HomeKit and Matter gear at CES 2023

We got hands-on with all the new smart home products that work with Apple HomeKit so far this year, trying out everything from smart lights to wall-mounted controllers. All the items we highlight here work directly with Apple Home – via HomeKit, Matter or Siri Shortcuts.

Roborock S8 Pro Ultra

The ever-popular Roborock S7 MaxV Ultra is being taken over by a completely new model this year. The just announced Roborock S8 Pro Ultra is the successor to the S7 MaxV Ultra and comes with several improvements. There are now two rollers at the bottom of the vacuum cleaner that ensure that dirt is directed into the bot's dustbin. Roborock has now upgraded the suction power to 6,000 Pa, and the rollers raise when only in mopping mode. When mopping, there is now a second scrubbing motor, doubling the oscillating pattern that cleans your floors. Roborock told us during our hands-on that it has also updated the sensors and processing to make it smart and more reliable than its predecessor.

This model still comes with an empty wash filling station, which now has a redesigned appearance and covers the front with a single piece of plastic. It's a much sleeker look than previous versions. When docking, the station will empty the trash can, clean the mop, drain the dirty water and refill the bot with fresh water – the same as the S7 MaxV Ultra. What's new is that it now blows hot air on the mop to dry it, preventing the growth of bacteria and odors. Technically, HomeKit doesn't support vacuum cleaners, but this can be integrated into HomeKit scenes using the built-in support for Siri Shortcuts.

Nanoleaf

Nanoleaf had plenty to show off at CES this year for HomeKit users. The Sense+ range of smart learning switches is finally being released after the company waited for Matter to launch. The switches learn based on user activity and over time they will proactively control the lighting in your room. Nanoleaf will sell a switch, a dimmer, and a learning hub, although some of the company's other lighting products can also act as that hub.

In addition to switches, Nanoleaf also launches Skylight lamps. These ceiling mounted tiles can expand to different shapes and patterns and support millions of colors.

Twinkly

We were able to see Twinkly's new light panels first-hand at CES, where it also showed off its mirror software. The demo had a PC playing game footage, and that footage played, albeit grainy, on a wall of Twinkly tiles.

Apple Home can turn the lights on and off, adjust the brightness and change the color.

Yeelight

With the launch of Matter, Yeelight was one of the public companies to announce new products. Now we got our first look at Yeelight's new matter-based lighting cubes.

The cubes come in three configurations, including a solid gradient block, small round dots, or a mini spot. They can be connected magnetically to create any desired arrangement. The company's app lets you create other lighting effects, such as a music visualizer, or display the time.

Govee

Govee was big on showing off its AI-powered HDMI sync box, but it lacks HomeKit or Matter support. The AI ​​allows the lights to respond to in-game actions, such as defeating a boss.

In the HomeKit space, Govee's M1 Light Strip is certified to work with Matter, making it the first Govee product to work with the Home app.

SwitchBot Hub 2

SwitchBot's Hub 2 now works with Matter and offers native support for the Home app for the first time.

The new hub also adds the company's other products to HomeKit. The company demonstrated how the existing SwitchBot door lock and curtain controller can be displayed and controlled via the Home app. This is especially great for users who have purchased these SwitchBot products before.

Eve

Eve has announced that Eve Motion, Eve Door & Window and Eve Energy will be available with out-of-the-box Matter support from the end of Q1 2023. They will be some of the very first Matter devices at retail, while they will receive a firmware upgrade after purchase.

In terms of new products, the company has new options for HomeKit-controlled Venetian and honeycomb blinds, plus a retrofit option for those with existing roller blinds. All MotionBlinds products work with Thread and are promised to be upgraded to support Matter in the future.

GE Cync

GE's Cync line has historically not supported Apple Home, but with Matter that will change.

Lutron

Lutron showed off several new colorways for its Claro switches, which are now available in black, light almond, ivory, brown and gray in addition to white.

Next up, a new Claro accessory switch was announced that can be set to provide an additional control point in a room without increasing the accessory limit imposed by Lutron's bridge.

Mui Board 2

Unsurprisingly, the most significant addition to the second-generation Mui board is support for Matter. As a Matter controller, it can control many Matter accessories in your home.

We got to test a demo of Matter support and we were able to tap on the wood surface to interact with it. Tapping on the window allowed us to see the outside temperature and humidity, while tapping the lamp allowed us to control the lights in the room. Everything that is updated has the potential to interact with the Mui board.

Yale Smart Safe

Finally, released right after CES, we have the Yale Smart Safe. You open the Yale Smart Safe with HomeKit, a keyboard or a physical key.

We had the opportunity to test the Yale Smart Safe in our home and found it to be a reliable solution for protecting small objects or documents. It takes just a few moments to unlock via the Home app and with a Home Hub you can access it remotely without purchasing the Yale Connect bridge.