No meaningful updates. The last info I have from the Aqara team ( about a week ago ) is that they are still working hard to make sure that the Aqara and Xiaomi/Mijia products are going to work well together and give people the experience they expect rather than the total confusion of what was happening a few months ago. They were still aiming for a Spring release in the US, but nothing firm yet. I’ve seen news that Yeelights are supposed to be getting homekit support as well from my friend Simon over at Homekitnews but I don’t have anything firm there. Right now, it’s a wait-and-see experience. :(. Really wish I had more info here. Really frustrating to watch the sausage being made, but I think we will all be happier when the final solution is released and it works the way we think it should. Sometimes this pain is what you sign up for as a reviewer. :)

Homekit doesn’t keep historical data so clear no. Aqara has a Smartlog feature which does appear to track when an automation or scene is triggered, but you’ll need to be logged into the Aqara cloud for that to work. FYI Aqara also shut down its Cloud service in EMEA due to GDPR concerns so you may have to look at the Mi Home app as well. I really like the Aqara hardware and the price is really attractive, but the experience has been painful and it’s very difficult to understand how things work together. If you’re willing to only use the HomeKit components it’s a pretty good solution but if you’re interested in the Aqara app or Mi Home features I recommend you think about it. If you’re generally fine with uncertainty and lack of clarity on what actually works - this might be the right product for you.

Many thanks for the clear message. I have good experience with the hue bridge and not so good experience with some Bluetooth equipment, therefore I was looking for some Zigbee stuff. When the behavior is random it’s hard to know if the fault is from the hardware or the software or from the HomeKit itself. Do you know if I can use the door sensor with Hue bridge in HomeKit?

@@vitorppt Unfortunately, the way Apple's Homekit certification works is that you need to certify the entire solution, right down to the accessory. What this means is that you MIGHT be able to connect the contact sensor to the Hue Bridge, but Hue will not expose it to Homekit. Hue will only expose the devices (Hue and Friends of Hue I would guess - although I haven't been able to confirm the Friends of Hue devices yet) that it has specifically certified as working with Apple. I might also suggest looking at the Xiaoyan ( kzfaq.info/get/bejne/i5yZl6WrudLZiJs.html ) as another zigbee option. Xiaoyan ( now branded as Terncy ) definitely has less options as far as accessories, but it's much much more clear as to what works and what doesn't. If you're looking at only using it with Homekit, Aqara's not a bad choice. Just realize that if you want to explorer the world of the Aqara cloud/Xiaomi/Mijia Clouds things are very murky still. This also means that if you want to connect Aqara to Amazon/GoogleHome for voice control it can be tough to understand exactly what the best setup could be.

Hey Joao, As I mentioned in the video. The Aqara US versions aren't officially released yet. They should hopefully be available in the next couple of months. As soon as I've got any info on release dates I will definitely be posting it.

@@Homekitgeek you can get it at Goimply.com Free shipping I believe. and they even sell the Chinese version so you can use all of the sensors and everything. The Chinese version support English language as well

Hey Rehdog! Great question.for clarity’s sake, let’s start with definitions. Although they are often used interchangeably let’s agree a Hub is the HomeKit Homehub function which can only be an AppleTV, HomePod, or IPAd. I have multiple of those for three major reasons. First I have more than one TV ask I have more than one AppleTV. Second for redundancy. If one HomeHub dies the system will automatically use one of the other hubs. Third Bluetooth is more of a short range tech than wifi so you may need more than one Homehub if you have issues with Bluetooth connectivity. Impossible for me to predict whether or not you might have issues in a 816 square foot space as I don’t know what furniture or building materials were used. For the bridge l, lets agree this describes the zigbee bridge function that translates between the zigbee wireless protocol to the standard internet protocol. (What your wifi and phone typically use ). In the bridge case, they are used for two major functions. One is to translate between zigbee and wifi/Ethernet/IP. Second they are used by vendors to provide additional smarts to try and differentiate themselves in the market. Whether or not you need more than one depends on your needs and tastes. I like Philips Hue bulbs, so I need. Zhu’s bridge. I like the IKEA lights so I need an IKEA bridge. The Lutron light switches are super reliable and more cost effective so I need a Lutron bridge. Make sense?

@@Homekitgeek Thank you so basically I like Apple and in my new home starting my smart home if I want to use Homekit i must have ipad,Homepod, or apple Tv 4k to remotely control devices when away from home. Depending on smart lights i have to get the bridge for that brand so i can't use Aqara bridge with Hue lights.

That’s exactly right. Although you could use the AppleTV 4 as well if you wanted to go one generation back. :). Sounds like you’ve got it!

@@Homekitgeek Thank you for your help.

You will need the Aqara Gateway. The gateway speaks zigbee. The iPad does not. The gateways job is to translate between zigbee, which it uses to communicate with the contact sensors and other accessories, and the IPad which uses WIFI.

hey Marcin - Right now the answer is “Nope”. The aqara devices speak the zigbee protocol. You can think of this like their own language. Apple HomeKit only speaks WIFI and BLE so they can’t communicate. The Aqara hubs main function is to help translate between the two protocols. Hope this helps!

Zigbee will definitely have a much better range than Bluetooth. It’s my understanding that the door/window sensors don’t repeat zigbee signals like the hue lights though. If you get too far away you may need to plug in an Aqara zigbee plug to help extend the zigbee range.

​@@Homekitgeek Hi, so If I use a Aqara zigbee plug next to door sensor, could you expand and have a better range like mesh network with hue philips? I have same problem like Marco Pirola with Koogeek, fibaro, and eve elgato door sensors..., they all are Bluetooth LE.. thanks

valobal Thanks for the question! I’m not 100% sure about the Aqara door/window but most of the battery operated zigbee devices don’t act as a repeater because of the additional battery draw. On the other hand, things like plugs and lights that have power all the time do typically extend the range of zigbee networks. Unless the Hue and Aqara devices are in the same zigbee network ( connected to the same hubs ) a Philips hue bulb won’t help at all with an Aqara bulb. The Philips hue bulbs will extend the range of other Philips hue bulbs connected to the same zigbee network. Hope this makes sense?

hey Joao, Hoping I understand the question - You don’t turn on/off the door sensor really. It’s in an always detecting stage. The sensor connects back to the Aqara hub which is registered to Apple HomeKit. Anyone who youv’e invited to your Apple Home can then turn on/off the alarm through Any Apple HomeKit app that supports security systems. As well you can also turn it on/off to through the Aqara apps of the users have access. let me know if this helps?

@@Homekitgeek thanks very much. It's all I need to know. Very interested in this product

I honestly don’t know the answer to that question. To be honest, the Co fusion around what works with what in the Aqara line is something they are really going to have to address soon. I have a feeling that part of the delay in the release of the products outside of China is due to this problem. I’m really hoping that they get it sorted out soon. I wish I had a better answer for you. Hopefully someone else seeing this might have an idea?

Could you provide a link to the “new” hub ? Confused about which to buy.

Hi Mr Midi - I wish I could. Aqara hasn’t released the new hub outside of China yet and I can’t get an answer on when they will be released. As soon as I have a link I will definitely be posting video details.

Works with both hubs

Nope. The Aqara sensor is a zigbee based sensor and will require a hub that speaks the zigbee protocol. MIGHT work with other zigbee based hubs but I haven’t proven that yet. The zigbee hub is what translates between zigbee and the internet protocol (IP). EDIT: The Aqara door sensor requires the Aqara Zigbee hub to connect to Homekit. For automations and remote access, Homekit does require a homekit hub of which the HomePod can be one of the options. Just wanted to be clear. The Aqara Contact sensor connects to the Aqara hub only.

support homepod

jeremy lv Nope. It’s a zigbee device so it requires the Aqara hub to connect to. The Homepod can act as the HomeHub for the Homekit portion, but this does require the Aqara hub to use with Homekit.

Hi Cecil, You can find these on Aliexpress or potentially Gearbest but there’s a lot of confusion over which brand your actually going to get and they haven’t worked out compatibility between Aqara/Xiaomi/Mijia accessories yet. If you’re willing to role the dice a little (take a chance) it will probably work out fine but if you’re looking for something with guaranteed compatibility, I would wait until Aqara releases their product later this year. Last I heard they are expecting to have this figured out in Sprong if 2019.