I’ve been a fan of SwitchBot for a few years now. They make some fun and unique smart home products. One of my favorites is the SwitchBot button pusher. It’s an easy way to make anything “smart” without needing to modify it at all. At the heart of SwitchBot is its Hub ecosystem, though. The SwitchBot Hub Mini is a great place to start, now including Matter support.
HomeKit Weekly is a series focused on smart home accessories, automation tips and tricks, and everything to do with Apple’s smart home framework.
Installation process for SwitchBot Hub Mini
Once you pair the SwitchBot Hub Mini inside the SwitchBot app, you can start adding your other SwitchBot devices. One thing that I learned from trial and error is that the SwitchBot ecosystem doesn’t always bring over the names of your products from the SwitchBot app correctly, so if you’re planning to bring over a few devices from SwitchBot into HomeKit, I would recommend adding them one by one so it’s easier to keep track of.
Adding the Hub to HomeKit is dead simple as it includes a Matter code on its side. Once you scan it within the Home app, you’ll assign it to a room and permit it to add new devices to HomeKit. You can then go back to the SwitchBot app and start adding your devices. Once they’re added into the SwitchBot ecosystem, they should appear in HomeKit as well. Some devices (vacuums) aren’t yet supported in HomeKit, so they’ll appear as an off/on switch. Other items like your SwitchBot curtain opener should then show up in HomeKit so you can work them into automations and scenes and monitor the status.
My favorite SwitchBot accessories
As I mentioned at the beginning, I am a big fan of the entire SwitchBot ecosystem. The SwitchBot outlet adaptor is an easy and low cost way to bridge some traditional appliances into HomeKit and your smart home setup.
If you have traditional blinds in your home, I really like the Blind Tilt product from Switchbot. It’s an easy way to automate your blinds without installing smart home native ones.
Finally, I also really like the one-touch button from SwitchBot. If you already have some of the products, a physical button is an easy way to control them when your iPhone isn’t near you.
Wrap up on SwitchBot Hub Mini
The SwitchBot Hub Mini is a simple device, but it can do a lot. My focus here was how it can bridge smart home products from SwitchBot into HomeKit via Matter, but it can do a lot more. The SwitchBot Hub Mini can learn and replicate signals from infrared remote controls, allowing you to consolidate control of multiple devices into a single app. This functionality simplifies managing your home electronics, enabling you to operate TVs, air conditioners, and other devices from one centralized platform.
You can buy the SwitchBot Hub Mini from Amazon, and check out all of SwitchBot’s products as well
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