Hard to believe, but the Aqara Forum is officially turning one year old! To celebrate our very first anniversary, we thought it would be fun to take a look back. But today, we don’t want to talk about the forum—we want to talk about your beginning.
Every smart home setup starts somewhere. Maybe you began with a single door sensor, or perhaps you dived straight into the deep end with a Hub and a house full of switches.
We’d love to hear your Aqara “origin story.”
Tell us what that first device was, why you picked it up, and what kind of setup or automation you used it for. Don’t be shy about posting pictures of your early setups, either!
How to join
It’s super easy. Just create a new post in the forum sharing your story, and choose the hashtag My-First-Aqara for your post.
Prizes
First Prize (2 winners): Aqara Multi-State Sensor P100 Second Prize (5 winners): 200 Points Everyone Wins: 20 Points
Winners will be announced on April 10th. Likes and comments will be one of the factors influencing the winner’s selection. If the prize is not available in your region, it will be replaced with another Aqara product that is available.
We’ll be reading through all of them. Can’t wait to see what got you guys into the Aqara ecosystem in the first place!
Hello, it was back in 2019. Temperature (humidity) sensor and smart socket. Automation of maintaining humidity in the bathroom. What was my surprise when I brought these accessories home (sensor and smart socket) that I needed to have some kind of gateway🤣.
And after that, IT “FLYED”, now in the house, or rather in two houses, there are 290 devices. My-First-Aqara
It all started with the Camera Hub G2H for our garage. I used an Aqara Wireless Mini Switch to control/automate the garage door. I really liked the products and their integration with Apple Home so a while after that the G2H Pro and later the G4 followed. Now I also have G100s, LED bulbs and a G350. Been pretty happy so far. Especially considering the modest price for a full home surveillance solution.
I was living in military housing that was notorious for plumbing backing up in the basement, so I needed a sensor to warn me it was happening.
The water sensor was key to my scenario, so I got a bunch of those and a M1S, which helped save valuables in my basement and told me the sink was leaking too! My-First-Aqara
I bought my first Aqara hub in November 2018 from Aliexpress and connected to the Chinese server. Used it in Apple Homekit. Bought door/window sensors, Xiaomi Mijia Honeywell Fire Alarm Detectors, motion sensors, leak sensors and light bulbs and filled the house. In March 2020 I received an email from Filipp inviting me to the Aqara Beta test, it ended up in the spam email, but the invitation in June 2020 was my first test. It’s been an exciting journey so far and the road ahead will be exciting. My-First-Aqara
Hey all! I first started with the Xiaomi Mijis hub kit and the temperature sensor/ movement sensor! Then I got the info that Aqara will be come to Europe / USA and expand the product line with G2H …. But this took too long for me so I imported the Hub 1gen from China and some temperature/ window / smart plug and E27 bulb and finally was able to integrate this setup to HomeKit !!! That was my first big step into smart home and this was also a start into my addiction into Aqara products!
Then the next big step was the invitation for my first beta test for Aqara (G2H finally) !
So I really must say thanks to @aqara and Fillip @Andrew_A@Aqara_PM_Donie@Caroline_Zzz
Still have fun with their products and proud to be little part of it
!
My Aqara journey started with a very small problem that kept annoying me: I would leave home and then wonder, Did I close the door properly? Did I leave a window open?
So my very first Aqara device was the Door and Window Sensor .
I picked it up because it felt like the perfect way to dip my toes into smart home tech without overcomplicating things. It was small, affordable, easy to install, and most importantly, it solved a real everyday problem.
My first setup was simple, but it felt amazing at the time: I placed it on the main door and set up a basic automation so I’d know when the door was opened or left open longer than expected. Not long after that, I added another one to a window and started building little routines around it.
That was the moment smart home stopped feeling like a gadget and started feeling genuinely useful.
What I loved most was that Aqara made it easy to start small. I didn’t need to automate the whole house on day one. One tiny sensor was enough to show me how convenient, practical, and even a little addictive home automation could be
From there, one device turned into a hub, then more sensors, then more automations… and before I knew it, I was fully pulled into the Aqara ecosystem.
Looking back, that first device was the start of everything. It wasn’t flashy, but it was the one that made me realize how much smoother everyday life can feel when your home quietly helps in the background.
My-First-Aqara wow! Was in 2023, and they were four products, an E1 Hub, a Leak Sensor, a Vibration Sensor and a Plug.
My first two automations were a leak notification and a IF nigh table vibrates THEN turn ON/OFF the table light! It was amazing for me then
Now I have 49 @AqaraOfficial devices at home, I’m usually the first to try new products still not in sale in Europe, I stay in touch with Chinese sellers to be the first to try. I have the Aqara App on two devices, one set on Chinese region, the other on Spain region to be able to try every new product!
I became a freak!
Regards!
I had to pause and refill on caffein for a moment to help recall my Aqara origins.
Around July of 2021 Apple, Hue, LifX, Lutron and Eve were not cutting the mustard and falling short so I began looking for a better solution to my needs.
Aqara’s Hub M1S, Door and Window Sensor, Temperature Sensor and Water Leak Sensor immediately popped up on my radar.
After the easy install and seeing how well they worked with Apple Home I was hooked. Take my $ now!
I began trying to learn as much as I could about everything “Smart Home” and the rest is history.
My oldest Aqara device ( purchased in 2023 )is a Smart Magic Switch S1E and a Dual Relay Module in every room for blind control. Always reliable for years
All the best to you
I have so many now I had to dive back in my order history to find My-First-Aqara and it was the U-50 door lock. Followed by a couple security cameras. A troubled neighbor had recently broken into one of our cars and our front door lock was not in great condition (and 25+ years old). We had also lost track of which neighbors had keys and it was just a very uncomfortable situation.
Then we read about the Aqara locks and fell in love. The idea of not bringing keys with us when we walked the dogs but just unlocking with our Apple Watch was just so awesome. Honestly now I wish the keypad to the garage door opener could just be watch tapped.
Once we finish with this wedding business (stupidly expensive) we plan on swapping out the rest of the ring cameras for Aqara and putting a U400 on the front door and moving the U50 to one of the back two doors. And popping a new 50 onto the other one. We’ll have a fully Aqara secure house then.
I only started quite recently, like two years ago. I started with three H2 EU dimmer switches, a H2 EU light switch and two P2 door sensors My-First-Aqara
– all in Matter mode directly into my Apple TV 4K as Matter hub. I also combined that with an Eberle UTE3800 Matter controlled floor heating thermostat in the bathroom which fits perfectly in an Aqara double frame – see image.
My first Aqara device was the Wireless Mini Switch, or as my family calls it: “The Gateway Drug”.
It started innocently enough (just one click to turn off the lamp). But then, I discovered the double click. Then the long press… And suddenly, I was lurking in the hallway at 2 AM, programming party modes and emergency coffee scenes. That tiny button turned my house into a living robot and turned me into a smart-home addict!
To celebrate our very first anniversary, we thought it would be fun to take a look back. But today, we don’t want to talk about the forum—we want to talk about your beginning.First Prize (2 winners): Aqara Multi-State Sensor P100
Second Prize (5 winners): 200 Points
Everyone Wins: 20 Points
Been pretty happy so far. Especially considering the modest price for a full home surveillance solution.
Always reliable for years 
