Apple’s HomeKit partner list has grown considerably today
- jan
- 07
For a company that doesn't do CES, Apple is making quite a splash here this year.
Being able to control your smart home tech through HomeKit is amazing, but the list of available options isn't exactly massive. The biggest reason for this is privacy, Apple has an especially strict list of expectations a smart home gadgte needs to meet in order to be allowed into this ecosystem. This focus on delivering a quality, trustworthy experience helps ensure consistency but it doesn't quickly fill the shelves with options.
During CES, Apple has unveiled products from seven companies which are either available to purchase now or will be available soon to add to your HomeKit experience. Here are a few thoughts on each, and how to grab them up for yourself!
Nanoleaf Canvas - Available Now
Versatility and visual appeal make the Nanoleaf Canvas light system truly special. You should check out Lory Gil's review of these lights, if you haven't already.
On top of stellar standalone controls and a clever app of its own, you will now be able to control brightness, scenes, animations, and more right through HomeKit out of the box.
ConnectSense In-Wall Smart Outlet - Available first half of 2019
This HomeKit-enabled outlet completely replaces your existing outlet, adding a pair of USB ports and giving you access to quite a bit in the way of features. Voice-activated on/off through Siri, data on how much power is being used through that outlet, and the ability to set scheduled and limitations based on time of day and power consumed is more than enough reason to consider making the upgrade to something a little smarter.
ConnectSense Smart Outlet 2 - Available Now
Don't want to replace your outlets but still want the smarter features contained within? You can plug this into your wall outlet and gain the ability to control anything you plug into it. It sticks out of the wall a little, so won't be ideal for every room of the house, but makes anything you connect to it a little bit smarter which is nice.
Netatmo Smart Video Doorbell
Unlike most smart doorbells, which focus on cloud processing and storage with extra fees for premium features, the folks at Netatmo have made a smart video doorbell with local processing for activity detection and local removable storage.
You can pull the microSD card out of this camera to store your video permanently on your own machine, and no one but you will have ever had access to it, which is great.
Netatmo Smart Indoor Air Quality Monitor
It's not always possible to mount smart home hardware everywhere, especially if you live in an apartment.
Netatmo has been making indoor camera tech friendly for every space already, and the new Smart Indoor Air Quality Monitor makes it possible to place multiple sensors throughout your space to ensure you're both well protected but also delivering a clearer picture of the temperature in your space for a connected thermometer to work with.
Kwikset Premis - Available Now
Physical keys can be a pain, especially if your arms are full. As cool as it might be to use your phone to unlock your doors, sometimes it's helpful to just have a pin pad to quickly punch in a code.
The Kwikset Premis lock gives you all of the above, a physical keyhole for your deadbolt sits below a touch-friendly pin pad. And if you're not interested in using either of those things, you can use the app to unlock your phone. Best of all, Premis is HomeKit enabled, so you can say "Hey Siri, lock the front door" and know you're safe at night.
Belking WeMo Light Switch - Available Spring/Summer 2019
You don't need Smart Bulbs to have Smart Lights, especially with Belkin's new WeMo Light Switch.
This panel replaces your existing light switch with a clever touch panel for flipping the lights on and off, and even comes in a three-way option for rooms with more than one switch for the same light. But if you don't want to use your fingers, you can use HomeKit and Siri to do the heavy lifting for you!
Eve Light Strip
Boasting a clever triple-diode tech and an equally impressive 1800 lumens of brightness, these two meter LED strips give you the ability to light up your world and also have some fun with pretty colors when the time is right.
And with HomeKit support, those colors can be summoned with little more than your voice.
Eve Power Strip
This three-port strip not only looks nice and offers surge protection, but allows you to label each port on the switch and control them individually.
That way you can control a simple light, power a coffee maker, or fire up an entertainment center with a quick tap or voice command.
Mighton Avia Secure Smart Lock - Available May 2019
We don't hear much about UK-friendly smart locks, and Mighton wants to change that. The Avia Secure Smart Lock is designed for the multi-point locking system used in the UK and have been accredited by 'Secured by Design' - the official UK Police. This system is designed to look like a regular lock on the outside, so you can use it with any door and not worry about it looking out of place. On the inside, however, you will find an intelligent locking mechanism that allows you to not only lock the door remotely but grant access to friends and neighbors via a virtual key system in the Mighton app. And, being HomeKit ready, the lock is fully integrated with the rest of your Apple Home experience.
GE C-Reach Hub - Available Q2 2019
Adding HomeKit support to new and existing C by GE bulbs just got super easy. All you need to do is add the C-Reach Hub, and it will do the talking to HomeKit. Lights controlled through Apple Home will work the same way it would through the normal GE app, and the company promises more HomeKit-friendly products in this brand will be rolling out over the course of the year.