50 MILLION DOLLARS: TADO RECEIVES GRANTS FROM AMAZON, E.ON & CO.

The Tado brand is known above all for its smart heating thermostats. Now the company is receiving a financial injection from large companies and the European Investment Bank. With the new 50 million US dollars, the Munich-based company wants to strengthen its market position.

Amazon, E.ON, Total Energy Ventures, Energy Innovation Capital, Inven Capital, the European Investment Bank and other companies have invested in the Munich-based manufacturer of smart electronics. With the financial injection of 50 million US Dollar the enterprise comes up-to-date on a total financing of 89 million euro according to current press release.

Tado belongs to the large ones

About one third (30 percent) of the energy used worldwide is used for heating and cooling buildings. The German manufacturer Tado sees a correspondingly strong market here, in which one can still grow considerably. The company is right: an annual growth rate of 54 percent for smart heating is forecast until the end of 2022.

How the technology works

The smart thermostats from Tado connect heaters and air conditioners to the Internet. An app on the smartphone detects as soon as the residents leave the home or approach it again or a window is open and sets the temperature accordingly efficiently. In addition, weather forecasts and self-learning algorithms help to save up to 31 percent on heating costs and at the same time improve comfort and well-being - says the company.

More about Tado

We are invited to Tado on November 02, 2018 and will take a closer look at the products and philosophy of the company. A corresponding assessment by our editorial team will follow.

If you can't wait any longer, you'll find the manufacturer's current products here.

Smarten up your fan

Since connecting your home is now done from floor to ceiling, from light to lock, plug, air purifier and thermostat, why not also connect our fans?

The fans also have the right to be smart

Today we are on the way to connecting all our lives: our clothes, our food, our interiors. But if there is one thing we have never really paid attention to, or even abandoned, it is our fan. Yes, this object that you all know, especially when you don't have air conditioning and summers are often too hot to be tolerated. By integrating intelligent sensors and other information gathering systems, it has never been easier to connect our windmakers.

Hunter and Haiku, your allies against the heat wave

Hunter is an innovative and beautiful product. Presented at the last CES in Las Vegas, USA, it was developed to work with the Apple HomeKit, and is obviously available on iOS operating systems. It will, we hope very soon, be available to the general public.

The Apple HomeKit, in case you land straight from a spatiotemporal flaw, allows you to control your home with Apple's famous voice command: Siri.

Haiku, on the other hand, works with the company's technology at the head of "Big Ass Fans", designed to cool large industrial spaces. Equipped with "Sense Me" technology, this fan will become smart. It has WiFi connectivity, as well as motion, temperature and air sensors. This way, you can control and program it directly through its application.

Also compatible with the Apple HomeKit, you will also have the Haiku application from your Nest thermostat or your Amazon Echo or Alexa virtual assistant thanks to Android.

The problem with Haiku is that it will become more of an ally of cost than of price. Do not expect to pay less than 400 dollars or even up to almost 1000 dollars. If this price is an obstacle to the purchase of the latter, you can always buy the wall switch of the same brand which is worth the coquettish sum of 110 dollars. All this being worth no less than 360 dollars and more, it is certainly expensive to connect your house, but useful in view of the savings that can be achieved.

An application with multiple functionalities

Easy to use, the features of the smart fan will be divided into 5 tabs.

The first one controls the speed of your fan, as well as its brightness, because it necessarily offers the advantages of a luminaire. The second tab will allow you to customize the reactions of your object according to the movements it detects in the room or the temperature it makes in the room. The third tab will allow you to program the fan and light at specific times determined in advance. The 4th function allows you to determine the actions of your object during your sleep. Finally, the 5th feature will offer you the possibility to activate "Whoosh", which will adjust the ventilation speed of your object as a game.

Do you need a smart teapot?

Tea is one of those drinks that can be enjoyed for a long time, a very long time. Methods have improved and our habits have changed. Is there a new stage? It is in any case the idea of Teamosa, a smart teapot present on Kickstarter.

Make some tea? Easy, isn't it? However, a simple search on the Internet reveals dozens of different methods, each of which is explained with a lot of photos and details. So what's the best one? Each of us will have our own answers to this question. Teamosa, a smart teapot now wants to claim this title.

The ambition to produce the best tea

Are you satisfied with the way you make tea or do you feel it could be better? If you are in the second category, then it's time to take a look at Teamosa. This smart teapot promises to make the best possible tea every time and better than any other machine.

How does it work? The object is composed of two parts. A reserve located at the top where you can put a capsule designed by the company or classic sheets. Below, a water tank But rather than just running the machine, you will then have to open the application and adjust the settings to your convenience. These include temperature, maceration time, tea hardness or the quantity you want to make (up to 250 ml). These settings can be saved to make the tea the way you like it every time.

The device uses ultrasound technology for the operation to extract as many antioxidants as possible. The company cites several scientific studies to demonstrate the effectiveness of this technique even if the real impact is probably still something very personal.

Teamosa already funded on Kickstarter

Presented on the Kickstarter participative financing platform on September 13, Teamosa has already reached its goal of $100,000 thanks to the support of more than 350 backers. If you purchase Teamosa, the first available price is $239, the machine then comes with 10 capsules. The next one is $279 with 20 capsules. Be careful, however, you will not have to be in a hurry since deliveries are scheduled for September 2018 to destinations all over the world.

As always, it is necessary to be careful when you support a project on Kickstarter. On paper, Teamosa seems to be very interesting. But, it is still difficult to know if Teamosa will fall into the category of really useful DIY projects like Yomee for example or totally useless ones like Juicero. The possibility of using sheets instead of capsules is surprising.

Hector: the connected cube test

Have you ever looked at the weather, prepared according to its forecasts, and realized that the weather is completely different from what was predicted? This is very frustrating and yet quite common. The solution? Have your own weather station. This is what Hector offers, the 100% French multi-functional connected cube.

A connected cube that can predict the weather is the main idea behind the Hector. In theory, this small machine should allow you to avoid the usual inconveniences when organizing an outing. A blue sky is announced? You can be sure it will rain. Thus, this product is intended to handle the forecasts itself. While he sometimes manages to surprise, it can be said that he does not keep all his promises, far from it.

• Brand: Hector
• Category: weather station, hydrometer and thermometer
• Connection: Bluetooth
• Compatibility: iOS and Android
• Price: 49€90
• Tested with: iPad

Unboxing of the Hector

This unboxing is intended to be temporary. Indeed, we were able to meet the creators of the small connected cube: Morgan Lavaux and Valentin Roy. They told us that they were rethinking the communication around their product. Indeed, rather than selling it as a weather station, they now plan to call it: a multi-functional connected cube.

The difference? The object is not only used to give weather forecasts, but also to manage places where the temperature is important, such as a cellar, a refrigerator or a baby's room for example.

As a result, the packaging will have to change, we have had exclusive access to the visuals of the next packaging.

For this test, we will unbox the current product packaging. It is a transparent plastic box through which the cardboard box containing the Hector can be distinguished. On the plastic box, information about the product's features is displayed on two sides.

The cardboard packaging, on the other hand, summarizes its contents, as well as the available connections and product compatibility. It contains the Hector, the suction cup to attach it where you plan to use it, a flat battery to operate it, and the user manual.

This is a very classic packaging for a product that is placed in an average price range. It will be necessary to see how the next packaging transforms the identity of the product and what quality it offers.

Design and ergonomics of the Hector

The Hector offers a very efficient design that stands out from the competition. It is a black and white cube pierced through and through on its white faces. The name of the product is written in white on one of the black faces with the typography of the product, which imitates handwritten writing.

It is a beautiful product that will perfectly fit into any interior. It is also very ergonomic. Its small size, coupled with the hole that runs through it, makes it easy to handle. In addition, it allows you to intelligently conceal the trapdoor that contains the battery.

The suction cup allows the product to be placed exactly as you wish (as long as the surface is suitable, of course). It will hold perfectly, even on the side. So if you don't have a place to put the Hector, you can always put it horizontally on a fridge or glass.

Unfortunately, these good points are not worth much when faced with a major problem: long-term use. And when we say "long-term", we are actually talking about a few months, or at least less than a year. Indeed, the device deteriorates quickly and a battery change does not solve the problem. So we quickly find ourselves with a non-functional machine, which is already not very resistant to rain. Thus, despite the promise of "being able to install it where you want", there is no waterproof protection. All it takes is one shower for the cube to be completely unusable.

Conclusion

The Hector has plenty of ideas: a small cube for forecasting the weather is a useful gadget. Its application is easy to access and its minimalist design is quite pleasant to the eye. In practice, however, the product is not convincing. Its construction is very unreliable and the device fails within a year of purchase. Far from resisting water, it deteriorates very quickly. In addition, there are real connection and usage problems that further affect the experience. Finally, the application, which offers little content, has an unfortunate tendency to close regularly for no reason. All these problems make an attractive price at the base too high, adding another black spot to the Hector.

Guide: Smart fridge for smart living

Having appeared early in the early 2000s, smart fridges have made a comeback and are an integral part of the smart home universe. While this market has developed, the supply remains relatively limited, although more varied. Smart fridges can save you time, entertain you in the kitchen, and ensure the optimal preservation of your food. Find out how to choose a smart fridge, and our selection of the best models on the market.

What is a smart fridge?

The concept of a smart fridge refers, for simplicity, to a fridge smart to the Internet via WiFi or another communication protocol such as Bluetooth. This connectivity allows you to interact with the fridge using your smartphone, for example to control the temperature.

However, it would be more accurate to talk about smart fridges to refer to the devices we are talking about here. Most of these household appliances carry a processor, RAM, and a touch screen, just like a computer.

Through this screen, it is possible to access multimedia content, browse the Internet, but also to access functionalities directly related to cooking and food preservation. The smart fridges allow you to monitor the condition of your food, food stocks, or to consult recipes directly and write shopping lists. Many features to be discovered in more detail in the following paragraph.

What is the purpose of a smart fridge?

The smart fridges offer many features. While they retain common characteristics, the offer is more varied than before and each one has its own qualities. As a general rule, smart fridges allow you to establish a shopping list based on the contents of the fridge.

This content can be automatically analyzed in different ways. Some models have a camera on board that scans the different products in the fridge. Others require manual listing of products to enter them into the device's internal memory. Subsequently, the user can sometimes send his list automatically to a partner store in order to place his order directly from his kitchen. It is also possible to consult the shopping list from the fridge on your smartphone once in the store.

Another typical feature is the ability to view recipes from the smart screen of the fridge. These recipes can be filtered automatically according to your desires, of course, but also according to the content of the fridge. Once again, once the recipe has been chosen, it is often possible to order the ingredients directly or add them to the shopping list on the smartphone.

In addition, smart refrigerators are also excellent tools for monitoring the condition of food. The cameras embedded inside these devices allow you to monitor the contents of the fridge at any time from your smartphone or computer. So, if you are no longer sure you have enough specific ingredients in stock, you can check directly on your phone from the store.

These smart devices also offer, for the most part, multimedia features dedicated to entertainment. While in the kitchen, the user can watch television, listen to music, or even surf the Internet.

Another, less obvious strength of smart fridges is the potential to save energy. Since the 1970s, the energy consumption of refrigerators has been limited. Today, an average refrigerator consumes about 498 kilowatt-hours per year, compared to 1278 in the 1980s. However, these household appliances still account for 30% of the energy costs of a typical household. However, the temperature of the smart fridges can be controlled in real time. In this way, energy consumption can be significantly reduced.

How to choose a smart fridge?

There are several criteria to consider when choosing a smart fridge. First of all, it is of course necessary to review the features specific to these smart devices. Multimedia content distribution, food monitoring, recipe consultation, online ordering... it is important to evaluate the possibilities offered by each model, and choose those that meet your expectations.

The second criterion to be taken into account concerns the traditional characteristics of fridges. The energy consumption, dimensions, capacity or design of the chosen appliance must correspond to your needs and integrate harmoniously into your home.

Ubiwizz PIR motion detector

While most Enocean sensors and detectors are mainly "battery-free", here is one that announces a 5-year battery life with its CR123A battery.

The "Ubiwizz PIR motion detector" by ID-RF, detects any movement to directly trigger actuators (Micro SmartPlug, recessed lighting module,...) or scenarios through an Enocean compatible hub or gateway. "Associate this detector with a lighting module, and your lights turn on automatically when you go to the garage.

Characteristics of the motion detector

• Power supply: CR123A 3V battery
• Life expectancy: 5 years
• Indoor use
• Mounting: adhesives (included) fixing hooks (included)
• Wireless range: Up to 30 meters
• Detection range: Up to 5 meters
• Sensitivity: from 0 to 1000Lux
• Radio: EnOcean® Protocol
• EEP: A5-07-03
• Dimensions: 65*65*39mm

Installation and configuration of the motion detector

Thanks to its multiple mounting options, you can place it anywhere in your home and customize its settings according to the lighting environment to fully enjoy its use.

Delivered with all accessories, you can place it directly on a flat surface such as a table or piece of furniture, or on a wall with double sided supplied. It will allow you to detect any movement at an angle of 120° and a zone of 5m.

Even more interesting, the detector comes with two metal tabs for ceiling mounting. Just drill a 45mm hole in the plate, and embed the motion sensor as a spot. And if you have a concrete ceiling, you can still fix it with dowels and screws.

The big advantage of this ceiling mounting is that you will get a detection zone from 3m to 2.30m high. Ideal for automatic lighting in areas such as toilets or garages.

Once attached to the desired location, you can pair it in "Standalone" or "Controller" mode. The first mode consists in pairing (associating) your detector with a compatible actuator such as a flush-mounted module, smartplug,...

For the example, here is how to proceed with a Ubiwizz built-in lighting module. Put the module in pairing mode, by clicking 3 times on the "Press" button so that the LED starts to flash.

Depending on the result you want to achieve with your lighting, because the status of the receiver before entering "Learning" mode will define its status when motion is detected. When no movement is detected, the receiver will be in the opposite state.

To validate the association of your detector with the actuator, click on the "Pairing" button. The LED on the light receiver will confirm the pairing by turning off.

When the product is turned on for the first time (or after changing the battery), the detector will enter "Walk Test Mode". For 3 minutes, the LED will blink every time a
movement will be detected. Use this function to check that your lighting turns on when detected and off when you stop moving.

To pair the motion detector with an Enocean controller, USB300/310 key, eedomus, jeedomus, jeedom, or the WizzBox from Ubiwizz, simply listen to it (see instructions for your gateway or compatible App) and press the "Pairing" button so that it is recognized and associated by your gateway.

The PIR Motion Sensor also incorporates a brightness sensor, allowing it to trigger only when a certain brightness threshold is reached. If the ambient light is below the limit set by the potentiometer, an ON or OFF frame will be sent if motion is detected. This function can be disabled by setting the potentiometer to the OFF position. (Default position: OFF).

In use, this motion detector can alert you if movement is detected in a room, or as a trigger for a scenario that will be used for automatic lighting, for example.

In Standalone Mode (directly paired with a receiver), the PIR Motion Detector is able to turn a receiver on or off when motion is detected, it is also able to turn a receiver off or on when no motion is detected.

Typically, if no motion is detected for a certain time, the PIR Motion Detector will automatically send an ON or OFF frame (depending on how it has been paired - see "Learning Procedure"). This time is neither challenging nor "Auto-Off".

Please note that the counter is reset each time a movement is detected.
To set the Auto-Off mode, press the "Pairing" button for 3 sec. The LED will flicker to inform you that you are in "Setup Mode".

Once in the "Setup Mode", press the button once to select the desired Auto-OFF time. Each time the LED is pressed, it will blink a number of times or to confirm the current setting (see table below for details).

An excellent Enocean product that combines all the options useful for your connected home. With an autonomy of about 5 years, and a possibility of recessed ceiling mounting, it will quickly be forgotten while providing you with valuable services on a daily basis.

Top 8 Xiaomi products that help us in the home

Xiaomi has invested in many areas of our lives through the many products it floods into the Chinese market and in turn into our Western markets. The Chinese giant is even succeeding in offering us quality products at more than attractive prices. For once, we're not going to talk about Xiaomi smartphones but about products for the home. We offer you a kind of journey through an imaginary house.

Xiaomi Aqara Smart Door Lock

So let's start with the first element of a dwelling, the front door. Xiaomi offers us an intelligent lock that offers many features to protect your home using the latest technologies in this field. This intelligent lock is linked to all the other products of the Smart Home ecosystem and allows many actions with them.

The main and most attractive feature of the Aqara Smart Door Lock is the variety of door opening and locking options. In fact, there are four options for this and most of them free you from your key ring. First of all, you can use your fingerprints to open the door. This has been tested and proven to be effective. Secondly, you can open the lock using a password that you set yourself. Third, it supports the NFC protocol. So if you use a smartphone, a watch connected with an NFC chip, you can use them to unlock the door. In addition, if you lose your key ring, it is possible to lock the lock via the application. Finally, the door lock can also be opened with a key.

Xiaomi Mijia Smart 720P WiFi IP Camera Pan-tilt Version

Let's get into the apartment. Would you like a camera that can monitor every inch of it with many details? Then the Pan-tilt version of the Xiaomi Mijia camera is for you. This camera is able to rotate horizontally and vertically and zoom in on an object or area. This type of camera is very versatile. The Mijia PTZ (Pan-Tilt-Zoom) camera allows you to control a large area, reduce blind spots and configure different shots to monitor according to your needs. The 10 integrated IR LEDs and the silent motor allow this surveillance camera to silently capture images in night vision up to 9 meters. The µSD card port will allow the storage of images.

Xiaomi Smartmi Pure Evaporative Air Humidifier

Now, let's suppose we just entered the apartment. What about the air quality of our Home Sweet Home? The Xiaomi Smartmi humidifier is a device that purifies the air in your home. The Xiaomi Smartmi electric radiator helps to maintain the air temperature in the house.

The Xiaomi Smartmi Pure evaporative humidifier has many health benefits. It not only refreshes, it also helps us to fight against skin dryness, but also sore throats etc. This product will take care to convert dry air into pleasant and healthy humid air.

Xiaomi Roborock 2-in-1 vacuum cleaner (2nd generation)

After taking care of the air quality of the dwelling, we must take an interest in the cleanliness of the house. This brings us to Xiaomi's robot vacuum cleaner, the Xiaomi Roborock Sweep One is similar in many ways to its predecessor, but it has even more features. The vacuum cleaner is always round and equipped with a laser rangefinder. It also has a number of sensors that help the driver avoid obstacles, choose the most efficient route and quickly find a charging station.

An innovative new feature is its ability to perform wet cleaning. There is room for a water tank that "sprays" the ground with water. This makes it easier to remove dirt. The capacity of the water tank allows for use for 45 to 60 minutes. The 5200 mAh battery can provide an autonomy of 2 hours to 2 hours 30 minutes, which is equivalent to cleaning a 250 m2 room.

Xiaomi lighting system

Now that we are in the house, let's look at lighting. And of course to intelligent lighting. Let's take as an example the Xiaomi Yeelight JIAOYUE 480 LED ceiling light with WiFi / Bluetooth / APP control. It is a circular shaped ceiling light. It is equipped with an RGB light band that produces 16 million colours with a high colour rendering index (CRI) of up to Ra95, creating a museum lighting effect. The dimming system allows flexible adjustment of the brightness according to different situations such as reading, watching television or playing games. The temperature can be adjusted between 2700K and 6500K.

In addition, the Xiaomi Yeelight Jiaoyue 480 LED ceiling light has a moonlight mode that gives the appearance of the moon when it is on, providing warm and comfortable lighting to take care of your eyes. The ceiling light can be controlled by a smartphone via WiFi or Bluetooth via the Mi Home application. It also comes with a Bluetooth remote control that allows you to remotely switch your light on and off without necessarily being in the same room. In addition, an innovative quick-release module allows you to easily lock the lamp in its holder.

Xiaomi TV and Home Theater

Now that the air in our house is healthy and it is clean and well lit, let's watch a movie or listen to music. Now the Xiaomi TVs and the sound system come into play. Xiaomi offers different TVs in different sizes: 33 inches, 43 inches and so on. And they are good products. For example, the Xiaomi Mi TV 4A comes with a Cortex-A53 Amlogic T962 four-core processor running at 750 MHz and operating at a frequency of 1.5 GHz. It also features a Mali-450 MP5 GPU that provides a high quality image. It comes with 2GB of dual-channel DDR4 RAM and 8GB of internal storage, which should be enough. It is possible to combine TV with a "Home Cinema" for better sound quality.

Xiaomi Power Strip Socket

All these devices need to be electrically connected. A power strip will help us to optimize the connections. Xiaomi offers different power outlets ranging from 3 to 6 outlets with or without USB charging port.

Xiaomi Aqara Smart Bedroom Kit

Okay, let's move on to the bedroom now, since we had a great time in the living room. The Xiaomi Aqara Smart Bedroom Kit is a kit that allows users to control smart gadgets in the home such as an air conditioner for example. This kit is composed of 6 different gadgets, including 1 for the air conditioner, 1 temperature and humidity sensor, 1 motion sensor, 1 wall socket, 1 wall switch, 2 wireless switches. With these devices, you will succeed in creating a perfect smart home.

There are many other Xiaomi products dedicated to the home, this is just a glimpse, it's up to you to discover them.

Philips hue white and color starter kit review

Philips' hue range has become the must-have for connected lighting. With a very complete range, both inside and out, Philips was able to convince by the quality of its products, but also by the functionalities they integrate!

In this article, we discover the Starter Kit Hue White and color so keep your eyes open (not too much, you might be dazzled)!

Presentation

The Philips Starter Kit is sold in a colorful box. It presents a lot of information, such as possibilities or power.

Inside, we also have many devices:

• 3 Bulbs Hue White and Color
• A Wifi and Zigbee Hub
• A wireless remote control

Philips has chosen to use the Zigbee protocol for its Hue products. You will therefore need a Hub (included in this pack) to be able to control your bulbs with your phone.

The advantage of Zigbee over WiFi is that it consumes much less and is a mesh network. The other devices can therefore be used as repeaters.

But the disadvantage (even if he's not really one) is that you need a gateway. An additional device to integrate into our house, you might say. Yes, but the latter hardly consumes any power (about 1.6 W) and its design is quite convincing.

The included remote control is quite good. Its design is in the image of the Hub, very modern, and it can be fixed to the wall like a switch. The big positive point of this remote control is that by fixing the bracket to the wall, you can still take it elsewhere because it has a magnetic fixing! Extremely practical (well done Philips!)

Installation

The installation of Philips Hue bulbs is very simple. First, connect your Ethernet Hub to your router and power it with the included power cable.

Then download the Android or iOS "Hue" application. The latter will serve as a control center to control all your equipment.

First, the application will search for your Hub. So make sure you have connected it to the network that broadcasts the WiFi you use on your phone.

Once the HUB has been found, updates may take place. Don't worry, these are not too long 😉

Once this is done, you can start creating your first piece! Inside you can configure its name but also the devices that compose it.

And that's all! When your part is created, you have immediate access to the associated bulbs.

The Bulbs

What are the Hue bulbs worth? What do they have more than RGB bulbs from other brands? Well, they're very good! The customization of the whites (either warm white or cool white) is incredible, you can move from one atmosphere to another in no time and the IRC is really very good (especially in cold whites)! To adjust the white you want, simply move the bulb on the wheel and choose the shade you want.

On the top right, you also have the color wheel to choose from 16 million colors! Very intuitive, the application allows you to easily create an atmosphere that suits you. No need to exit the interface to choose the color of another bulb! All those present in the room can be adjusted at the same time! It's very practical and very intuitive.

It is also possible to choose predefined scenes, such as sunset or playback, but also to create them! Very useful when you have found a color/ambiance that you like and want to apply it with a single click without having to do it again next time.

It is also possible to choose predefined scenes, such as sunset or playback, but also to create them! Very useful when you have found a color/ambiance that you like and want to apply it with a single click without having to do it again next time.

But also the leisure space! This last one is a little jewel signed Philips and which makes it possible to synchronize your bulbs with multimedia content! Whether it's a photo, a video, a game or music, your bulbs will adapt either to the colors of the screen or to the rhythm of the music!

The image synchronization feature is very useful because it gives a real atmosphere when watching a movie. The piece will then take on the hue of the scene environment and the immersion will be total.

There are several ways to have this: A Philips TV compatible with Hue Sync, or a computer. Being complete and interesting, we will develop this feature in another article 😉

Conclusion

Philips Hue bulbs are very, very good. Probably the best RGB bulbs on the market today. The colors are rich and the customization of the color temperature of the whites offers great possibilities to change the atmosphere of the room.

The application is very intuitive and full of features and Hue Sync which allows you to synchronize your lighting with multimedia content promises great things!

Hue bulbs are certainly at a rather high price, but the promise is there: Beautiful, bright, colorful and incredibly connected.

Aqara 1080P IP camera

I have already told you on the site about several Aqara brand devices: wireless switch, opening detector, etc. So far I have always been satisfied with the products of this brand, which offer a very good price/quality ratio and great ease of use. So it was only natural that I wanted to test the IP camera from Aqara. I asked my partner GearBest to get a model in test. Of course, as usual, this test was not paid for. Here is my review on this Aqara 1080P IP camera.

Features of the Aqara 1080P IP Camera

• Brand: Aqara
• Definition: 1080P
• Viewing angle: 180°.
• Connectivity: WiFi (802.11 b / g / n 2.4 GHz)
• Night vision
• Motion detection
• MicroSD slot
• Gateway function with Aqara equipment
• Power supply via microUSB port (5V 1A charger)

Testing the camera

It is now time to test this camera itself, to see if it is the deal of the century or not. And yes, we must remember: it is only sold for about forty euros!

Buy the Aqara IP camera

If my test convinced you (you are not very demanding... 😀), then you will find this camera at GearBest around 40€. And, if you are looking for an IP camera but this one doesn't suit you, then you can look here and there for better quality cameras!

Xiaomi Aqara: Build a smarter home

The Asian giant, Xiaomi, is in constant personal evolution by its services, increasingly covering more and more aspects of daily life of users. Showing us a wide repertoire of options, each with its own charms, adapting incredibly, improving and facilitating the most tedious tasks of the home, such as sweeping, we have the Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacumm, a robot vacuum cleaner that is on offer. Looking a little deeper, brushing our teeth is now a revolution, with the Soocas X3 Sonic, an intelligent toothbrush. With all the above presented we have a new line that will debut in the market, it's time to know the products Xiaomi Aqara.

The Xiaomi Aqara products are a new line focused on various aspects of the home, offering us a more sophisticated, futuristic and innovative life. The products Xiaomi Aqara for now most are in pre-sale, being a total of 7, very likely this number will increase over time, but for now we will focus on each of them, to know them thoroughly.

Xiaomi Aqara: Temperature and humidity sensor

The Xiaomi Aqara temperature and humidity sensor has a nice, simple but elegant design. It has dimensions of: 3.60 x 3.60 x 0.90 cm and a weight of: 0.011 kg, so it is quite small, only available in white. It is made of plastic, in the center we can see the figure of a thermometer, below is a small LED that lights green and at the top we have a single button to turn it on and off. Leaving it pressed for a few seconds this will get ready to synchronize with our Smartphone.

We can synchronize it with our Smartphone through the Xiaomi Home application, which we can download from the Apple Store or the Google Play store. Its function is simple but practical, depending on where we locate the will be responsible for detecting temperature levels and humidity, if we have other devices linked to the Xiaomi Home, such as an air conditioner or heater, this will automatically send a signal depending on whether to cool or heat the place.

Xiaomi Aqara: Light control

The Xiaomi Aqara light control is a white device with dimensions of: 8.50 x 8.50 x 4.20 cm and a weight of: 0.123 kg. It comes in 2 versions, a single button and 2 buttons, the difference between the two is minimal so either of the 2 will serve us quite well. The Xiaomi Aqara light control is an intelligent switch that we must connect to the wiring of the bulb or lamp we want to control, once this is done we will proceed to turn it on to synchronize it with our Smartphone through the application of Xiaomi Home.

Xiaomi Aqara: Door and Window Sensor

The Xiaomi Aqara sensor for door and window is a device that comes in pair, are white with dimensions of: 4.10 x 2.20 x 1.10 cm and a weight of: 0.015 kg. It has a slightly rounded design and has a small LED on the front that indicates that it is on. It is easy to install as it comes with stickers that allow us to adhere it on both a door and a window, each one goes at one end and detect when the door or window opens.

Xiaomi Aqara: Wireless Switch

The Xiaomi Aqara wireless switch is designed to be a comfortable device, easy to use and practical. It has slightly rounded edges, a classic in Aqara products, maintains the typical white color, has dimensions of: 4.20 x 4.20 x 1.20 cm and a weight of: 0.018 kg. Its function is clearly oriented to synchronization with other devices, we must download the Xiaomi Home application to synchronize it with our Smartphone, from there we can synchronize it with other devices, allowing us to turn them on or off through it, just pressing the button in the center.

Xiaomi Aqara: Intelligent Curtain Motor

The Xiaomi Aqara intelligent curtain motor has a very elegant design, being completely white, with dimensions of: 26.70 x 7.00 x 5.00 cm and a weight of: 1,301 kg. Its function is dedicated to provide a more pleasant experience in our home, controlling the open or close our curtains, we can do this remotely through our Smartphone, synchronizing with the application Xiaomi Home.

What are the advantages of a smart lock?

While some smart things seem to have a very relative usefulness, others are immediately popular for their practicality. This is the case with smart locks, which allow us to open our doors without using a physical key. They communicate via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth to an application, so it is our smartphone that will serve as the key.  There are many advantages, which is why many manufacturers now offer this type of system.

A practical accessory

The main advantage is obviously practical. No need to have a key with you, and no need to use your hands to unlock a door. If you very often lose your keys at the bottom of your bag, or forget them at work, but never leave your smartphone lying around, then a smart lock will necessarily be beneficial to you. We always save a little time, and it is obviously comfortable, especially in winter, not to have to look for the keyhole with our frozen fingers.

More security

While initially, the smart locks were not unanimously accepted due to some security problems, we can only note today the evolution and increasingly effective levels of protection offered by manufacturers. The key is now digital, so it only exists in your smartphone and those who will have the application with your codes.

Even if you have the smartphone stolen, and the thief knows your address, he will have to unlock your smartphone, or even unlock the application, depending on our settings. If he can find your codes, then you can always go to the Internet, and change the opening codes to make your smartphone application obsolete.

There is still the question of connections. Are they perfectly secure? Is there a risk of piracy? I would tell you that there is obviously no such thing as zero risk, but the burglar would have to be particularly well equipped. Indeed, manufacturers obviously take the subject of security very seriously, and we find on this type of lock the same encrypted data as for some safes. In other words, it will take a genius to open your door, traditional lock pickers are far more numerous than hackers with such capabilities.

It should also be noted that some models are equipped with a keypad or fingerprint scanner to further enhance the security of your lock.

A more user-friendly system

Indeed, anyone can download the application, and simply give the security code so that someone close to you can enter your home. No need to move to leave the key to a friend or craftsman for example, just give him the name of the application to download, and the entry code. You do not need to duplicate physical keys, and change locks if you lose one.

Indeed, you will be able to change the code as soon as you want, and thus lock access to those who had the digital key until then. It is even possible to restrict access to certain digital keys to a time slot. This will allow the cleaning woman to open during working hours, for example, while preventing her from returning home at night. In short, you will have absolute control over the keys, which makes it very convenient to use.

Activity control

The smart lock will send to your application the activity it undergoes during a day. You can be informed when she comes home. It's pretty good to make sure your kids get home after school... Even if they can obviously go out the window afterwards....

Some locks will also send you a notification if someone tries to force it. You can then notify the police forces for an intervention, or quickly get to the scene. If a theft is committed using a digital key, then you will know which key it is. In short, it is also very reassuring, and there are many uses.

Aqara HomeKit-Hub: Detailed information available, EU version to be released in October

The Xiaomi subsidiary Aqara is putting a lot of effort into HomeKit products. We have already been able to provide you with a first look at the extensive product portfolio of the Chinese manufacturer; now, for the first time, detailed English-language information on the Aqara Hub, the central HomeKit component of the system, is available.

We were already able to inform you about the sales launch of the device at the China shippers. But it's still a bit late until the EU version starts, if everything works out, Aqara wants to start selling the device in October.

Once connected to the HomeKit setup, the hub can manage up to 32 Zigbee-connected Smart home components from the manufacturer. The devices will then be available in Apple's Home App and any other HomeKit compatible app. Aqara attaches importance to the fact that the system is fully integrated into HomeKit and thus also bound to Apple's Honey security standards.

On the new website, the manufacturer also gives an insight into the technical details. The hub is equipped with a loudspeaker and an LED night light module. The connection to HomeKit is realized via 2.4 GHz WLAN. In addition, the CE certification has already been granted and therefore nothing should stand in the way of a sales launch in this country, at least in terms of approval.

The Aqara system is particularly interesting because of its versatile components, which are already available at extremely low prices not only in China, but also in Germany. Of course, it remains to be seen to what extent this will change with the official market launch of the devices in Europe.