or yellows, but they still look great.

Dynamic lighting effects are going to be hard to show in a written review, but for the sake of completeness, here are three effects selected to give you and idea of what they look like. For a better idea of the options, check out the full video for the T1M below;

IN DAY TO DAY USE

As already stated, I’ve had this light running for a good eight months, and so I can categorically say that in that time I’ve not encountered any issues so far. Problems with connectivity or even colour accuracy tend to show themselves pretty early on, but as this uses Zigbee 3.0, connectivity has been flawless. Colour accuracy for the ring light is really spot on, and with Adaptive Lighting for the main light, as well as coming in at 3,450 lumens when set to 100% cool white, this is more than enough for decent sized rooms.

The ring light animations are something that you might think are a gimmick, and I’d agree, as I don’t tend to use them except for the odd festive occasion. I did use a green and red scene I created specifically for Christmas, and a similar one for Chinese New Year, but beyond that, I’ve tended to stick to solid colours. I usually put the ring light to use for notifications, so if someone rings the doorbell (Aqara G4), or someone is using the shower, then the light will turn to an appropriate colour. That’s it really, but it works well for the limited purposes I’ve assigned to it.

Do I like it? Yes – it’s bright, reliable, and offers the extras I find useful (Adaptive Lighting, ring light). I’m extra happy it uses Zigbee as opposed to WiFi, and even if I think Thread would have been great, I’m pretty happy the way it is. Fitting it wasn’t massively difficult, although drilling into my concrete ceiling was less than straightforward, but with the bracket for the international model, it might be fairly easy for others.

As with any dedicated light fixture, there will of course come a time when the LEDs will eventually fail, and as such the whole light needs to be replaced. This is the same for any light fixture of this type – smart or not – but LEDs are designed to last a pretty long time, and even if you used this light for 8 hours a day, every day, you’re going to get around 8 years use from it based on a 25,00o hour lifespan. By that time you’re going to probably be looking to replace it for something new, and with Thread possibly, so I don’t think the concern is as valid as it might appear.

All in all I’m glad that Aqara has gone big when it comes to launching their first proper international lighting product, when they could have just gone with releasing their T1 light bulb to the international market, so let’s hope they continue to add more lighting products to their inventory, so we can all enjoy more Aqara lights.

The post Aqara Ceiling Light T1M (review) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

We’ll start with the latter, the Smart Wall Gateway V1, which isn’t actually their first wall mounted Zigbee gateway, but does offer more than it’s predecessor – the Smart Wall Socket H1 (with hub). At first glance it appears to be a pretty minimalist panel, with a USB-C port in the middle, and even though this port offers a useful 5W output, the V1 also acts as a Zigbee 3.0 gateway for Aqara products.

It can also connect to 2.4 & 5.0GHz WiFi, whilst also offering a wired connection via a PoE/LAN port at the back. To make things even more interesting, the V1 also contains an IR blaster like is found in the M2, M3, and G3.

the V1 comes in two finishes, and as you may have guessed, is designed for Chinese homes, suitable for an ’86’ style switch box. As it’s a Zigbee hub, it can’t control devices that use Thread or Matter, like the recently released M3 can, but it is a Matter compatible bridge, so Zigbee devices connected to it, can be exposed to your Matter platform of choice via the V1.

The Smart Wall Socket H2 os also not a new product type for Aqara, although once again it’s a step up from previous iterations. Aside from offering the typical Type I three pin socket, it also offers a Type A socket, as well as two 20w fast-charging USB ports – one for USB-A and the other USB-C. Included is energy monitoring (via the Aqara app), and a power button with included LED to actually turn the outlet on or off, which isn’t normally an option for basic outlets. As for it’s output parameters, it only offers 10A at 220~250V, so it’s not going to be of much use outside of China.

Thanks to Eric Yao for the tipoff

The post New Aqara Wall Hub and Smart Outlet Announced for China appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

The T1M is suitable for rooms ranging from 5~20 square meters (approximately 54~215 square feet). It offers a spectrum ranging from warm-to-cool whites (2700-6500K) to 16 million colours for the ring light. Its independently addressable RGB ring enables integration into smart home experiences, allowing visual notifications for home status changes, such as doorbell rings or security system triggers. For hearing-impaired individuals, it can be paired with smart security alarm systems to add customised visual alerts, enhancing safety and convenience.

The Ceiling Light T1M, like other Aqara Zigbee devices, supports Matter and major platforms such as Apple Home, Amazon Alexa, and Google Home through a compatible Aqara hub. Due to this wide compatibility it makes it a bit more of a future-proof addition to your home. The light features low idle power consumption due to the energy-efficient Zigbee protocol and acts as a repeater for your Zigbee network, extending network range and responsiveness. Zigbee also ensures local automation remains functional even when disconnected from the internet. The T1M boasts a Color Rendering Index (Ra) of 90 for more accurate white light and has undergone rigorous testing to ensure a lifespan of 50,000 hours.

Building upon the LED Strip T1’s success (review here, video here), the Ceiling Light T1M is the latest addition to Aqara’s smart light portfolio, adding to the Company’s smart home categories. The T1M integrates with other Aqara devices, so for example, it can be paired with presence or motion sensors for automated lighting, or reducing energy consumption. Additionally, when paired with an Aqara light switch featuring Wireless Switch mode, users can control the light traditionally while retaining the Ceiling Light’s smart features.

You can check out our video overview for the T1M below;

The post The Aqara Ceiling Light T1M Available Internationally appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

As we’ve noted in previous posts, the M3 takes on many of the M2’s standout features but adds to them in significant ways. For example, like the M2 it’s a Zigbee 3.0 hub for Aqara Zigbee devices, as well as including a built-in IR blaster. However, it can also act as both a Thread Border Router, and as a Matter Controller for Matter over Thread or even Matter over WiFi devices from other brands. This is in line with the functionality of the HomePod Mini, or Samsung’s Smart Station, both of which take on these dual roles. It also comes with Bluetooth 5.1, facilitating both Matter onboarding and Aqara’s own MagicPair technology.

This means, for example, a Matter over Thread bulb from Nanoleaf can be added to Aqara’s ecosystem, thereby using Aqara’s powerful automation features. This does not mean that Matter devices added to the M3 will be automatically exposed to Apple Home, however. Still, as you can add a Matter device to multiple ecosystems anyway, it’s not necessarily an issue if you want to control a Matter device on both platforms.

Another plus point of the M3 is that whilst it has an upgraded power port utilising USB-C now, it can also be powered by the ethernet port that connects it to your router or modem, as long as your respective hardware supports this functionality.

One major bonus for many existing Aqara users is that the M3 is purported to allow for migrating all of your existing devices from one Aqara hub to the M3, which is something many Aqara fans have asked for.

As it’s presently only available in China, and only by third-party resellers, there seems to be an element of price-gouging, as the hub is listed in one store for RMB989, which roughly converts to US$138 | UK£109 | EU€127, which seems a bit on the high side for a hub, even given its extra functionality. I’ll go out on a limb and predict the price will be lower than this once the international model is released, where it should be officially announced at CES2024 next week. Until then, we just have to wait a little while longer…

The post Aqara Matter Hub M3 Initially Launched in China appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.