Uploaded October 2018 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
NOTE: Thanks to Aqara for providing me this early access demo kit!
Asian Smarthome Vendor Aqara is releasing a new line of SmartHome products focused with Apple Homekit support. I was lucky enough to have Aqara send me some gear to look at and I have to say I'm really impressed. Aqara took their requiremnet of having a zigbee based bridge and made it an advantage of their system by building it into a combination nightlight and alarm with multiple sound choices. There are various zigbee based accessories which the Aqara hub supports and we'll be posting additional videos over the next few weeks as we get a chance to work with the Aqara Smart Home system.
If you're interested in making your house a little smarter using Apple Homekit, please check out my udemy course with this discount code:
udemy.com/smarter-homes-home-automation-with-apple-homekit/?couponCode=YT_BLOWOUT1
NOTE: Thanks to Aqara for providing me this early access demo kit!
Asian Smarthome Vendor Aqara is releasing a new line of SmartHome products focused with Apple Homekit support. I was lucky enough to have Aqara send me some gear to look at and I have to say I'm really impressed. Aqara took their requiremnet of having a zigbee based bridge and made it an advantage of their system by building it into a combination nightlight and alarm with multiple sound choices. There are various zigbee based accessories which the Aqara hub supports and we'll be posting additional videos over the next few weeks as we get a chance to work with the Aqara Smart Home system.
If you're interested in making your house a little smarter using Apple Homekit, please check out my udemy course with this discount code:
udemy.com/smarter-homes-home-automation-with-apple-homekit/?couponCode=YT_BLOWOUT1
![Smarthome Planning and Projects [2021Edition]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/XQ60fdJHeSQ/mqdefault.jpg "Smarthome Planning and Projects [2021Edition]
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If youre interested in adding some new devices to your smarthome, please consider using my Amazon.com shop as a starting point https://www.amazon.com/shop/netmanchris
2021 is a New Year and after the dumpster fire that was 2020, Im looking forward to working on my Smarthome and focusing on projects that help the house take care of the people who live here and visit.
My projects for 2021
1) Healthy Lighting
With the extra time at home during 2020, one of my focus areas was improving my health, starting with my sleep. After spending a lot of time reading ( I highly recommend the book Why we sleep by Matthew Walker Phd ( affiliates link https://geni.us/hkgwhywesleep ) Ive become a little obsessed with making sure that my family and I get the right amount and type of light at the right time of day.
Smart lighting can definitely help with keeping sure your circadian rhythms in line. Basically it means that it will reset your body clock and help to make sure you get sleepy at the right time of day.
Apples Adaptive lighting was supposed to be a step in this direction, but unfortunately, it fell short of expectation.
Apple Adaptive Lighting Explained - https://youtu.be/Ra4Svk4Go1o
On the bright side, Ive been running the beta of Follow the Sun by developer Matt Corey ( https://www.homemadeautomation.com ) which has some me seeing some light at the end of this tunnel ( see what I did there!!! )
Follow the Sun macOS App - https://homemadeautomation.wordpress.com/2021/01/08/fts-coming-soon/
2) Air Quality
2020 has taught us the importance of air quality and making sure you take care of what goes in your lungs. Fortunately, 2020 has also been a great year for Homekit enabled smart devices which help to take care of your environment. For more on some of these devices check out these reviews
Rio Arc Electric Heater - https://youtu.be/ZXKe_ZhtJYc
Vocolinc PureFlow Air Purifier - https://youtu.be/vwqk2NwHbIk
Using my Awair Air sensors as my main feedback loop, Im going to continue to work towards having the house always working towards keeping the air fresh for everyone in the house.
3) Intentional Design
As my Smarthome has matured, Ive realized that much of it was put together with what I politely call organic growth. 2021 is going to be the year of re-designing my smarthome with intention. A place for everything and everything in its place. Im still working on the actual requirements, but I be documenting the whole process and really looking forward to sharing the journey with all of you.
4) Electricity Reduction
Ive had the sense.com electrical sensing system now for a couple of years. Although the device is great, what Ive realized is that you need to feed it with additional devices to be able to really get the most out of it. Smartplugs with electrical sensing always feel like half a solution to me as the graphing and data analysis piece always feels half-baked. By combining TP-Kasa HS300 power sensing power strips with the Sense platform, Ive getting close to identifying the great majority of the electrical draw in my house. Now that I know whats there, the plan is to start figuring out whats drawing power when it shouldnt be and shutting it down.
Those are the four big projects for me for 2021. Its ambitious and will take up most of the year but Im really hoping to be able to make a dent on all four of these by the time that Santa jumps back in his sled.
If you want to let me know what youre working on in 2021, Id love to hear about it in the comments!
#homekit #smarthome #projects")
