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Shmuco

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 21, 2010
33
0
So I have Phillips hue and I love it. Im eating to get a motion sensor to control them and I was looking for the cheapest HomeKit compatible motion sensor and I came across the Aqara Human Body sensor which seems perfect. However, after doing some reasrech it transpires I need to buy there hub for it to work.
This got me thinking. Do I need to buy a hub for every device I buy if they are not from the same company? and if so, this is crazy my house will be filled with Hubs.

I think this is a massive flaw in HomeKit.

Whats everyones thoughts or suggestions on how I can work around this.
 
Last edited:

Itinj24

Contributor
Nov 8, 2017
4,590
2,632
New York
So I have Phillips hue and I love it. Im eating to get a motion sensor to control them and I was looking for the cheapest HomeKit compatible motion sensor and I came across the Aqara Human Body sensor which seems perfect. However, after doing some reasrech it transpires I need to buy there hub for it to work.
This got me thinking. Do I need to buy a hub for every device I buy if they are not from the same company? and if so, this is crazy my house will be filled with Hubs.

I think this is a massive flaw in HomeKit.

Whats everyones thoughts or suggestions on how I can work around this.
Why not just get the Hue Motion sensors since you already have the Hub? Not everything needs a hub though. I believe the Eve and Fibaro stuff doesn’t but those are more expensive. I have a few Hue Motion sensors and a few of the Aqara Motion sensors and door and window sensors. The Aqara hub is actually more than just a Hub. It can be used as an alarm system and a nightlight. The accessories for them are nicely priced and there’s a nice variety. If you could splurge for an Aqara Hub, I would go that route. Not everything needs a Hub though.
 
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Bgosh

macrumors member
Nov 17, 2016
40
20
Las Vegas
If you're not intimidated by a DIY approach, a lot of folks use homebridge as a solution. You can load a variety of plugins to a small computer like Raspberry Pi that acts as a universal hub of sorts. It would allow you to connect some unsupported devices as well. There is a ton of documentation on setting up homebridge. Alexa supports more devices so if having some hubs is a deal breaker you might want to invest in that ecosystem. There are devices that require a hub regardless of whether its HomeKit, Alexa or google home, so in some instances its unavoidable.
 

waw74

macrumors 601
May 27, 2008
4,787
1,018
you may or may not needs more hubs. And needing a hub is not a homekit problem.
A hub just allows devices to connect to talk to other things. Normally a connection between your home network, and smart devices.

some devices won't need a hub, like lifx bulbs, since they speak wifi

some devices don't have the hardware to "speak" wi-fi, so those will need a hub in order to control them remotely

some hubs talk the same language as others, like hue bulbs, and the Ikea smart bulbs.
it takes a little tweaking, but the same hub can talk to both.


And if you really get technical, the life bulbs also use a hub.
The same hub used by your laptop and phones.
your router.


====

homebridge won't help with the need for hubs.

if a device can't connect to your home network, then homebridge has no way to connect and control the devices.
 

Bgosh

macrumors member
Nov 17, 2016
40
20
Las Vegas
homebridge won't help with the need for hubs.

if a device can't connect to your home network, then homebridge has no way to connect and control the devices.
You’re correct about the different protocols requiring a hub to connect to the internet, but homebridge would help with devices that connect to WiFi that require a hub or bridge to connect to HomeKit specifically right? Like WeMo for example.
 

waw74

macrumors 601
May 27, 2008
4,787
1,018
You’re correct about the different protocols requiring a hub to connect to the internet, but homebridge would help with devices that connect to WiFi that require a hub or bridge to connect to HomeKit specifically right? Like WeMo for example.

yes.

with a couple things to keep in mind
- The settings and functionally may differ from native hub to homebridge. (could be a plus or minus depending on which way it goes)
- The native hub will probably be easier to set up for the less technically inclined
- homebridge isn't supported by apple, and there's always the chance they could "flip a switch" and kill it.
 
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bbednarz

macrumors 65816
Nov 16, 2017
1,416
3,749
Chicago
Hubs are not a HomeKit flaw and really have nothing to do with HomeKit. There are plenty of hub-less HomeKit devices. I prefer the hub because I like to know every device that is on my network. If each of my bulbs/smart home accessories needed to connect separately it would be a pain to manage. An easy solution is to grab a cheap ethernet switch and just connect all your hubs to that and keep it out of sight. That's essentially what I do.
 
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