ClearGrass Preparing HomeKit Temperature/Humidity Sensor With Display

It’s generally known, at least amongst us geeks that follow anything and everything ‘smart home’, that Xiaomi’s ecosystem is in part, made up of a series of small startups, assisted in their journey by Xiaomi, with Aqara and Yeelight being the two most well known and successful examples. Another such company is ClearGrass, who earlier this year released a very attractive looking temperature and humidity sensor, that not only had a display but deployed E-Ink technology to provide a very clear and easily readable one, that puts regular LCD displays to shame.

The current ClearGrass temperature & Humidity sensor only utilises Bluetooth, and as such is confined to the Mi Home app, as only certain recent WiFi-based devices (the Mi Desk Lamp Pro for example), or ZigBee-based devices that go through the Aqara hub, are able to connect to HomeKit. This looks set to change, however, with the rumoured release of a new version of the aforementioned sensor, specifically with HomeKit compatibility. The current sensor by ClearGrass has a model number of CGG1, whilst the homeKit version, unsurprisingly, will be CGG1H.

The new model will most likely follow the same design cues as the current model, with not only the E-Ink display, but the options to have it sat at a desk, with an extendable kickstand, or mounted on a wall with the included magnetic mount.

This new model will still utilise Bluetooth but will allegedly come with HomeKit compatibility out of the box. There has been recent speculation that, with the eventual release of the new HomeKit compatible Mijia and Aqara hubs, both of which will come with Bluetooth connectivity, many of the existing Bluetooth devices within the Mi Home system will be exposed to HomeKit. That may not come to pass, as although many devices can automatically get access to HomeKit via a hub, without being HomeKit compatible themselves, they still have to be certified by Apple, so it’s more likely that newer devices will start to appear, like the ClearGrass product.

Whilst there are many temperature and humidity sensors available for HomeKit, there aren’t too many with a display, and certainly not many with the qualities that E-Ink can provide, save for the 2nd generation Eve Room, which also includes a VOC sensor. If this new HomeKit-enabled version is anywhere near the price of the current model, then it’s bound to be a hit, even if it does use Bluetooth.

Thanks to Bing Feng Yeh for the heads up