March was a big one. Light + Building came and went, and the industry showed up with plenty to talk about. Here's what stood out...

1Home at Light + Building 2026

This year's Light + Building was our best yet - and the booth traffic reflected it. Throughout the week, visitors came to explore the 1Home App and Dashboard, but the real draw was 1Home Touch, making its first ever public appearance. The reception spoke for itself.

It's worth remembering that two years ago at L+B 2024, we had one product to show. The ground covered since then was on full display in Frankfurt, and of course there's more to come. Thank you to everyone who stopped by, shared their thoughts, and made this year's L+B one to remember. See you in 2027.

Get a real picture of what the Light + Building '26 at 1Home booth really looked like:

Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, 1Home Server Family, 1Home Touch

Matter 1.5.1 Is Out - and Cameras Are the Focus

The CSA released Matter 1.5.1 at the end of March, building on the camera support introduced in 1.5. The key addition is multi-stream video delivery - cameras can now serve different quality streams simultaneously for recording, mobile viewing, and AI processing. Also included: HEIC snapshot support, better pan-tilt-zoom handling, and more flexibility for doorbell chimes.

Read more

Our Friend Torben Stopped by the Booth at L+B

Always great to see a familiar face on the show floor! Torben swung by our booth during his Light + Building tour and got a closer look at the System Manager and the new features coming to the 1Home Server Pro. He walked through the built-in bus monitor, the diagram function for visualising measurements in the dashboard, and the Lua scripting in the automation editor - including a fun example of pulling live weather data and pushing it into KNX. Worth a watch.

You've Been Placing Your Motion Sensors Wrong This Whole Time

Turns out the instinct to point a PIR sensor straight at the room is exactly backwards. These sensors are far more responsive when movement crosses their field of view rather than approaches head-on - a small placement tweak that can make your automations feel noticeably snappier. Worth a read before your next install.

Read more

Shelly Goes Big at Light + Building

Shelly arrived in Frankfurt with a serious lineup - new smart switches, dimmers, wall displays, energy monitors, circuit breakers, and more. A strong showing that signals they mean business in both residential and professional building automation.

Discover more

WAGO Steps Into the Smart Home Arena with Matter

One of the most unexpected announcements of the month: WAGO - yes, the terminal block company - launched a full family of eight Matter-certified actuators under the WAGO Home Automation brand. Relays, a blind controller, a dimmer, available in both Matter over Wi-Fi and Thread. Aimed squarely at professionals, launching in May across German-speaking markets.

Continue reading

A Serious Security Warning for UniFi Users

A maximum-severity vulnerability (CVSS 10.0) was found in the Ubiquiti UniFi Network Application, allowing unauthenticated attackers with network access to take over user accounts. Patches are out - if you haven't updated to version 10.1.89 or later yet, stop reading this and do it now.

Read more

IKEA Quietly Fixes What Was Quietly Broken

A new Dirigera Hub firmware update (v2.934.0) rolled out this month, addressing connection issues that had been quietly plaguing a number of IKEA's newer Matter devices. Not a flashy announcement - but for anyone who's been scratching their head over dropped connections, a welcome one.

Discover more

Aqara Reinvents the Contact Sensor

The new P100 Multi-State Sensor throws out the classic two-piece magnet-and-body design and replaces it with a single unit packing a full nine-axis sensor inside. It handles door and window monitoring, but also switches into a "Valuables Protection" mode - tracking vibration, tilting, and movement. Matter over Thread and Zigbee supported, two-year battery life claimed.

Find out more

The First Matter-Certified Camera Is Here - And It's From Aqara

The G350 is a notable milestone: Aqara claims it's the first camera to achieve Matter certification. Beyond the headline, it's a genuinely impressive device - 4K wide-angle, 2.5K telephoto, 9x hybrid zoom, full 360° pan-tilt, AI tracking, and it doubles as a Zigbee and Matter hub. Available now at $140.

Read more

Hager Merges Berker Into Its Brand and Launches a Matter Switch Range

Hager unveiled a new modular switch and socket system at L+B - launching in May across Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Austria - with native Matter connectivity built in. Four design lines, compatibility with existing KNX setups, and the notable side note that the long-standing Berker brand is being folded into Hager as part of the rebrand.

Continue reading

And that's a wrap on a very eventful March.

Thanks for reading along, more coming soon!

Preparations for Light + Building 2026 are in full swing, but of course we took a moment to quickly share some of last month’s news with you...

Secure your free L+B '26 ticket here: https://www.1home.io/light-and-building

Aqara U400 review: UWB home key will be hard to beat

Let's start things off with Aqara's new launch of  U400 smart lock, which is the first smart lock to support Ultra‑Wideband Home Key for automatic unlocking with compatible Apple devices. It also includes fingerprint, passcode, and key access, and integrates with Apple Home and Matter.

Find out more

Tedee Enables Matter on Its Smart Locks

Tedee has started rolling out Matter support for its GO series smart locks, enabling local integration with Apple Home, Google Home, Alexa, and SmartThings. The update is gradually reaching users and requires the latest firmware and a Thread Border Router.

Discover more

IKEA’s latest Matter-compatible smart home gadget has been leaked - here's all you need to know

IKEA’s next Matter‑compatible smart home device, the Dubbelkisel Driver, has been leaked. It’s intended to control built‑in lighting like LED strips, though the company has not yet shared any official release information.

Read more

Symcon: New Matter Controller From Germany

Symcon is adding a Matter Controller in its upcoming 9.0 release, allowing users to manage Matter devices like lights and sensors directly within its platform.

Continue reading

That's all for this month's digest.

Thanks for reading with us, we're excited to see you at L+B in Frankfurt!

With so much going on lately, December’s digest slipped by us. To make up for it, this month’s edition is packed with even more updates, combining the highlights from both December and January. Enjoy the read!

Let's tackle December first:

Torben Ledermann covers the launch of 1Home Touch

In the latest edition of KNX News, a YouTube series from Torben Ledermann, he discussed insights into the new 1Home Touch, followed by more KNX news. The coverage wraps up with highlights from the KNX community and other notable news in home automation.

Learn more about 1Home Touch

Sweden’s Super-Small Hi-Res Streamer: Bring Sonos-like Power to Any Speaker

The Atonemo Streamplayer, a new compact device from Sweden, is about to revolutionize how you experience your music at home. Announced in early 2025 and set to launch in December, this tiny Hi-Res streamer adds wireless streaming and multi-room audio features to nearly any powered speaker or Hi-Fi system.

Read more here

“The local-first rebellion”: How Home Assistant became the most important project in your house

Home Assistant’s journey is the story of a modern rebellion: fed up with smart home devices tied to unreliable clouds, privacy concerns, and forced obsolescence, an open-source project set out to put control back in the hands of users. Rather than relying on external servers, Home Assistant runs locally, meaning your smart home keeps working even when the internet doesn’t.

Discover more

Having said that, Home Assistant doesn't come perfect...

4 Uncomfortable Truths About Home Assistant

Platform for smart home enthusiasts who love tinkering, but the journey isn’t without its bumps. This article highlights four hard truths that every Home Assistant fan faces. Devices may misbehave for no apparent reason, with once-working automations breaking overnight. Hours can vanish troubleshooting cryptic integration failures, obscure firmware bugs, or “ghost” sensor problems.

Discover more

Samsung SmartThings Gets Matter 1.5 Update - Great News for Security Cameras

Samsung SmartThings has rolled out the latest Matter 1.5 update, bringing an exciting upgrade for smart home security. With this update, SmartThings now supports a wider range of security cameras, making it easier to connect different brands and models via the universal Matter standard. Homeowners can benefit from improved compatibility, streamlined automations, and a more secure smart home experience.

Get the details

January was also full of releases!

Aqara Unveils Five New Products at CES 2026

Aqara made a splash at CES 2026 by introducing five innovative new smart home products. Among the highlights are upgraded sensors, advanced controllers, and fresh solutions for home automation enthusiasts. The lineup includes devices designed to work across popular ecosystems, offering improved integration with platforms like Apple HomeKit and Matter.

Discover more

What stood out the most to us was the release of of the FP400 mmWave sensor

This device not only tracks motion but also keeps tabs on air quality, humidity, and temperature. It’s built to work seamlessly with popular smart home ecosystems, helping you automate routines and receive alerts when something’s amiss.

Keep reading

At CES 2026, Govee Rethinks What Smart Lighting Should Actually Do

At CES 2026, Govee unveiled a bold new vision for smart lighting, moving beyond simple color changes and automations. The latest products emphasize interaction, adapting dynamically to activities, moods, and the environment. Govee’s new lineup includes lighting solutions that react to music, shift with weather changes, and even integrate with fitness routines or home security setups.

Read more

SwitchBot Launches Its AI-Centric Matter Home Hub

SwitchBot has just announced its latest smart home innovation: an AI-powered Matter Home Hub. Designed to streamline device management and automations, this hub leverages artificial intelligence to learn your habits and optimize your smart home experience. With support for the Matter standard, it works seamlessly with a wide variety of devices across different ecosystems.

Discover more

Marshall’s New Heddon Hub Adds Multi-Room Audio with Auracast

Marshall has introduced the Heddon Hub, a powerful new device designed to bring multi-room audio to its speakers using the Auracast standard. With this hub, Marshall owners can easily stream music throughout their home - syncing sound across different rooms and managing playback through one central system.

Continue reading

That’s a wrap for this edition.

Thanks for joining us. Check back soon for more smart home highlights.

As you might have read but probably didn't, I have been super satisfied with my LUA-made virtual weather station (you can catch up here part1, part2) and I have been itching about what to do next. After not a lot of consideration, I got an idea - what if I was able to bring current electricity price into 1Home and consequentially into my KNX & Matter based smart home. It could be super useful to have this information in the system - firstly for the satisfaction of having cracked this nut, secondly because it's cool to be able to see the current and past electricity prices but most importantly because it can help you make your home more energy efficient - or to be precise - more energy cost efficient.

How?

Well if you turn things on when electricity price is low and turn them off when the price is high - it makes sense that you will pay less then if you did it the other way around.

Finding API

Before we can actually start any money saving, we need to make everything work i.e. the current electricity price has to be available in the smart home system. The first step on the way to achieving this is to find if there is an online source (preferably free of charge) that can be scraped or a web API that returns the desired values. After a bit of research, I first found a public scrapable website - euenergy.live - with daily update energy prices for all EU member states. I wrote a short script that could fetch the page and parse the price from the text.

This was so easy I thought it's too good to be true. And of course, as it turns out in most such cases - it wasn't true. Or at least not in the way I wanted it to be. While I did get the energy price for my location into the system - this was only the average daily price of electricity, which is really not useful for any energy cost saving scenarios I had envisioned.

So I ditched euenrgy and after a bit more AI scanning I found another solution - a web api from Zyla API Hub. It looked very promising until the moment I found out I can do exactly nothing with it before I purchase the subscription. Not ideal for personal use and I was fairly sure that a free api has to exist so the hunt went on.

And sure enough, after some more digging I finally found something that looked like ENTSO-E, a transparency platform for electricity generation, transportation and consumption for the European market. It offered a free of charge web api, that returns the electricity price for a selected location.

AI can't help

After finding the API and getting the security token I got down to business with my verified method of LUA coding which is basically pasting the console output into a currently selected AI model until there are no errors. And while this recipe has always born results in the past, this time AI fell into a strange loop and couldn't get out of it, despite lot's of trying and switching between various LLM models. In the end I had to go about it the old school way. Open the API documentation, find the section with electricity pricing, copy the specified API call, paste it to my LUA, log the response, check the response - and then return to AI but with some basic understanding of how the call should be structured and what you actually want to get from the response. - now I didn't need the LLM to understand the ENTSO-E API but just to write all the lines of code based on my understanding of it. That worked and I have to say that going out of AI at first felt uncomfortable (because I had to turn on my brain) but after the job was done it brought additional satisfaction - compared to just leaning back and letting the computer do all the hard work.

After the basic script was working I just had to polish it a little bit, to account for the overflow at the end of the day (ENTSO-E returns values for one day from 00:01 to 24:00) and also for the daylight saving (and if anyone with any leverage on this is reading - please please, let's just cancel daylight saving.).

And voila, I had a script that gave me the current electricity price and the electricity price after next hour.

That's it! Is it?

And for a moment or two I thought that's it!! But suspiciously low prices made me think - is it really? And after checking with the computer i thought - of course it isn't! Turns out ENTSO-E returns the current electricity price - but it's not a household electricity price - it's a wholesale electricity price. This price can be vaguely related to the household equivalent and AI suggested I could just use that for shifting loads but I was not too happy about that. While I understood that when wholesale price is the lowest there is a strong chance that also the household kWh price is the lowest - I still felt like I failed in getting the actual (and at least approximately accurate) price to my smart home system.

After coming this far, I could not stop - but further research showed that getting the household electricity current price is MUCH more difficult and it heavily depends on where you live and who is your electricity supplier.

La cavo nostra

So let me break down what my research turned up for my location and my energy supplier. Firstly, I live in Ljubljana Slovenia and I pay my electricity in a single bill to a Slovenian electricity distribution company. This company takes a part of this (based on consumed energy) then pays a part of this to another company, who owns the infrastructure.

So the first part of the payment is based on the package I have - there is a "dynamic package" which apparently I am not using and there is a standard package that uses two tariffs - the high one and the low one.

The second part of the payment is called the "network fee" but it's not fully constant. To the best of my understanding this part of the payment is composed of two parts again - one constant based on the connected power & peaks in energy usage. Not 100 % how this is calcualted. The second part of this second part of the payment is again based on my usage but this time the actual price is defined by a 5 tariff system.

Complicated ha? I am PhD in electrical science and have been dealing with related areas all my professional life and I find it difficult to understand. Not turning this into a political topic or a conspiracy theory but let it be clear that in my very strong opinion this unnecessarily complicated system is purposely built so that a regular person does not fully understand it. La cavo nostra.

Sure enough there are no API'S to be found anywhere. Instead there is a PDF document on each of the company pages. By uploading this document and a photo of my electricity bill to AI - I was able to determine all tariffs for both companies and the periods of day they are active in. I also managed to find out this changes rarely (for example for one of the companies the current price list is valid from 1.1. 2024) and usually not by a lot. So I decided to "hard-code" the values and the time periods into my existing code and have it return the pricing for this and for next hour.

So the final solution is a bit hacked together, probably not 100 % accurate and it has to be updated manually probably at least once per year - but it does it job. I think the energy billing & distribution system in Slovenia is among the worst in Europe from the perspective of grid flexibility. So if you are living elsewhere you might not have to endure the same pains I did. In Latvia for example (correct me if I'm wrong Zandis Zvirbulis ), you have a 15 minute change in electricity price and you get that as one set of information - forecasted for 24 hours in advance.

Here is the entire code:

-- ===============================================================
-- Fetch ENTSO-E Day-Ahead Prices (A44)
-- ===============================================================
-- API Documentation: https://transparency.entsoe.eu/
-- Requires a valid API token (inserted below)
-- ===============================================================

-- Define ENTSO-E API endpoint and parameters

local now = time.now()
log.info(now)

-- ===============================================================
-- Generate yesterday/today ENTSO-E periodStart / periodEnd
-- using only supported time functions
-- ===============================================================

local now = time.now()
log.info(now)

-- current date parts
local y, m, d = now.Year, now.Month, now.Day

-- helper function: get previous/next day safely
local function shiftDay(y, m, d, diff)
    local daysInMonth = {31,28,31,30,31,30,31,31,30,31,30,31}
    local isLeap = (y % 400 == 0) or (y % 4 == 0 and y % 100 ~= 0)
    if isLeap then daysInMonth[2] = 29 end
    d = d + diff
    if d < 1 then
        m = m - 1
        if m < 1 then m = 12; y = y - 1 end
        d = daysInMonth[m]
    elseif d > daysInMonth[m] then
        d = 1
        m = m + 1
        if m > 12 then m = 1; y = y + 1 end
    end
    return y, m, d
end

-- yesterday and today dates
local y1, m1, d1 = shiftDay(y, m, d, -1)
local y2, m2, d2 = y, m, d

-- build ENTSO-E format (UTC 22:00)
local periodStart = string.format("%04d%02d%02d2200", y1, m1, d1)
local periodEnd   = string.format("%04d%02d%02d2200", y2, m2, d2)

log.info("periodStart = %s", periodStart)
log.info("periodEnd   = %s", periodEnd)

local baseUrl = "https://web-api.tp.entsoe.eu/api"
local parameters = {
    documentType = "A44",                      -- Day-ahead prices
    in_Domain = "10YSI-ELES-----O",            -- Austria (APG)
    out_Domain = "10YSI-ELES-----O",
    periodStart = periodStart,              -- Start UTC (YYYYMMDDHHMM)
    periodEnd = periodEnd,                -- End UTC (YYYYMMDDHHMM)
    securityToken = "YOUR TOKEN HERE"  -- Your ENTSO-E token
}

-- Build the query string
local query = ""
for key, value in pairs(parameters) do
    if query == "" then
        query = "?" .. key .. "=" .. value
    else
        query = query .. "&" .. key .. "=" .. value
    end
end

local url = baseUrl .. query
log.info("Requesting ENTSO-E data from: %v", url)

-- Send the HTTP request
local response, statusCode, error = http.get(url, {
    responseBodyType = http.bodyType.STRING,   -- Keep XML as plain text
})

-- Handle errors and responses
if error then
    log.error("HTTP error: %v", error)
    return
end

log.info("HTTP status: %v", statusCode)
log.info("Response body: %v", response)


-- ===============================================================
-- Extract current and next hour electricity price (€/kWh, UTC-corrected)
-- and set outputs
-- ===============================================================

-- Parse all <price.amount> values manually using string.find
local prices = {}
local startPos = 1
while true do
    local startTag, endTag = string.find(response, "<price.amount>", startPos)
    if not startTag then break end
    local closeTag = string.find(response, "</price.amount>", endTag + 1)
    if not closeTag then break end

    local value = string.sub(response, endTag + 1, closeTag - 1)
    table.insert(prices, tonumber(value))
    startPos = closeTag + 1
end

log.info("Parsed %v price values", #prices)

-- -------------------------------------------
-- Determine UTC offset (DST correction)
-- -------------------------------------------
local month = now.Month
local tz_offset = 1      -- default wintertime (UTC+1)
if month >= 4 and month <= 10 then
    tz_offset = 2        -- summertime (UTC+2)
end

-- Convert local hour to UTC
local utc_hour = now.Hour - tz_offset
if utc_hour < 0 then utc_hour = utc_hour + 24 end
if utc_hour >= 24 then utc_hour = utc_hour - 24 end

local utc_next = utc_hour + 1
if utc_next >= 24 then utc_next = 0 end

-- Position numbers (ENTSO-E uses 1-based, 1 = 00:00-01:00)
local position_current = utc_hour + 1
local position_next = utc_next + 1

-- Ensure within bounds
if position_next > #prices then position_next = #prices end

-- Get prices in €/MWh
local Ecurrent = prices[position_current]
local Enext = prices[position_next]

if Ecurrent == nil or Enext == nil then
    log.error("Missing price data for positions %v / %v", position_current, position_next)
    return
end

-- Convert to €/kWh
local Ecurrent_kWh = Ecurrent / 1000
local Enext_kWh = Enext / 1000

log.info("Local hour %v | UTC hour %v", now.Hour, utc_hour)
log.info("Current (local %v:00, UTC %v:00): %.2f €/MWh | %.5f €/kWh",
    now.Hour, utc_hour, Ecurrent, Ecurrent_kWh)
log.info("Next    (local %v:00, UTC %v:00): %.2f €/MWh | %.5f €/kWh",
    now.Hour + 1, utc_next, Enext, Enext_kWh)

-- Set outputs (€/kWh)
local err = OUTPUTS.Ecurrent.set(Ecurrent_kWh)
if err then log.error(err) end

err = OUTPUTS.Enext.set(Enext_kWh)
if err then log.error(err) end

-- ===============================================================
-- Compute current household electricity price (GEN-I + network)
-- incl. 22% VAT, based on local time
-- ===============================================================

local now = time.now()
log.info("Time for price calculation: %v", now)

-- Define combined prices with VAT (€/kWh)
local priceTable = {
  {startH=0,  endH=6,  price=0.18942}, -- NT + OB1
  {startH=6,  endH=8,  price=0.21532}, -- VT + OB2
  {startH=8,  endH=14, price=0.22081}, -- VT + OB3
  {startH=14, endH=18, price=0.22580}, -- VT + OB4
  {startH=18, endH=22, price=0.23280}, -- VT + OB5
  {startH=22, endH=24, price=0.19336}  -- NT + OB2
}

-- Helper: find current price slot
local function findPrice(hour)
  for i, p in ipairs(priceTable) do
    if hour >= p.startH and hour < p.endH then
      return p.price, i
    end
  end
  -- default safeguard
  return priceTable[#priceTable].price, #priceTable
end

-- Current and next interval
local currentPrice, idx = findPrice(now.Hour)
local nextIdx = idx + 1
if nextIdx > #priceTable then nextIdx = 1 end
local nextPrice = priceTable[nextIdx].price

log.info("Current hour block: %02d.00–%02d.00, Price: %.5f €/kWh",
          priceTable[idx].startH, priceTable[idx].endH, currentPrice)
log.info("Next block: %02d.00–%02d.00, Price: %.5f €/kWh",
          priceTable[nextIdx].startH, priceTable[nextIdx].endH, nextPrice)

-- Write outputs
local err = OUTPUTS.EHcurrent.set(currentPrice)
if err then log.error(err) end
err = OUTPUTS.EHnext.set(nextPrice)
if err then log.error(err) end

log.info("EHcurrent=%.5f €/kWh ; EHnext=%.5f €/kWh", currentPrice, nextPrice) 

Wrapping up

What was left was the classical procedure of writing the newly acquired values to KNX group addresses then creating virtual Generic devices for each of these values (current_price_wholesale, next_price_wholesale, current_price_household, next_price_household), which I did with a an action block in the 1Home automations.

In the "Graphs" section I have created a chart displaying the current wholesale and the current household electricity price:

And last but not least - I put those 4 devices in "Utility" and now I can always check the current and next electricity prices in my 1Home App.

And going forward having electricity prices in your smart home is a nice thing but to actually cut the electricity we now have to act on it. Schedule big loads into lower price periods and voila. Not a part of this article though...

Dr. SmartHome signing out! May your circuits be smart and your energy bills be ever so light.

As 2025 is wrapping up let's revisit some of the best moments from each month of the past year:

January

We started the year off with Light + Intelligent Building Middle East and the launch of 1Home Server CH.

Revisit the launch moment of 1Home Server CH:

February

ISE Barcelona

At the beginning of February, Tim, Martin and Matej took 1Home Server CH for a trip to the ISE show in Barcelona.

1Home Server Loxone update

Our engineers made the lives of Loxone users easier with Matter controller - enabling control of Matter devices directly in the Loxone Mobile App.

Learn more about the update:

March

One of the highlights of the month was getting Server KNX Pro into the hands of one of the top KNX YouTubers - Poseidwn Tech, who took it under his microscope and showed its powerful capabilities.

Watch the review:

April

Like spring brings flowers, 1Home delivers new product. In April, we welcomed IoT Gateway into our 1Home family, allowing you to configure and control Matter IoT devices directly in ETS with group addresses.

Meet IoT Gateway:

May

Smart Home Expo, India

Rok went on a solo trip to India and represented 1Home with our partners Morion Automation at Smart Home Expo 2025...

Yatun Days, Czech Republic

... while Satja and Tim joined our official distributor YATUN, s.r.o. in Czech Republic for Yatun Days.

1Home Server KNX Pro V4 update

The V4 was a major upgrade which introduced 1Home Scenes, as well as IoT Gateway functionality and completely revamped 1Home Automations to Server KNX Pro.

Learn more about the update

June

For the 1Home Voice & Visu launch, our marketing team decided that the best way to showcase cutting-edge KNX was through an elaborate coffee-making montage. We hope you enjoyed both the product and the barista!

July

We provided a close look into the IoT Shading with KNX testing. Marcel tested out different Matter shading systems like Ikea, EVE and Somfy with KNX and revealed an answer to the question: Can IoT shading solutions provide the same benefits - at a fraction of the price?

Find the answer👇

August

While a lot was happening in the present we took some time to look back on the (r)evolution of our 1Home Server KNX Pro.

Even we were surprised at how far we've come...

September

System Manager launch

To the excitement of KNX integrators worldwide, we welcomed a new member to the 1Home family - 1Home System Manager.

All we can say is: we've redefined setting up and maintaining KNX projects.

CEDIA Expo, Denver

While we only got pictures of them climbing mountains, we're sure Tim and Rok also did a good job at discovering innovations and showcasing how KNX is shaping the future of smart living at the CEDIA Expo in Denver.

October

L+B preparations

Yes, if you weren't aware, we are joining L+B 2026 as an exhibitor - again! This means preparations are in full swing. Here is a sneak peek 😉 See you in Hall 11.1, Stand D24!

November

1Home Server KNX V5 update

With November V5 update was here and all the functionalities such as Lua Scripting, Traffic Monitor, Graphs, and System Manager features.

Explore the update

1Home Lab - Shelly / KNX edition

1Home Lab treated us well with a new episode showcasing Shelly Matter-enabled relays integrated into 1Home, which at first looked like there is another part of Matrix dynasty coming.

December

We kept the best for last. In December it was time for a new era of 1Home. We always wanted to design a product that wasnt hidden in dark electrical cabinets. A product with an innovative user experience and design that can fit into any interior style. On December 5th we realized that dream with the launch of 1Home Touch.

Relive the launch moment:

Heads up: you can pre-order 1Home Touch at launch pricing here

And now... time for 2026

2025 has been quite the year - many wins, and some lessons learned the hard way, but honestly? We're even more stoked for where we're headed in 2026. We truly believe it will be our best year yet - and were taking you along for the ride!

Thank you for your support.

- 1Home Team

Dear 1Home Community,
Two and a half years ago, we launched what became one of the biggest milestones in our company’s history: the 1Home Server. Many of you believed in us before the product even existed in your homes. You pre-ordered it on faith - trusting us to deliver something meaningful.

And when the Server arrived, we didn’t stop there.

Over time, we built and released the 1Home App, IoT integrations to KNX, LUA scripting, Graphs, and KNX history and live monitoring - all for free, all delivered long after your purchase. That became our promise:

Those who believe in us early, always get more than expected.

Today, with over 20,000 Servers in homes across the world, we’re ready for our next chapter.

How we decided on our next step

For years, we heard the same message from the market:

“KNX is the best standard there is, but the UI controls and daily user experience feel outdated. 1Home should change that.”

You were right.

Most KNX innovation has lived inside panels and cabinets - powerful, but invisible. Meanwhile, homeowners want something modern, intuitive, and beautiful in the spaces they actually live in.

We’ve always been shaped by Apple Home, and that gave us a clear understanding of what “gold-standard” smart home experience really means. And we’ve always felt we’re the right team to bring that level of simplicity and elegance into the KNX world.

When we looked at our strengths—
creating software experiences that feel ahead of their time, and designing interfaces that make complex systems feel simple - the direction became obvious.

It was time to bring the 1Home experience out into your home.

That idea became 1Home Touch.

Check the launch video below.

Shaped together with the community

From the very beginning, 1Home has always been about control interfaces that feel effortless.

We started with voice control.
Then came deep Apple Home integration.
Then our 1Home App.

Touch is the physical embodiment of everything we’ve learned:
simple, elegant, intuitive, powerful - made for everyone.

To make sure we weren’t building just another screen on the wall, we did what has always guided us best - we listened.

We conducted 50 one-on-one interviews with homeowners and integrators across 10 countries, each bringing unique setups, expectations, and ways of living with smart homes.

And beyond that, more than 1,000 people responded to our public survey, giving us unprecedented insight into what matters most in a daily-use control device.

We shared early designs.
We tested real interactions.
We redesigned, retested, and refined continuously.
We validated both the on-device experience and the configuration interface with real homes, real users, and real workflows.

Touch isn’t just a product we envisioned - it’s a product shaped directly by the 1Home community, both homeowners and integrators.

Project status

The development for the 1Home Touch is well under way.

• The hardware platform is ready and it is powerful enough that you could comfortably watch movies on it. And the viewing angle is also great no matter if you look at it from the front, side or the top. The touch responsiveness feels instant, smooth, and premium. To make sure the device delivers not just great performance but true long-term reliability, we put it through extensive hardware stress tests - like running the unit periodically between -10°C to +40 °C in an oven for three days straight and pushing it until we find exactly how much it can endure. These tests help us understand real-world longevity and ensure the final product is built to last.
• The designs and user experience of both controls and configuration was heavily tested with homeowners and integrators from the 1Home community, and we are happy to report most can't wait to get the 1Home Touch in their hands.

• The last remaining milestone is to finish the software development. Our engineers are hard at work to make it happen.

All this considered, we are estimating the 1Home Touch will be ready to ship in the Summer 2026.

For those who support us early

When people pre-ordered the first 1Home Server for 299€, they essentially paid more than 70% below the current list price - and still received years of new features at no additional cost.

We’ve always believed that early believers should benefit the most.

Touch will follow the same philosophy. When you support 1Home early, you end up receiving far more than you expected.

👉 Learn more about 1Home Touch
https://1home.io/touch

A Heartfelt thank you to the community 🙏

There is no 1Home without this community.
Your ideas, your patience, your criticism, your excitement, and your trust are the reasons we’re able to build products like this.

Thank you - for every message, every piece of feedback, every suggestion, and every belief you've placed in us.

Welcome to the next era of 1Home.

With gratitude,
The 1Home Team

In my last blogpost of Dr. Smart Home Hacks, I showed how my 1Home Server KNX PRO learned to master my apartment’s “Night Scene” like a seasoned butler. Well, Dr. Smart Home didn’t stop there. Oh no. After conquering the evening routine, I set my sights on something a bit more… meteorological.

I live in a multi-apartment building which usually means no KNX (or any) weather station. To be completely honest - there is something on the roof which is controlling the roof window in common spaces but I it's impossible to access those readings. And if you’ve ever tried to run a halfway smart home without one, you know exactly how blind—pun absolutely intended—you feel. Temperature? Nada. Wind? Guesswork. Sun intensity? I stick my hand out the window and estimate. Not ideal.

Fortunately, as Aljaž Švigelj explains here, a decent virtual weather station can now be creating using the LUA block in the 1Home Automations editor. The entire ready-to-run example is already available inside the Lua editor’s Helper section.

One click and boom—you suddenly have the following variables flowing into your 1Home system (and one "write to KNX" command away from having it in KNX as well):

• outsideTemperature
• windSpeed
• windDirection
• isSunny
• isDay

For someone like me, who does not own a KNX weather station, this felt like cheating. I now had outside temperature available everywhere in the system—from heating logic to presence simulations to energy dashboards. Amazing.

But of course I wouldn't be writing this article now if this wasn't just the intro to the real tinkering I did with the goal to be able to use the virtual weather station to control my blinds intelligently. For that I will have to modify my virtual weather station to give me more juice. With the current code I can protect my blinds against strong wind but I can't control my blinds to passively heat or prevent overheating of the apartment.

When You Have Three South-Facing Blinds and Zero Sun Data

I have three blinds facing south. In summer they should slam shut to prevent my apartment from turning into a convection oven or more accurately - to minimize the operation of our A/C unit. In winter they should politely open and let the sun warm the apartment for free—less heating, less energy, more smugness.

But the data I got from the basic example wasn’t enough. I needed something the KNX world calls lux.

Lux = light intensity

Lux = the thing that every weather station gives you

Lux = the thing that Open-Meteo absolutely does not give you.

So I did what any reasonable modern adult does when they’re stuck: I politely begged ChatGPT to help me. (As explained many times, I did some coding in the university but after that zero, thats why I need help from AI like many of you readers).

First, I gave it the pre-made example code and asked a simple question:

shortwave_radiation_sum

After a bit of thinking the machine produced a copy-pastable code, which I input in the LUA editor within the 1Home Automations, I pressed run aaaaaaaand .... it ran without errors and I got shortwave_radiation_sum as an output of the block. Step one done but how do I control shades with this now?

The Quest for a “Heat Index” (a.k.a. How to Teach Blinds Thermodynamics)

Next I asked ChatGPT the real question:

“OK now I need a variable which will tell me how much heat is coming in through my south windows—based on which I can lower the shades or lift them. Normally in KNX you have a weather station that gives you lux values. Maybe we do it the same way here?”

This gave the robot a pause for thought ... And then this pause seemed to stretch forever... When it finally responded, it delivered a surprisingly elegant idea:

Use hourly shortwave radiation → normalize to 0–1 → treat this as a “South Window Heat Index”.

• 0 = no heat coming through windows
• 1 = full hot summer sun blasting your living room
• Anything in between = useful for automations
• Add thresholds → lower or raise blinds
• Add outdoor temperature → behave differently in summer vs. winter

This was actually better than relying on lux. Shortwave radiation is basically the actual heat from the sun that makes your apartment warm. Exactly what I needed.

So the robot spit out a nice tidy block of Lua code. I pasted it into the 1Home Lua editor. Aaaaaaaaaand… 💥 error.

A Dance of Errors, Screenshots, and Fixes

So I took a screenshot of the error message, sent it back to ChatGPT, and it gave me a revised code block. New paste → new error. Different screenshot → revised code. Another paste → another error. Screenshot → revised code.

We repeated this three or four times. (It almost felt like debugging with a very patient junior developer who neither eats nor sleeps.)

For example:

• First error: I used a variable named error. Lua really didn’t like that.
• Second error: Apparently the system didn’t enjoy anyone using os.date. (It protested like a toddler denied a cookie.)
• Third error: Open-Meteo’s timestamps didn’t match until we indexed them properly.

Eventually the robot produced a final version that ran without a single error.

Add a log here, a threshold there, and—voilà!

I now had:

• current shortwave radiation
• daily radiation sum
• a normalized 0–1 heat index
• simple time-of-day correction
• winter/summer behavior
• shade down threshold
• shade up threshold
• a virtual weather station that actually understands heat flow

Not bad for an afternoon hacking session with a robot.

Dr. Smart Home’s New Trick: The Virtual Weather Station

So here we are.

My 1Home Server KNX PRO is now officially running a Virtual Weather Station powered by:

• Lua
• Open-Meteo
• 1Home Automations
• and a robot that wrote 90% of the code for me

The Code

If anyone would find a virtual weather station useful for themselves and doesn't want to do coding sessions with artificial smartyfullness - here is my code, anyone can use it, just copy paste and voila.

-- NOTE: This example uses Open-Meteo’s free API for personal, non-commercial use. 
-- If you use it commercially, please obtain a commercial API plan.

-- Fetch the Open-Meteo.com weather data for your location.
local url = string.format(
    "https://api.open-meteo.com/v1/forecast?latitude=%f&longitude=%f&current_weather=true&hourly=shortwave_radiation&daily=shortwave_radiation_sum&timezone=auto",
    location.latitude(), location.longitude()
)

-- Only use first two return values to avoid 'error' issues.
local response, statusCode = http.get(url, {
    responseBodyType = http.bodyType.JSON,
})

if statusCode ~= 200 then
    log.error("HTTP request failed, status code=%v", statusCode or -1)
    return
end

log.info("Weather response: %v", response)

----------------------------------------------------
-- Current weather
----------------------------------------------------
local outsideTemperature = response.current_weather.temperature
local windSpeed = response.current_weather.windspeed
local windDirectionDegrees = response.current_weather.winddirection
local isDay = response.current_weather.is_day == 1
local weatherCode = response.current_weather.weathercode
local isSunny = weatherCode < 3  -- 0,1,2 = clear / mainly clear / partly cloudy

----------------------------------------------------
-- Daily shortwave radiation sum (for info/logging)
----------------------------------------------------
local dailyShortwave = 0
if response.daily and response.daily.shortwave_radiation_sum then
    dailyShortwave = response.daily.shortwave_radiation_sum[1] or 0
end

----------------------------------------------------
-- Find current index in hourly data using time string
----------------------------------------------------
local currentRadiation = 0
local currentHour = 12   -- default / fallback
local currentTime = response.current_weather.time  -- e.g. "2025-11-17T16:45"

if currentTime then
    -- Parse hour from ISO time string ("YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM")
    local hourStr = string.sub(currentTime, 12, 13)
    local parsedHour = tonumber(hourStr)
    if parsedHour ~= nil then
        currentHour = parsedHour
    end

    -- Find matching index in hourly.time array
    if response.hourly and response.hourly.shortwave_radiation and response.hourly.time then
        local idx = nil
        for i, t in ipairs(response.hourly.time) do
            if t == currentTime then
                idx = i
                break
            end
        end

        -- Fallback: if not found, use last value
        if not idx then
            idx = #response.hourly.shortwave_radiation
        end

        currentRadiation = response.hourly.shortwave_radiation[idx] or 0
    end
end

----------------------------------------------------
-- Compute "south window heat index"
-- 0.0 = no sun heat, 1.0 = strong sun (~>= 800 W/m²)
----------------------------------------------------
local MAX_REF_RADIATION = 800  -- typical strong sun value, tweak if needed
local sunIntensity = currentRadiation / MAX_REF_RADIATION
if sunIntensity > 1 then sunIntensity = 1 end
if sunIntensity < 0 then sunIntensity = 0 end

-- Only consider during day & when relatively sunny
if not isDay or not isSunny then
    sunIntensity = 0
end

-- Very simple approximation for south-facing using local hour
local orientationFactor = 1.0
if currentHour < 8 or currentHour > 18 then
    orientationFactor = 0.3
end

local southWindowHeatIndex = sunIntensity * orientationFactor

----------------------------------------------------
-- Logs
----------------------------------------------------
log.info("Outside temperature: %v", outsideTemperature)
log.info("Wind speed: %v", windSpeed)
log.info("Wind direction: %v", windDirectionDegrees)
log.info("Is sunny: %v", isSunny)
log.info("Is day: %v", isDay)
log.info("Daily shortwave sum (Wh/m²): %v", dailyShortwave)
log.info("Current shortwave radiation (W/m²): %v", currentRadiation)
log.info("South window heat index (0-1): %v", southWindowHeatIndex)

----------------------------------------------------
-- Example: write values to outputs
----------------------------------------------------
local err = OUTPUTS.Tout.set(outsideTemperature)
if err then log.error(err) end

if OUTPUTS.Radiation then
    local err2 = OUTPUTS.Radiation.set(currentRadiation)
    if err2 then log.error(err2) end
end

if OUTPUTS.SouthHeatIndex then
    local err3 = OUTPUTS.SouthHeatIndex.set(southWindowHeatIndex)
    if err3 then log.error(err3) end
end

----------------------------------------------------
-- Shade control logic (example)
-- Adjust thresholds to taste / test on site.
----------------------------------------------------
-- 0 = fully up, 1 = fully down (adapt to your real outputs)
local SHADE_DOWN_THRESHOLD  = 0.7  -- strong sun
local SHADE_UP_THRESHOLD    = 0.4  -- weak sun
local HOT_OUTSIDE_TEMP      = 22   -- above this we want to protect from heat
local COLD_OUTSIDE_TEMP     = 18   -- below this we may WANT heat gains

local shadeCommand = nil

if southWindowHeatIndex > SHADE_DOWN_THRESHOLD and outsideTemperature > HOT_OUTSIDE_TEMP then
    -- Too much heat coming in -> lower shades
    shadeCommand = 1
elseif southWindowHeatIndex < SHADE_UP_THRESHOLD or outsideTemperature < COLD_OUTSIDE_TEMP then
    -- Not much heat / it’s cold outside -> raise shades
    shadeCommand = 0
end

if shadeCommand ~= nil and OUTPUTS.SouthShade then
    local err4 = OUTPUTS.SouthShade.set(shadeCommand)
    if err4 then log.error(err4) end
    log.info("South shades command: %v", shadeCommand)
end 

What’s Next?

Right now, I’ve been running the entire thing in simulation mode within 1Home Automations. The final step is wiring the logic (by writing the resulting outputs to various group addresses with a "Write to KNX" action block) to the actual blinds and then fine tune the algorithm until it works perfectly in different weather scenarios. Not a small task and also not one where my best AI friend can help a lot. I'll just have to wait for different conditions and then tune the algorithm so it works great. I'll probably write more blogposts about my virtual weather station, when I actually see some results.

The official release of the FW containing (among other things) LUA is this week so also looking forward to what hacks and tricks the 1Home users pull out from their sleeves. I'll be super happy if you let me know about your own pains and how you solved them with LUA.

Dr. Smart Home, signing off — stay tuned for the next front of innovations sweeping through your smart home.

One of our integrator partners recently shared a great real-world example of how System Monitoring helped him quickly diagnose and resolve a puzzling KNX automation issue for his client.

It's 1Home Automation's fault... or is it?

One early morning, his client contacted him in frustration. The lights in their living area were blinking every three seconds. On, off, on, off. The client suspected something must be wrong with 1Home Automations.

The integrator connected remotely via 1Home Dashboard and opened System Monitoring. Within three minutes, the cause became clear.

It turned out the 1Home Server was not the source of the problem at all. The KNX presence sensor in the room was rapidly toggling presence on and off, which created a loop that kept triggering the lights. But the integrator still needed to understand why the sensor was doing that.

Found the culprit!

By checking the Lux readings, he found the brightness in the room jumping between 90 and 160 Lux. The client had recently upgraded several lights to stronger models, which significantly changed the brightness profile of the space.

Because of this, the thresholds configured on the KNX presence sensor no longer aligned with reality.

The sensor was set to turn lights on above 98 Lux and off below 150 Lux. With the upgraded lighting, the brightness jumped across these values repeatedly, causing an endless on/off cycle.

All's well that ends well

After identifying the issue, the integrator simply adjusted the sensor parameters to match the new lighting conditions, and the problem disappeared instantly.

He told us that without System Monitor, diagnosing this would have been far more difficult. He would have had no clear visibility into what happened and would have had to wait for the issue to reproduce before capturing KNX traffic in ETS Diagnostics.

Thanks to the insights that System Monitoring offers, he solved the problem in minutes and delivered a smooth experience to his client.

The smart home world is evolving fast - October 2025 was no exception. Let's dive into some of the highlights:

Google Home gets Gemini-fied

Google’s Gemini for Home brings conversational AI into everyday living. Built on Gemini 1.5 Pro, it enables smarter automation, natural voice control, and seamless device integration—giving developers powerful tools to create more intuitive home experiences.

Keep reading

A new episode of KNX-News

Presented by Torben Ledermann , the episode takes a look at the new 1Home System Manager, and offers a concise look at what’s ahead for smart home integrators, with practical insights and upcoming content tailored to the KNX community.

Click to watch

SmartThings Gets Thread-Savvy

Samsung SmartThings now supports two-way Thread network unification, allowing its hubs to join existing Thread networks—and vice versa. This update simplifies setup, boosts performance, and improves interoperability across ecosystems, making smart home expansion more seamless than ever.

Read more

DJI’s Introduces a New... Robot Vacuum?

DJI steps into the smart home space with Romo, a robot vacuum series equipped with drone-grade sensors, LiDAR mapping, and advanced obstacle avoidance. Designed for precision and performance, Romo marks DJI’s first move beyond aerial tech into home automation.

Get the details

Aqara Is Making Pro Moves

Aqara enters the professional smart home market with the Edge Hub M300 and Studio Connect, offering integrators a Matter-ready platform that supports up to 500 devices, no-code automation, and seamless integration with major ecosystems like Control4 and Apple Home.

Discover more

That's all for this month's digest.

Thanks for reading with us, see you soon!

So, recently I received the latest soon to be released Server KNX PRO firmware (or perhaps at the time you are reading this it has already been released) from our beloved development team. And guess what? Among other things it also enables Lua scripting inside 1Home Scenes and 1Home Automations.

This opens up a completely new set of possibilities — some things can now be done much faster than you’d normally be able to with the classic automation blocks (trigger → condition → action). With Lua you can basically write code that can access anything in the system (devices, group addresses), and you can use Lua functions like for, if → then, even do HTTP calls, etc.

Learning the ABC of Lua

Now, I haven’t really done any code writing in a long time, so to start from scratch would eat too much of my time. Instead, I used this video from our CPO Aljaž Švigelj to get the A, B and C of Lua scripting in 1Home: 👉 YouTube: Lua Scripting in 1Home

After seeing this, I felt like there’s a whole world of opportunity out there. I’ll definitely try building my own weather station that moves my south facing blinds and does automatic cool/heat/off mode switchover based on weather forecast.

But before that, I wanted to start with something simple.

The Little Nut to Crack: Night Scene

So, I’m used to activating the Night Scene from a push button in the living room/kitchen area before I go to bed (I’m usually the last one, of course). This scene turns off all 9 lights in the living room/kitchen/terrace.

The problem? Sometimes when everything goes dark instantly, you can stumble on something uncomfortable — like a Lego block left on the floor.

Sure, I can also activate the scene from the button near my bed, or I could use voice control (more like whisper control at that hour :) but I just prefer to do it from the living room/kitchen switch.

So here’s what I decided: with Lua scripting, when the Night Scene is activated from the push button, I want 8 lights to turn off instantly, and the 9th light to dim down from the current level to 0 over the next 2–3 minutes.

The Code (Original and Modified)

This is a very good example to start with because it’s an upgrade of the procedure Aljaž explains in his video (dimming a light from 0 to 100% with increments of 10% every second).

First I opened my Night Scene in the 1Home Scene Editor and I added a LUA block after the original scene block. I also deleted the "Counter Strip" from the scene block, since I'll be using it as input in the Lua Block. The hacked Night Scene with the Lua block

I added the "Counter strip" light as an input and copied the code from the video:

As per the advice at the end of the video, I pasted the copied code to ChatGPT asking it to rewrite it so that:

• the light dims from the current setting down to 0,
• in increments of 1%,
• every 3 seconds

This is the code it gave me and I copy/pasted it into the "text field" fo my Lua Script block:

And voila, my first Lua scripting job is done. Now I can safely go to bed without ending up in crutches.

Dr. Smart Home out. Stay tuned for more Lua Script Shenanigans

Takeaway

Lua scripting will become part of 1Home Automations and Scenes on all existing 1Home devices as a free upgrade — probably (or hopefully 🙂) end of October / beginning of November.

That’s also when our new product, the 1Home System Manager, starts shipping.

Last year with Rok Prevolsek at IFA we ware checking if Matter was finally being adopted across the smart home industry — and the answer was a clear yes. This year I went back to Berlin to see what’s new, meet with some partners & friends, but also with three very specific goals in mind:

1. To see what’s going on with Matter communication standards — is it more Thread or more WiFi? What are companies betting their new solutions on?
2. Last year Siemens told us their Matter-enabled fridge was “just a couple of months away.” Samsung said all their 2025 devices would be Matter hubs. And Home Connect’s website still claims compatibility. So why can’t I buy a Matter-enabled oven today?
3. Since Thread is still largely dependent on Apple / Google / Amazon hardware (and those implementations are not exactly impressive), I wanted to check if any dedicated modem/router companies are finally working on stable, standalone Thread solutions.

And as a bonus, if I saw some cool use of AI in smart home, that would be the cherry on top.

The Chinese Are Taking Over IoT Smart Home

Walking through Halls 1 and 2 — the smart home section — the feeling was obvious: China has taken over consumer smart home. Many Chinese brands and almost none of the established Western names like Eve Smart Home, Nanoleaf, Nuki Home Solutions GmbH, Tridonic, Flic, tado°, Freedompro… were there. And while this probably does not mean they’ve given up (but rather they are pivoting to more price-effective marketing strategies, while Chinese brands are still investing heavily in establishing themselves on the EU market) it still gave the whole smart home section a feeling that something is missing.

I started scanning the booths. Compared to previous year, when we had to actively scan for the Matter logo on the booths, this year it was much much more common. Particularly in hall 1, majority of companies had some sort of Matter offering.

I didn't stop at every booth, here is a quick rundown of where I stopped and what I learned along the way.

Xiaolei (L Tech)

Originally a lighting company, now with a large portfolio of various smart devices, from relays to touchscreens, etc. etc. Their early devices have been Bluetooth comaptible, now they are bridging them through a Hub to Matter & Zigbee. Switch-bot like in that sense. Anyhow when asked about thread they said they see Thread as a standard of the future (I have heard that a couple of times at this fair) but currently they do not support it.

Sonoff

Next I went to SONOFF - they too are expanding on their Matter portfolio, they also see Thread as future tech and their new products are already supporting it. They also had some other new products but nothing shocking - frankly I remember an IoT underfloor heating control system the most - it seemed like a semi-professional solution.

Govee

Next there was the most RGB booth in hall 1 - Govee. I came in asked what's new and they showed me a gadget for creating an ambilight-like effect and a jellyfish like RGB standing lamp with Matter. I asked about Thread, they didn't really know. Then I asked about the Govee air purifiers/humidifiers (I saw those online recently) and they didn't know anything about that either.

Heiman

A company with a decent Matter (over Thread) based sensor portfolio - from temperature/humidity to smoke and carbon monoxide. A short chat with no additional answers to my questions and I was on the way.

Lepro

I only stopped on this booth because it said AI lighting control (or something similar).A sales rep expalined that it's their own voice control with an LLM that can understand what you want and set the lights accordingly. He demonstrated with setting a Bayern Munich themed lighting scenario which didn't leave my jaw hanging.

SwitchBot

One of the most fun booths — complete with a mini tennis court where their robot would catch & return balls and quite a few novelties. SwitchBot just started with Matter a year ago but now they have an impressive portfolio of Matter devices and Hubs. With recent products, they are also switching from Hub enabled Matter to direct Matter support - although SwitchBot is betting on WiFi instead of Thread.

They have a new AI hub (basically smart camera features), some new flush relays, a matter enabled shapable led light and digital e-ink art-pieces (this is something I have later seen on at least 3 more booths).

I was the most impressed by the Hub 3 and the universal remote - simply because I use an IR blaster at home and I find it super useful and I was just recently thinking about why they don't make an universal remote product instead of an IR blaster product and well - seems like SwitchBot has done it :)

Embedded Systems (Logic Machine)

A real refreshing sight was the Embedded Systems / Logic Machine booth. While the booth was totally basic, the added value was in the content. Logic Machine put on display their new manual control device - a rotary push button with LCD display. Not a standalone product it needs the LM server to work. On top of that a bunch of really interested MVP’s were presented and according to the sales representative, Logic Machine is going to estimate the market pull behind each one and the one that scores best will be developed into a finished product. The MVP’s that I found the most interesting were:

• KNX/MODBUS/BAcNet/DALI/Zigbee/CAN protocol converter
• Multiroom audio player with Bluetooth, Airplay and Spotify support
• A gateway that bridges KNX, MODBUS or BACnet to LoRaWAN

Third Reality

I stopped here briefly as the Matter enabled mechanical keyboard caught my eye - the F1-F12 keys can be integrated into any Matter enabled platform (like Apple Home) and smart home functions can then be binded to them. Another interesting device on this small booth was the Linux Box Dev edition - an open source Zigbee/Matter(WiFi/Thread) solution which can be used for running Home Assistant or OpenHAB or developing a custom solution for Matter/Zigbee control.

Yale

I know Yale very well so I didn’t plan to stop here for long but the guy on the booth practically pulled me in - I respect that a lot, I always loved the active exhibition salesman - as opposed to a more frequent citation where the sales rep doesn’t ask you what you want even after a serious session of eyeballing.

Anyhow, a relatively new thing is that Yale is expanding their access control portfolio with a low-cost smart lock (<150€).

What I took away from this was that the Yale founder was actually the one who invented the locking cylinder mechanism - which I previously didn’t know.

Shelly

The size of the booth and the amount of visitors on it gave the feeling that Shelly Group is the major player in this exhibition and generally in smarthome. This was one of the booths where I could not easily get a hold of anyone to tell me anything relevant. There were just too many people and the reps that got a minute or two of breathing time didn’t jump to your aid when they saw you eyeballing them. Luckily I know the Shelly CTO whom I gave a call when nearing the Shelly booth. Well he wasn’t at the fair and on top of that I totally forgot it’s Sunday, so it was a bit awkward situation, me calling him during his Sunday lunch.

So I went around the booth on my own, there was tons of new stuff. I was not particularly impressed by any single product, but the whole portfolio Shelly is building is impressive and it’s no wonder that this company has reached the unicorn status this year. I wanted to physically check the new 4” Shelly touchscreen which was advertised on a big video projection, but I couldn’t find it on the product display shelves & pillars.

Last year at IFA, Janko from Shelly told us about their development platform on which 3rd party companies can develop their own smart home products in the Shelly ecosystem. I remember thinking this is quite ambitious and wondered if this will get some traction. Well this year I have already seen products developed on this platform - more about that later (at the Neo booth subsection).

Yolink

They had some Matter over WiFi devices - such as plugs etc. I stopped by for a minute or so but there is nothing to report here.

TransmeIoT

This is a Chinese company which deals exclusively with OEM. They have also Matter devices in their portfolio and are OE-ing to Tuay and Hama among tohers.

NEO

I got familiarized with this company at last year’s IFA as they were one of the companies that had Matter over Thread - I later tested their contact and occupancy sensors, which were pretty good considering the low pricing.

This year I asked what is new and they presented a LoRaWan/Zigbee lawn watering system which was built on (as their other new products) on the Shelly development platform. One indicator that Shelly's tactic of making other companies develop products on their platform is paying off.

Aqara

We saw so many new things from Aqara during the year, they are working on practically everything in Smart Home and are one of the biggest Matter players out there.  Their booth was relatively small provided some tight quarters plus their sales reps were not eagerly waiting for a disoriented visitor. So I actually got a hold of someone capable to talk to after visiting the booth for the third time.

Since I am familiar with most of the new Aqara product releases, I was mainly interested in two things - firstly if Aqara’s Thread integration is better then the one from Apple - they claimed yes but I didn’t get the feeling they really tested it out with a lot of Thread devices. Secondly I wanted to know more about Aqara’s solution for system integrators. So they have a hub with protocol conversion (KNX/Zigbee/BacNET/MODBUS/Matter) and they have two servers for professionals, Aqara Studio and Aquara Studio Connect. It’s all very beta now but according to the Aqara representative this is the long term vision of Aquara - to dominate in numbers and types of devices on the market while providing everything that  makes a system integrator want to work with them.

Tuya

Quick stop. Nothing really caught my eye, except their platform for developing products on Tuya Smart hardware.

Ecowitt

Weather sensors now Matter and Home Assistant compatible.

Eufy

I stopped here because they were demonstrating a steps-defeating exoskeleton for robot vacuum cleaners. Looks innovative, but I kept thinking that then you need to have this prosthetic lying somewhere, so the robot can go up and down the stairs every so often. I also thought it must be super non practical if you want to go to the other floor just when the robot is super slowly climbing those stairs.

On another note eufy has 3D printers, e-ink art displays and other artsy stuff under the brand eufyMake .

Jackery

I saw a few companies that offered battery systems for smaller living units - apartments and small houses. I saw maybe 5-7 and I stopped only at Jackery. It’s basically a battery with peak shaving and load scheduling functions and can be used with any PV system - or you can buy the PV from Jackery as well.

Matter-Enabled White Appliances: the Matter prophecy is forgotten

After I was done with smarthome I decided to plunge into white appliances halls and see if Matter still matters or is the ship sailing in another direction. On the previous IFA there was a lot of talk about Matter, particularly Siemens & Samsung had promised a bright Matter future for their white appliances - but later on when I was searching for products, I was never able to find a single white appliance, which you can actually buy. Sure there were some entries on Matter device directory sites but finding something that can be purchased proved to be a trophyless hunt. So one of the main reasons for my visit was to go to these booths and see if they will deliver on their promises.

Before going to the “big” guys I decided to walk through the halls with all the smaller white appliance manufacturers to see if I can find something “smart” there. A good hour of walking and not a hint of a smart appliance. At least my fitness tracker app was exploding with satisfaction 🙂

So let’s see if my luck turns for the better with the bigger white appliance firms.

Siemens & Bosch

First I visited the Siemens hall, as usual they have a huge hall reserved for themselves - a hall full of ovens, refrigerators, washing machines, chef live shows and many many visitors.

First I ambushed a girl standing next to an AI-augmented oven, that recognises the pizza you put inside and then does everything automatically. I asked her about Home Connect supporting Matter and where can I buy any Siemens appliance that supports this. Of course she was totally clueless so she rerouted me to their quite capable (her words) customer service. At the customer service they understood what I was asking, but they said Home Connect doesn’t support Matter. I had to show them the Matter logo on the Home Connect website before they were willing to reroute me to the Home Connect people. So I went to the Home Connect people and there was a familiar face, a Home Connect product manager to whom I talked the previous year - she didn’t remember of course and also couldn’t remember who would know anything about concrete Siemens Matter enabled white appliances. She had some unconfirmed data, like “there are currently only two devices like that on the market”, but when asked about some more concrete details, she eventually suggested I go to the Bosch hall (next door) and I should find someone near the washing machines and he might know something more. Of course that was pure diversion as the guy at Bosch washing machines was looking at me as if I asked about calibrating dilithium cells for a galaxy type warp drive. Anyway his first suggestion was logical: “You should go to Home Connect people”. When I told him it was they who sent me here he was dumbfounded and hesitantly suggested that maybe I should go ask at the Customer service. That was the final straw for me, I gave up hope on Bosch & Siemens and went onward…

Haier / Candy

… to the Haier / Candy hall, another huge one. Now even though I didn’t talk to Haier guys the year before, I had a faint hope of finding something here, since hOn (the Heier version of Home Connect) has joined Connectivity Standards Alliance in 2022. I also recently saw on the CSA site that Heier has a Matter enabled A/C device(s) - but again I was not able to find a model you can actually purchase.

In contrast to Siemens/Bosch the first guy I asked told me that noone on the Heier/Candy booths will know anything about that. He was very friendly and we chatted a little bit - at the end he told me, I should go to the counter and submit my question there - but he was completely blunt about the fact that I shouldn’t expect an answer soon.

I saw a small hOn section and I decided to try my luck over there - after arriving however, every sales rep there was busy hiding and avoiding me until I just gave up…

Midea

I also swung by the Midea Group hall - another CSA member. At this point I was too tired to go into another fruitless research, so I just briefly asked a few people if they had anything with Matter and then I didn’t press when they knew nothing about what I was saying.

Samsung

Last in the line was Samsung Electronics, they had a whole building to themselves. Now last year it had been said that in 2025 every Samsung device (fridge, a/c, heat pump, would be a Matter hub.

This year Matter was not on Samsung's highlight list at all. I figured my best chance would be to ask at the Bespoke section, where they have all the fridges with big LCD’s, working with Samsung SmartThings. There was a Samsung representative standing there and I began more cautiously, by asking if the guy “knows about these things”. The guy eyebrowed at me in a meaningful way but of course, when I asked him about Matter, he immediately found his superior, who took over - and he said Samsung has everything. And I asked “Really, with Matter, even like induction cookers?” and he said yes and took me to the induction cookers and started explaining that the induction plate (next to which we were now standing) uses a Samsung developed material that is 100 % resistant to scratches etc… Wait, materials? Who asked anything about…? Oh… It clicked then - mix Matter and a senior (i think Italian) sales rep and you get materials 🙂

This was enough for me to conclude the story about Matter enabled white appliances… They are (as our CTO nicely put it) like high school sex. Everybody talks about it but no one is actually having it :)

Routers and Thread

The last thing to check was if some of the bigger router companies are doing anything with Thread. It would be cool to be able to buy a router with Thread connectivity so you wouldn’t be dependent on the few integrations that are currently on the market. There were a couple of halls dedicated to Connectivity but there were not many router manufacturers to be found.

First I found Belkin. They told me they haven't made routers since when they split with Linksys. Linksys was not there. D-Link was not there. I later saw there was BroadLink but I somehow missed their booth. So the only two booths I ended up visiting were those of TP-Link and Fritzbox.

TP-Link

I came to the TP-Link booth and was quickly greeted by a very friendly and quite knowledgeable sales representative. I asked him if TP Link has or is working on a product that would have a Thread radio. He understood the issue and said he thinks TP Link is working on something. He seemed quite honest so maybe TP Link is working on something. Or it could be nothing.

Fritzbox

At the Fritzbox booth they also had a nice and very knowledgeable sales rep who told me that they do not plan to support Thread. They have a smart home gateway that supports Zigbee, Matter over WiFi and DECT.

So no stable Thread solution from the networking guys — at least not yet.

Final Thoughts

All in all it’s always nice to visit Berlin, despite the fact that these exhibitions rarely offer something to blow you away. I met with a few partners and industry professionals which is always good to see if your compass is calibrated correctly.

IFA itself felt like there were less big name exhibitors and less visitors as well.

On a more important note, did I get answers to my three big questions?

• Matter transport: Thread is still seen as the future of wireless Smart home. Companies are adopting it, representatives always sound proud when they are talking about one of their products using Thread.
• Matter white appliances: Like high school sex — everybody talks about it, nobody’s actually doing it.
• Thread infrastructure: While there might be some professional solutions worth testing (maybe from Aqara), after talking to the few router companies at IFA, it looks like we’re still stuck with Apple/Google Thread solutions for now.

So in the end I got answers, maybe not the ones that I was looking for but still. It was a nice two day visit if the Innovation For All 2025.

So here’s the million-euro question I keep hearing, again and again: what actually makes a home smart?

Some people still swear it means clapping your hands and—ta-da!—the lights go on. (Yes, that thing from cheesy ‘80s TV ads. Shockingly, it still exists. No, I don’t recommend it unless you want your dog barking at the TV to also trigger your kitchen lights.)

Others dream of the sci-fi version: homes dripping with sensors, endless automations, triggers upon triggers until the house practically develops a personality disorder. And to be fair, that’s closer to what I’d call genuinely smart. Add some AI, and your home might start texting you life advice too.

But here’s the truth: before we even get to the Hollywood part, there’s a boring, unsexy, roll-your-eyes basic thing that must be sorted out first. Otherwise, you’ll move into your shiny new smart home and instantly hate it.

That thing is… manual controls.

Manual Controls: The Ugly Truth

I know, I know. Nobody wants to talk about light switches when they could be bragging about their solar panels, geofenced garage doors, or a voice assistant that can (sometimes) understand your kids. But let’s face it:

👉 90% of all smart home interactions are still done manually.

Yes. With boring, good-old push buttons. Why? Because we’re human. We walk into a room and—click—the light comes on. It’s subconscious. Hard-wired.

And no, it doesn’t matter if one person in the family is obsessed with automation. You will never, ever design enough automations that your in-laws, kids, or guests don’t at some point just reach for a button. Manual control is not negotiable.

Why Modern Homes Are a Button Apocalypse

Now here’s where it gets messy. In “the good old days,” control was easy: one room, one light, one switch. Done.

But modern design? Oh no.

• One living room → 5+ lights.
• Blinds? Of course. Motorized, naturally.
• Add dimming, tunable white, colors, and more.

And suddenly, what used to be one flick is now a wall of buttons straight out of a spaceship cockpit. In my own living/dining/kitchen area, I have 9 lights and 3 blinds. That’s 12 elements to control. Which means: 12 buttons. Which means: goodbye subconscious living, hello button Olympics.

And this, dear reader, is why so many people move into their “dream smart home” and immediately think: what have I done?

How We End Up With Walls Full of Buttons

It’s not a coincidence. There’s a process problem behind it:

1. Architects care about aesthetics, button design, and placement, but almost never functionality.
2. Electrical designers are usually subcontractors, disconnected from the client. They think in old-school terms: one switch per light, one button per motor.
3. Lighting designers come in later and multiply the number of lights by 1.5–3×. They rarely think about control.
4. Because there are now more lights then switches, the electrical designer is called back in and their solution is very straighforward. Just add more buttons.

The result: walls cluttered with switches. And a frustrated homeowner.

At this stage, the only salvation is the smart home integrator.

The Integrator’s Dilemma

A good integrator recognizes the problem, talks with the client, and redesigns the control layout—often remapping push button panels, proposing changes, and coordinating with the electrical designer.

But here’s the catch:

• It takes time and effort (often unpaid).
• Clients don’t always understand the value until they experience the problem themselves.
• Many installers avoid the headache and stick to blaming the original design.

Only the more dedicated integrators push through the extra meetings, iterations, and coordination to make sure the client actually enjoys living in the home. It’s hard work, but it makes the difference between a smart home that frustrates and one that delights.

The Real Fix: Scene-Based Push Buttons

And this is where scenes come in.

Scenes are the foundation of smart living. They let you control an entire room—or even the whole house—with a single button press. Instead of 12 buttons, you have 3 or 4 carefully chosen ones.

This is what makes control feel subconscious again.

A few examples:

• All Off – for leaving or going to bed.
• Cooking – functional brightness in the kitchen.
• Evening – a cozy mix of dimmed lights.
• Movie – the perfect ambience for watching TV.

It doesn’t take many. Just a handful of thoughtful scenes turn chaos into calm.

Even better is when the system allows you to edit and fine-tune scenes yourself. Over time, you’ll naturally adjust brightness and color temperature to match your routines. Having the ability to save those tweaks without calling your integrator is a big plus. After all it's impossible to plan perfect ambients without seeing those ambients with your own eyes.

A Pro-Tip: Multi-scene push-buttons

Scene buttons do have one quirk: if the scene is already active, pressing the button again does… nothing. That creates a subtle but annoying feeling that the system isn’t responding.

My solution? Toggle between two scenes on a single button.

Here’s how you do it:

• Trigger: button press.
• Condition: check if a certain light - unique to one of the two scenes - is on or off. If you don't have such a light you can also choose another condition that is specific to one of the scenes (certain dimming percentage of a light etc.)
• Action: activate the scene that fits the condition.

This way, the button always “does something,” keeping control intuitive and satisfying.

Let me give you a concrete example from the Dr. Smart Home dwelling. We need two evening scenes in the living area - and these are controlled with the same push button:

• One press switches to “Evening TV” scene (dimmed, cozy).
• Another press toggles back to a brighter “Evening More Light” (better for reading or talking).

On the screenshots below you can see how I created these scenes with Scene editor within my 1Home local dashboard. The third screenshot shows a part of my automation (done with Automations editor within my 1H Dashboard) that binds the created scenes to a push button (long press in this case) through a condition that checks if Palma Light is on or no.

I have been thinking to create more scenes with different brightness levels so that whenever you would push the button the scene would go one brighter and then loop around - but that would probably be hard to explain to other house members who are generally not very fond of me instructing them on how they have to control the home.

The Takeaway(s)

I guess the major takeaway should be to fix the basics before going into Star Trek mode with smart homes. A smart home is not defined by how many sensors or AI-powered features it has. It’s defined by whether people can live in it comfortably—without friction, without confusion, without endless fiddling.

That comfort starts with manual controls, and the most powerful tool we have for making them simple and intuitive is scene-based push buttons.

If you’re building or designing a smart home for yourself or someone else, don’t underestimate this. Scenes are not a optional. They’re the foundation. Take time to explain this to the client and implement it in every project.

As a bonus takeaway I would only say this - when you are planning your smart home, have your lighting solution ready and in the final stage before the electricity design is completed. It will save you a lot of time & money and will generally contribute to a better fina result.

Let’s be honest. In an ideal world, customer support wouldn’t even exist.

Perfect products, perfect users, perfect outcomes. No questions, no errors, no “why is this blinking red?” moments. Just smooth efficiency, day after day.

But back here on planet Earth, things look a little different. Someone will always try to paint a wall with toothpaste. And when your product happens to be a piece of smart home technology—layered with routers, Wi-Fi dead zones, third-party installers, and a dozen integrations—it’s not toothpaste anymore, it’s superglue.

Which brings us to support: the necessary glue holding everything together when reality doesn’t match the brochure.

Support as a Daily Reset

Recently, I spent two weeks covering support at 1Home.

A support teammate took some well-deserved time off, and rather than handing the inbox to someone else, I decided to step in myself. After all, “This looks like a job for Dr. Smart Home.” It had been a while since I’d been on the frontlines, and the timing felt right. What better way to recalibrate than by experiencing support firsthand again?

It also brought me full circle. When I first joined 1Home—coming in as COO with a strong sales background—I deliberately spent my first month in support. It was the fastest way to understand where the real problems were. Back then I learned an important truth: if you want to create meaningful solutions in this area, you can’t just sit above the process. You have to roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty.

Here’s the thing: support is both satisfying and strangely Sisyphean. Every closed ticket gives you that little dopamine hit—like finishing a mission in a role-playing game. “Yes! Quest complete. Customer saved. +10 XP.”

But the next morning, you log back in… and you’re at square one. None of yesterday’s victories matter. A fresh wave of quests awaits, and you’re back in the trenches. It reminded me of the Alethi on the Shattered Plains in The Way of Kings: armies clashing in fierce battles every day, not to end the war, but to gather gemstones for their highprinces. The soldiers fight, bleed, and win ground — only to have it all reset by the next dawn. Support can feel the same: meaningful in the moment, yet strangely cyclical, with no final victory waiting at the end.

It’s addictive (just one more ticket…) and demoralizing (why am I still on level 1?) all at once. And it gave me a deep respect for the professionals who live in this cycle every day.

Why Support Feels Broken

Support is also where you see all the cracks in a company. Step into the inbox, and suddenly you’re looking at problems that aren’t “support” at all:

• Sales questions that belong with sales.
• Logistics questions about returns and shipments.
• Accounting questions about invoices and refunds.
• Marketing questions (“let's exchange some backlinks…”).
• Lot's of mumbo jumbo like promotions, requests for donations, even some looney toons characters out of another dimension :)

Meanwhile, you’re also trying to spot the critical tickets—like system integrators under pressure on-site—before they get buried under “How do I reset my password?”

The truth is, products are rarely priced to include real, human support. If you buy a couple of hundred € tech product - how many hours of one-on-one attention can a company afford to give you before they start losing money? It’s why big tech companies funnel you through forums, bots, and endless FAQs.

If engineers charged like lawyers or bankers, we could have armies of support staff solving every problem under the sun. But they don’t. Instead, support becomes a daily exercise in triage, transfer, and trade-offs.

Think about it: a single exam at the doctor or a 15-minute consultation with a lawyer can cost as much as an entire piece of technology. A notary places one stamp on a document and the bill is €400 — no maintenance, no after-sales questions, no version 2.0 three years later. Architects and accountants can invoice you for a phone call. Yet the time of the people who design and maintain the very systems we rely on every hour of our lives is treated as if it were free.

Meanwhile, tech products don’t just appear. They have to be developed, manufactured, maintained, and — inevitably — supported. And by the time you’ve done all that, the product is halfway to being outdated. The economics simply don’t allow for infinite human support, which is why efficiency, triage, and smart process design matter so much.

Support as Calibration

We can’t change the price of notary stamps or the billing model of lawyers, but we can shape how support works inside our own walls. And one of the most effective ways to do that is to occasionally step into support ourselves — not as a stunt, but as a form of calibration.

Because here’s what happens when you do:

1. You rediscover the human side of technology—the confusion, the frustration, the relief when it finally works.
2. You spot the process gaps—where tickets get lost, misrouted, or slowed down.
3. You get a reality check on how your product actually behaves in the wild, routers and installers included.

Support isn’t just a function. It’s a mirror. It shows you what’s working, what’s broken, and where you’re letting customers down.

The Strange Truth About Engineers

One final conspiracy theory for you: if doctors or bakers stopped working today, we’d have chaos tomorrow. If engineers stopped working today, it would take a little longer—just until the systems and gadgets we all rely on started breaking down.

And when that happens, it won’t be the engineers we hear from first. It’ll be the support teams, picking up the phones, answering the tickets, and holding everything together with human patience.

So maybe customer support shouldn’t exist in an ideal world. But in this one, it’s one of the most important professions we’ve got.

Massive respect.

✨ Dr. Smart Home, signing off — now back to Level 1.

I love tinkering with my smart home. My passion lies in finding practical solutions that enable optimal living within a smart home setup. Whether it's crafting recipes to solve the multi-remote issue or brainstorming how to automate lighting so it’s helpful without being intrusive (a piece on that may come in the future), I’m always exploring. One area where I consistently see room for improvement is HVAC control.

In Europe, we have cooling seasons, heating seasons, and transitional periods when neither is required. When I was a kid, cooling wasn’t even necessary, but today, most modern homes are equipped with at least one source for heating and one for cooling. So whenever you’re setting up automations, you need to account for both modes (OK, there are technically three, but since the third just turns everything off, it’s not so tricky to set up 🙂).

Even though today's topic could apply to heating as well, we’ll focus only on cooling for now. It’s summer, after all—not the ideal time to tweak heating systems 🙂

In my previous Dr. Smart Home pieces, I wrote about a hack to switch a Matter-enabled Eberle thermostat into cooling mode. Getting the setup into cooling mode is essential for the continuation of the hacking described below.

The Holy Offset

What’s been bothering me for ages across all kinds of smart home systems is the underwhelming performance of in-wall temperature sensors. I’m talking about any temperature sensor built into an in-wall thermostat, LCD display, push button, or touch panel. Cheap brands, expensive brands—everyone suffers from the same issue.

These in-wall sensors are flawed in two key ways. Most of the time, they report a temperature that’s offset from the actual room temperature. That’s logical: inside a wall box or behind a switch, there’s little airflow, the electronics generate heat, and the surrounding wall mass plays a major role. Walls heat and cool slowly (exact behavior depends on the wall type, but let’s set that aside for now), and they retain temperature far longer than the surrounding air. All of this makes it nearly impossible for an in-wall sensor to show an accurate temperature throughout the year. Sure, you can apply a software offset, but that usually just makes the reading even more inaccurate during the opposite season.

An even bigger issue—again due to physics—is the slow response time. When there are rapid changes in temperature, like turning on the A/C or opening a window on a hot day, these sensors can’t keep up.

This leads to frustrated users. (How many times have we seen new KNX-equipped homeowners pull out a portable sensor to prove something isn’t working as expected?) Sometimes users don’t notice—or they stop caring after a while. But if you have a demanding client, you can easily sink hours into trying to solve this with limited success.

Goodbye A/C remote? Think again

This is also the core reason why A/C logic tends to fail. Because of the offset, the sensor shows a temperature higher than the actual air temperature (which itself is never constant, but that’s a topic for another day). So the A/C kicks in too early. Then, even after running for a while, people start to feel cold—yet the in-wall sensor barely registers a 0.5–1°C drop. The only way to turn the A/C off at that point is to set the thermostat’s setpoint way higher. Then it gets hot again, and you have to lower it back down.

I’ve seen this scenario play out in countless projects—often ending in the customer requesting a return to trusty old remotes. It was the same in my humble abode. And when my wife and kid are napping and the chores are done, I become Dr. Smart Home, spending hours saving the world one smart home tweak at a time. Today’s battle: the in-wall temperature sensor.

Matter comes into play

If you’ve been following my earlier ramblings, you already know my setup consists of a Matter-enabled Eberle thermostat and a Mitsubishi A/C split unit.

The Eberle device is a pro-grade thermostat—not a Kinder Surprise gadget like some other products on the market. Sensor quality and general implementation are on par with high-end thermostats, whether KNX, classical, or otherwise. Eberle has a strong history in this field, and their Matter-enabled version is essentially their proven hardware with added connectivity. A proper German product. But even that doesn’t solve the problems described above.

The only real solution is to use an external sensor—not mounted in the wall. This doesn’t eliminate the issue 100%, but it reduces it enough that most people (and use cases) won’t notice.

At home, I use two external sensors. One is in the SwitchBot Hub 2, mounted in the kids’ room. I was surprised by how responsive it is. When I first tested it, I compared it to the HomePod Mini sensor—night and day. The SwitchBot reacts instantly when the window is opened, while the HomePod lags significantly.

The other sensor is built into my Nature Remo Lapis device, which I use for IR control of basically everything (A/C & A/V). This one isn’t as fast as the SwitchBot (more like the HomePod), but it’s still leagues ahead of any in-wall sensor. For this test, I’ll be using the Nature Remo sensor—partly because its behavior resembles most IoT sensors I’ve used, and partly because I’m too lazy to dismount the SwitchBot from the kids' room.

Field Data

It’s July 27th, 16:32 in Ljubljana. The day has been (not super) hot, and we’re moving into a warm evening—though it’s mild for this time of year. My windows have been open all day and I haven’t run the A/C. Here are the readings:

• Outdoor temperature (OpenWeather Map): 27°C
• Indoor temperature (Eberle thermostat): 28.5°C
• Indoor temperature (Nature Remo Lapis): 27.6°C
• Indoor temperature (SwitchBot Hub 2): 27°C

And this is in the evening. In the cooler, overcast morning, the difference was even greater: 27.5°C on Eberle vs. 25.3°C on Nature Remo.

The Salvation

I logged into the 1Home local dashboard and opened my HVAC automation. In the picture below is the condition that determines whether cooling is turned on or off. (One day I’ll make this more sophisticated—with different thresholds, humidity hysteresis, and dry/cool/off mode switching. But for now it’s one simple threshold.)

Previously, the automation logic was:

“Current temperature according to Eberle sensor – current setpoint from Eberle thermostat”

Now, I simply switched the current temperature reference to the Nature Remo sensor:

“Current temperature according to Nature Remo sensor – current setpoint from Eberle thermostat”

Here’s how the modified condition looks:

With this change, my A/C automation performs noticeably better than when relying on the suffocated wall-mounted sensors. If you want a sensor to serve you well—it needs to breathe.

One tradeoff

One drawback to this hack is that the Eberle thermostat's own display no longer reflects the temperature controlling the A/C. That means it could show that the A/C should be running—when in reality, it's off. I don’t expect this to be a major issue, but if it becomes a nuisance or I discover any flaws in my otherwise genius solution, I’ll report back.

I could fine-tune things further by moving the sensor to a better spot in the room (right now it’s near a south-facing window, where summer temps are higher than elsewhere), but... Tour de France is starting soon, so I’ll take my leave 😀 Go Pogi!! Go Rogla!!

With upcoming updates, we added a powerful new way to gain insight into your system: Graphs.

They make it possible to see the state of your home at a glance, not just in the moment but over time.

Instead of relying only on live values, you can now look back and spot patterns, trends, or anomalies that tell a bigger story about how your smart home projects behave.

Device History at a Glance

Every device in your dashboard now comes with a History tab. You can access it from the Devices view in 1Home Dashboard and clicking Configure on a specific device.

From there you can access the history tab.

Selecting it reveals a timeline of recent values, such as the last 24 hours of activity from a humidity sensor. You can adjust the time range to see shorter or longer windows, making it easier to diagnose issues.

If humidity levels are consistently high, for example, you might notice it’s time to fine-tune your ventilation automation. Device history provides the first layer of visibility—clear and specific to each device.

A Dedicated Graphs Section

Beyond individual devices, you can now explore a full Graphs section on the left side of the dashboard under “Insights”. Here you’ll find an overview of every room in your project, with automatically generated graphs for temperature, humidity, brightness, occupancy, and more.

Multiple sensors of the same type in one room are combined on a single graph, giving you a complete picture of what’s happening in that space. This turns raw values into a story of how each room evolves throughout the day.

Building Custom Graphs

Automatic graphs are just the start. With custom graphs, you can track exactly the metrics that matter most for your projects.

You can create your own custom graphs by clicking + Add in the top right corner of the Graphs section, giving it a name and adding the correct metrics.

In the dining room, for example, you might want to visualize CO₂ levels. By selecting the group address directly, the graph is created instantly. From here, you can layer multiple attributes, like temperature, set points, or operating modes, to build more comprehensive views.

Creating Custom Views

Sometimes a single graph is not enough. That’s why we also added the ability to build custom views dedicated to a theme - like energy.

On the left side of the Graps section, there’s a list of all the different rooms. At the very top of that list you’ll see a “Custom” section and next to it a + sign. By clicking on it you can create your own custom view.

Within the custom energy view, you can create graphs for car charging, combining both current power draw and total energy consumed, resulting in overlapping graphs, which allows for an easy comparison of Related Metrics.

Adjusting the time range lets you see patterns across minutes, days, or even weeks. Vacation periods or spikes in activity are revealed in seconds.

Why Graphs Matter

Graphs transform raw KNX and system data into clarity. They allow you to see not only what is happening, but also how it develops over time. Trends become visible. Anomalies stand out. And optimizations are easier to plan.

With this update, every integrator gains a powerful new tool for monitoring, troubleshooting, and fine-tuning projects.

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