Note: I should state that I’m taking this information both from what can be gleaned from the claim in the Apple document (link below) and my communications with someone involved in making devices that work with Apple Home. That being the case, there could be possible misunderstandings as to what Apple intends, but with little to go on, the following is what has been understood.

In the release notes in Apple’s List of Home Enhancements in iOS18 PDF, it states the following;

The post Does iOS18 Offer a Hub-Free Option to Apple Home Users? appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

It’s also important to note that this update only makes the Dirigera a Matter bridge, not a Matter Controller. So this can expose the connected devices to Matter platforms, but you won’t be able to add Matter devices to the Ikea ecosystem via this hub. That said, based on Ikea stating the following, could this mean it may have a further update to make it a Matter Controller?

“As the first step in adopting Matter, the DIRIGERA hub will be updated to become a Matter Bridge, enabling it to support any Matter-enabled system.”

It’s probably unlikely, and more of a possibility that the company would release a separate Matter Controller, but even that seems less likely. Ikea also state that the update is available to users wherever the Dirigera hub is sold, which could mean it may not be available in your region if you imported one.

Matter support for the following product categories will be available via the update – lighting, sound, air purification, remote controllers, and sensors. Ikea has stepped up its smart home game in fits and starts, most recently with the addition of the new Inspelning smart plug for North American users that also offers power monitoring.

The post Ikea Adds Official Matter Support to the Dirigera Hub appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

This is bulb meant to be seen, however, in part due to the shape, but also for the fact it uses LiFX’ own ‘Polychrome’ technology. This allows the bulb to display not just the now standard 16 million colours (it can offer billions apparently), but multiple colours at once. The specs state the T10 bulb has 104 individual LEDs with a massive 52 controllable zones. That’s insane for a light bulb! However, it’s just as well this bulb is meant for mood lighting, as it tops out at a mere 5.2W at full brightness, so this isn’t going to perform as well for decently lit areas.

As with all LiFX releases since it was obtained by US lighting company Feat Electric, this new bulb adopts the Matter standard, using Matter over WiFi for its method of connection/communication to you smart home. This means aside from a Matter Controller, no hub is required. Aside from supporting the four major Matter compatible platforms – Apple Home, Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Samsung SmartThings, it will also work with Home Assistant and even Razer Chroma for all the avid gamers out there.

Currently the bulb is available to purchase in the United States for US$39.98 at Home Depot. Whether it’ll come to other territories is not clear, although it does work with both 110~120V and 220~240V systems.

The post New Matter Enabled Tube Light from LiFX Now Available appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

The Inspelning (transl. recording) smart plug looks pretty much like many of today’s offerings, which at its core ensures that it’ll plug into one socket without blocking the other. It has a  power button on the side, along with a small indicator LED and reset button.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, this new smart plug, which uses Zigbee to connect to both Ikea’s own smart platform and others, will only work with the company’s latest hub – the Dirigera. So if you’re still using the original Trådfri smart hub with your Ikea products, this plug is either a pass or you’ll need to upgrade.

On the assumption you do have the Dirigera hub, you can then expose it to Apple Home, Amazon Alexa, and Google Home, although not via Matter officially yet. A Matter firmware update is available for beta testing if you want to try it out. A firmware update from Sept. 2nd states;

• DIRIGERA Hub version 2.615.8
  • Maintenance release, plus extended support of device types via Matter Bridge for:• Lights, including Drivers
    • Smart plugs/outlets
    • Connected blinds
    • Remotes
    • Motion sensors
    • Open/close sensors
    • Air purifiers and Air quality sensors

If you don’t want to use this beta option, adding the hub to the latter two platforms requires the legacy connection method that ties your Ikea smart home account to Google/Amazon.

Energy monitoring is only available via the Ikea Home Smart app (not the old app, named Home Smart 1). Currently it’s listed on Ikea’s US website for US$11.99, although it may be available in your nearest Ikea store.

The post Ikea Release Smart Plug with Energy Monitoring appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

On the surface, these may look much like previous product the company has sold, namely the Nanoleaf Canvas. However, the ‘Blocks’ differ in some significant ways.

The first, and obvious difference is the fact that there are five ‘Blocks’ to choose from, with a basic ‘Square’, and ‘Textured’ square, a ‘Light Pegboard’, a ‘Shelf’, and a ‘Small Square’ that is essentially 25% the size of the standard Square. like the Canvas, and all of their other lighting products, these offer up to 16 million colours, and can connect to one another to form a sort of patchwork of lights.

In the case of the blocks, which we also saw with Nanoleaf’s ‘Shapes’, you can mix and match these different options to create something less uniform, and more organically shaped. With the Shelf option, you can place your favourite models, phone, mini speakers etc on them, with the limit for support set at 1.5kg in weight. The Pegboard option, which offers the hooks as a separate purchase, you have the option yo support up to 3kg in weight. The Textured Blocks appear to have a more three dimensional aspect to them, that should add an extra layer of interest to your lighting setup.

The one thing that may surprise many, is that the Blocks do not currently support Matter, and may never actually do so. In one sense, it won’t matter (no pun intended) to Apple Home users, but for Google, SmartThings, and Alexa users, who are trying to go all in on Matter, you’re going to have to return to a cloud-based option for getting these into your smart platforms. This is an odd choice, given that the company started off as one of the early adopters of both Matter and Thread, but are seemingly backing away from both to varying degrees of late; Their 4D TV light strip combo only offered a standard WiFi connection, as does their Nanoleaf Skylight. Add to this the company now releasing Matter over WiFi Essential Bulbs and Multicolour light strip, when Thread was fine, although it’s always good to have the choice I suppose. That all said, there is a possible silver lining…

Nanoleaf’s announcement of a wireless controller/button/switch took us by surprise, but only for the fact that previous announcements from the company regarding controllers seems to have come to nothing. Back in 2020 the company unveiled a very odd looking device as part of a yet to materialise ‘Learning Series’, which included technology dubbed U-IQ. Whatever the reason, Nanoleaf now have a new wireless remote – the Sense+ Smart Switch – that offers 5 buttons. In terms of size, it does appear to be similar to the Wemo Stage Scene Controller, but is designed in the first instance to work best with Nanoleaf’s own lighting products. The top and bottom buttons act as on and off switches, whilst the middle button acts as a dimmer. It also has two programmable buttons on either side of the aforementioned dimmer, which can be programmed in Apple Home to control non-Nanoleaf products. Two major plusses with Nanoleaf’s offering is that it also comes with both light and motion sensors, which both help to turn on the relevant Nanoleaf lighting in a room, as well as adjust according to how much light is in said room.

The other surprise is that whilst this switch will use Matter over Thread (currently via something called ‘Matter Early Access, which sounds distinctly beta…) it also offers connectivity via a new Nanoleaf protocol called ‘Litewave’ that allows the switch to connect directly to Nanoleaf products, which would be useful in a Nanoleaf home without Thread, but it does seem a little pointless otherwise. Still, if they’re offering this with Matter over Thread, it’s all good, especially at a reasonably inexpensive US$26.99 (plus shipping).

The post New Nanoleaf Products and Some Surprises… appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

By far the most interesting for me, are the two air purifiers. The model above not only operates as a air purifier to remove hair, dust and particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5) from your room, but it also comes with a very interesting ambient light that appears as though it’s floating above the purifier itself. The ambient light is capable of producing colour, and supposedly changes to specific colour depending on the air quality in the room it’s located in. The top of the light acts as a sort of night stand (assuming it’s placed next to a bed), so it can serve more than just a purifier and mood light.

If you want to take things up a notch, the other purifier touted is essentially the same in terms of both the purifier and mood light, but the top of the lamp features a larger and wider table top, with a wood finish. Not only that, but it also has a Qi charger built in. The charger itself is the Qi standard, so although you’ll get 15w for Android phones, iPhones are restricted to 7.5w, with Apple approved chargers able to reach 15w.

Both purifiers offer Hepa 13 filtration, which also includes a carbon filter for odours and VOCs. It also comes with a built-in PM2.5 sensor, although the company are also offering the option to buy the purifier with their recently announced Meter Pro or Meter Pro (Co2 monitor) sensors.

Both air purifiers will be exposed to Matter via the company’s hubs in a future update.

Fresh off the back of their recently released K10+ Pro (video HERE), SwitchBot has now announced the K10+ Pro Combo! This is essentially the K10+ Pro robot vacuum, with a larger/taller base station and a more or less traditional hand held vacuum that wouldn’t look out of place in a Dyson showroom. Both the K10+ Pro and the handheld vacuum make use of the base station, but emptying the contents of the dust boxes via separate portals.

The hand-held vacuum comes with a variety of fittings that allows you to clean various areas, from the back of sofas, to tight corners, and even the interior of your car. both this and the K10+ Pro have built in batteries of course. Whilst the K10+ Pro is exposed to Matter via its association with the company’s Matter bridges, it’s not clear if the hand held vacuum will also be exposed to Matter, or indeed be exposed separately.

SwitchBot’s Roller Shade is the world’s first adjustable and fabric-replaceable smart roller blind. Its width adjusts from 0.5m to 1.85m or 22.8″ to 72.8″, which will hopefully provide a precise fit for most windows. The fabric can be easily replaced to match any décor, with options such as 100% blackout for privacy protection. In addition to remote control, the Roller Blind supports automation scenes and integrates with major smart home platforms through Matter (via SwitchBot Matter-compatible Hubs), offering a smart, hassle-free solution for everyone.

SwitchBot’s Roller Shade is the world’s first adjustable and fabric-replaceable smart roller blind – at least as far as we’re aware.Its width adjusts from 0.5m to 1.85m or 22.8″ to 72.8″, which will hopefully provide a precise fit for most windows. The fabric can be easily replaced to match any décor, with options such as 100% blackout for privacy protection, UV protection, and thermal insulation. Operable via the SwitchBot app, voice commands, or remote control, the Roller Blind supports automation scenes and integrates seamlessly with major smart home platforms through Matter (via SwitchBot Matter-compatible Hubs), offering a smart, hassle-free solution for everyone.

The post SwitchBot Tease More Products at IFA 2024 appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

The company is enhancing home security with its 4MP Camera Hub G5 Pro, designed for outdoor use with True Colour Night Vision, the Garage Door Controller T2 Kit, and the Valve Controller T1 and Smoke Detector for protection against water and fire damage.

Aqara is expanding its Thread product range, incorporating both Thread and Zigbee communication. Its European energy management lineup now includes Thread-enabled wall switches such as the Light Switch H2 EU, Dimmer Switch H2 EU, and Shutter Switch H2 EU. The smart lighting portfolio has also grown with the Thread-enabled LED Bulb T2 for every day and mood lighting. Aqara is also showcasing its AI-powered voice assistant, the Aqara Voice Mate H1, which works with the Hub M3 and enables interaction with Aqara Copilot.

The company continues to support the Matter standard, expanding integration and automation possibilities. Aqara is showcasing these products and other prototypes at IFA 2024 in Berlin.

Key Products

• Camera Hub G5 Pro: Aqara’s first outdoor surveillance camera, available in PoE and Wi-Fi versions. The 4MP camera includes True Colour Night Vision, AI capabilities for detecting faces, vehicles, pets, and packages, and end-to-end encryption. It supports Apple Home, Alexa, Google Home, SmartThings, and RTSP for streaming to NVRs and video servers.
• Garage Door Controller T2 Kit: This device controls up to two garage doors, offering smart security through geofencing, voice assistants, mobile apps, and automation. It integrates with Aqara and third-party devices and supports Alexa, HomeKit, Google Home, and other Matter-enabled platforms.

• 

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  Valve Controller T1: Designed to work with leak detectors, this device automatically shuts off water or gas systems in case of a leak. It is compatible with various pipe sizes and features a wireless design for easy installation

• Smoke Detector: This smoke detector has an 85-decibel siren and triggers alarms across other Aqara hubs and smoke detectors in the home. It operates on Zigbee and has a battery life of up to 10 years.

Energy Management & Smart Lighting

• H2 EU Wall Switches: These Thread-enabled switches include Light Switch H2 EU, Dimmer Switch H2 EU, and Shutter Switch H2 EU. They support both Thread and Zigbee protocols, allowing users to choose between Thread for Matter compatibility or Zigbee for additional features.

• 

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  LED Bulb T2: Available in RGB and CCT versions, the Thread-enabled LED Bulb T2 offers a wide range of tunable whites and colours for both productivity and atmosphere. It supports both Thread and Zigbee.

New Integrations and Capabilities

• Advanced Matter Bridging: Aqara’s Hub M3 allows users to sync conditions and actions from the Aqara Home app to other Matter platforms, enabling more complex automations.
• Home Assistant Partnership: Aqara has joined the Work with Home Assistant programme, with the first certified devices including the Hub M3, Smart Lock U200, and Motion and Light Sensor P2.
• Tesla EV Integration: Tesla electric vehicles can now be integrated into Aqara Home automations, allowing tasks like scheduling charging during off-peak hours and synchronising with other home devices.

Voice Interaction

• Voice Mate H1: This battery-powered accessory works with the Aqara Hub M3, enabling users to control the system via voice without needing a phone. It activates only when picked up, ensuring privacy.

The post Aqara Unveils New Products at IFA 2024 appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

However, evaporative humidifiers also tend to be less effective at bringing humidity up to required levels, especially in larger areas. This model can produce a humidification output of up to 750mL/h, via a 4.5 litre water tank, although that would also depend on the size of the room or rooms its designated. The unit is designed to work at its best with rooms between 20~30 sq m / 215~322 sq ft.

The bad news for HomeKit News readers, however, is that the device is currently not exposed to Apple HomeKit, even if you were to pass it through one of the company’s Matter hubs. A hub isn’t required thankfully, as the humidifier uses WiFi to connect to your smart home. Despite it not being HomeKit compatible, due to the SwitchBot app, it can at least be controlled via Siri Shortcuts.

It also doesn’t appear to have built-in humidity or temperature sensors, with the company’s specs stating that to automate the device based on either measurements,  it should be “…Paired with SwitchBot Meter series to get temperature and humidity data”. Given this device comes in at around US$200 / UK£180 / EU€200, one would assume such sensors would be included. I guess not…

What does make SwitchBot’s Humidifier sort of unique is its ability to work with the company’s own S10+ robot vacuum; When the humidifier’s tank is close to empty, the S10+ is alerted to this via the SwitchBot ecosystem, whereupon the S10+ will fill its own tank with water (from the mains water supply its base station is plumbed into), and then connect to the humidifier via special connectors at the side, and proceed to transfer the water to the humidifier’s tank. Of course, if you don’t have an S10+, you can get alerts and still fill the water tank yourself.

The SwitchBot Humidifier should be available shortly, if not already on Amazon and the company’s own storefront, although currently it’s listed as ‘out of stock’ on Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com, and Amazon.de.

The post SwitchBot Announces New Humidifier – No Apple Home Integration… appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

Starting with the company’s hub, dubbed the LuBase, this acts as a gateway for other Luon products. Whilst most hubs on the market for Apple Home utilise Zigbee or occasionally Z-Wave or variants of RF433MHz, the LuBase uses its own take on the ESP-NOW wireless protocol, with their version called (yes, you guessed it) LuAir. ESP-NOW was developed by Expressif and acts in much the same way as Zigbee or Thread, especially as it still occupies the same 2.4GHz wireless range. The hub also makes use of the latest ESP-32-S3 chip, ensuring fast and accurate operation.

What makes this hub different from some others is that it uses their own operating system, called luonOS (…) that claims to be a closed and totally local system, that communicated directly, and only with, Apple Home. So there are no servers to connect to, and for this reason the whole system can work offline, and remain totally with your own network. Any data that the hub collects is stored solely on the hub itself (for up to five years) and is not sent to any external servers or locations.

The hub also uses a built in AN connection, but once again uses its own wired communication standard, called (are you ready?) LuLine. Luon state that communication speeds between child devices and the company’s own app occur in a fraction of a second, so seemingly in line with Zigbee and Thread it would seem.

Currently, the company only has the aforementioned LuBase, and LuBulb, an E27 colour light bulb offering 806lm/9W. It also offers cool to warm whites, although its not clear if the bulb would be compatible with Apple’s own Adaptive Lighting feature.

Luon’s website does list other products, like LuTouch a four button controller that also comes with a both a built-in temperature sensor, and a sound-based presence sensor. It’s powered by an internal rechargeable battery. Each of the four buttons offers three button press types – single, double and long press – as standard. What’s more interesting is that it comes in both a mobile and wall mounted variant, with the latter also able to work in a wired or wireless capacity.

The LuModule Pro is designed to typically work behind devices like light switches, and can control two separate lighting circuits, offering energy monitoring features via the Luon app. However, it can also be used to control devices such as electric window coverings, like blinds or shutters, as well garage doors, wall outlets and much more.

Finally, the LuPresence is in fact a smart button, that happens to also contain sensors for motion, presence, light intensity, and temperature! Just like the four button LuTouch, this device can be powered by batteries or permanently powered. However, the ‘presence’ is not of the ind we’ve been seeing more of lately, which use mmWave technology, so the presence in this case uses a combination of both sound and motion to detect presence, so it’s more akin to occupancy sensors we’ve seen in some older devices. The sound and motion sensors can work in tandem or be programmed to work independently of each other.

Whilst it’s compatible with Apple Home only at present, Luon state that Matter compatibility for the LuBase is coming at a later date.

Luon also has its own app that works directly with Apple Home, called LuHome. As it’s a Apple Home compatible app, all of your Apple Home and Matter devices will show up in the app, much like any other third-party HomeKit app. Also like some of these third-party apps, LuHome offers advanced functionality not typically found in the standard Apple Home app, with features like watching multiple live streams from your cameras, and storing Apple Home and Matter QR codes from your devices directly in the app. You can also choose to hide specific devices or scenes if they’re seldom used, and they offer a ‘snapshot’ feature, that allows you to set or adjust a device’s state, and take a ‘snapshot’ of the state to create a new scene quickly. It’s also available for both iPadOS and macOS (M1 processors and newer). The app is mostly free, but does require a monthly or yearly subscription for creating automations in the app. There’s no fee if you own the company’s hub, however.

You can read more about the company and its products via their website, available in English, German, and Polish.

The post Luon Launch Apple Home Compatible Hub, Devices, and App appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

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.