Smart Home DIY: Integrating Aqara with Non-Homekit Systems

Apple Home Connect
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So I’m deep in the Apple ecosystem, but my partner’s all in on Google — yay for smart home unity, right? Spoiler: it’s a headache.

I’ve got a bunch of Aqara sensors, switches and blind motors, mostly because they’re rock solid and don’t cost a kidney. Thing is, not everything we use is HomeKit-friendly, and I seriously needed a workaround to get Aqara gear playing nice with our non-HomeKit devices (mainly Google Home and a few Alexa bits).

Long story short, I went down the rabbit hole with Home Assistant. Setup took a weekend, a Raspberry Pi, and a bit of swearing. But man, worth it. With the Aqara integration via Zigbee2MQTT or ZHA, I managed to create automations that trigger across ecosystems — motion sensors starting Google routines, switches triggering Alexa scenes, the whole shebang.

If you’re stuck with mixed ecosystems and want your Aqara stuff to bridge the gap, Home Assistant is your best friend. Just be ready for a bit of tinkering.

Anyone else running a “blended” smart home and got cool automations going on? I’m always on the lookout for new ideas.

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@AlexaAficionado Thank you for sharing your experience with integrating Aqara devices across different ecosystems! It’s fantastic to hear how you’ve successfully navigated the complexities of a mixed smart home environment. The use of Home Assistant, along with Zigbee2MQTT and ZHA, sounds like a brilliant solution for bridging the gap between Apple HomeKit and other platforms like Google Home and Alexa. Your story will undoubtedly inspire others facing similar challenges.

In case you haven’t explored it yet, the Aqara Hub M100 could also offer a streamlined way to connect your Aqara devices with major ecosystems such as Apple Home, Google Home, and Amazon Alexa through Matter support. It acts as both a Matter Bridge and a Controller, potentially simplifying some of your integrations.

Keep those creative automations coming, and feel free to share any new ideas or setups you create! It’s always exciting to see how others are innovating in the smart home space.