Aqara Hub Firmware Update Adds Alarm to Home app
Aqara have released the latest firmware update for their HomeKit compatible Hub, which brings two main things at first glance. First and foremost, the ‘Security System’ part of the hub is now exposed to HomeKit, so you will see a new icon in your Home app after installing. The second part brings what seems to be full compatibility between the Hub and the Mi Home app. You will be presented with an option to transfer your Hub over to the Mi Home, although you may well have to re-add devices once you make the transfer.
Our advice is to hold off from adding your current hub to the Mi home app for now, if you rely on it for various devices as part of your HomeKit system, as we’ve not had enough time to test for any issues so far. More info as we explore the update in finer detail.
Plus my old double rocker wireless switch is now exposed to HomeKit AK004. Unfortunately it just has the single press option no double or long press, but I can work around that using the 3rd party home app and state conditions. Now I’ve just got to explore how to correctly set up the alarm system.
How can u work around to double press/ long press via home app?
The update has removed the outlets from homekit, which were added with the previuos update
There is also still problem with temperature. Homekit does not display below 0C (error sign), although in Aqara app everything is OK.
Yes, I can confirm all the above mentioned issues. The double rocker wireless switch appeared, MI Zigbee plugs that were present before just disappeared from Homekit and the Aqara temperature sensor does not show tempertaures below freezing in Homekit.
I am not home right now so I can not try to reinstall the plugs but I fear that this is not helping.
I already was happy that I do not have to pay 40-50 euros for a plug…..
Can not understand why they eliminated MI plugs….bastards.
I reconnected hub to mi home, sockets did not appear
They giveth and they taketh!!! hahah
Got to love it, well at least the Alarm can now be used, I might use mine just for that and leave all the real work for the older Hub and Homebridge.
Will it now also be possible to connect the AQARA gateway/hub with Domoticz?
Previously the code wasn’t visible..
I couldn’t get it to work last night. There is no about section when you go to the three dots.
Another problem I encounter: The hub went offline and didn’t came back even after I restarted it.
The arm/disarm via HomeKit makes the correct arm/disarm sound on the Aqara Hub, however it does not change the arm/disarm state in the Aqara app. Anyone else experiencing the same issue?
HomeKit automations based on the alarm work like a charm and also turning the sounding alarm off from HomeKit works perfectly.
How did you make the alarm sound?
I have only arm/ disarm sound.
Step 1: Create an automation in the Aqara app (IF Aqara door/window sensor opens, THEN Alarm: Police car sound 1, Volume: 60 – or whatever alarm sound and volume percentage)
Step 2: Make sure that the automation is enabled in the Aqara app and test the alarm with your door/window sensor or other device(s) you have used to trigger the alarm (e.g. Aqara motion sensor)
Step 3: In HomeKit, the alarm-tile will be triggered whenever the alarm sounds, based on this you can set up HomeKit automations like turn on all the lamps in your house and set them to 100%
Step 4: You can stop the alarm within HomeKit by pressing the alarm-tile (3D or long press)
However, I cannot arm/disarm the alarm within HomeKit, although the Aqara hub makes the arm/disarm sound. That’s a real pity, because then you cannot integrate it into HomeKit automations like Good Night or auto-arm whenever the last person leaves the house. Maybe I’m doing something wrong, or it is a bug for now.
I’m curious: Can you use Automations in HomeKit to trigger the alarm (make the alarm sound) only when its armed and when a 3rd party HomeKit motion detector is triggered?
And can you set-up automations to arm the alarm when going Away / disarm it when arriving back home?
I think that setting up automations for triggering the alarm remains something to be done from the Aqara app. It also gives you the flexibility to add a delay before the alarm goes off for example, something which is not possible in HomeKit (AFAIK).
The hub can be integrated in HomeKit automations based on arm, disarm and alarm trigger events. So to answer your question: it CAN be armed/disarmed based on your location. However, this only makes the arm/disarm sound and does not really arm/disarm the alarm, unfortunately. Seems like a bug to me.
Hi, when i arm, disarm the alarm in homekit it makes this beep sound and tested it whit the aqara motion sensors and alarm goes off so works fine for me, did you add the triggers in the alert settings for the hub whitin mi home app ?
Hi, no I don’t have the Mi Home app installed, I configured everything in the Aqara Home app. Which app did you use, Mi or Aqara?
I just switched from aqara to mi home app, wich gives me much more settings and logs .. u need to install mi home app, then open aqara app, open your hub on it and should be an option to ‘switch hub to mi home app’ or something like that, put that on ‘yes’ then it asked me to update my hub, now u open mi home app and it should be transfered ( i restarted the app few times because it only added a few sensors at first) al my stuff stays visible in homekit app,
After u added hub and childdevices to mi home app u can change more settings for the hub alarm, link trigger devices to it,
When u arm device in homekit, it wil trigger it alarm when the (linked via mi home app) sensor detects. I tested it and works pretty good for me
Thanks for your tip. Unfortunately, whenever the Mi Home app tries to connect to my Aqara Hub it fails at 99% and a voice from the Aqara Hub says “WiFi failed to connect”. This is strange, because I had no problems whatsoever before with the Aqara Home app. And it is double strange because during the connecting process a voice from the Aqara Hub says “WiFi connected successfully” at the beginning (at 0% if I’m not mistaken, and then it fails at 99%). I use several Apple AirPort Express 2nd generation throughout my house. Any ideas?
I ran into another ‘problem’, if i set an automation in homekit (when i leave THEN arm Alarm) but it makes me confirm the automation whith my iphone before it actually happens ( for securety reasons apple says) wich i dont understand, it needs to happen automatic, i understand disarming the alarm requires a confirm for securety reasons but not when i arm it.
There is a simple solution for this.
U need to make 2 automations ,
1: IF i leave THEN put aqara hub light to 31 % brightness.
2: IF the aqara hub light is at 31% ( u need the ‘eve’ app for this because homekit does not support this yet, but shares the automations whit homekit) THEN arm alarm ( this way you do not need to confirm it trough iphone and alarm will trigger automatic when leaving)
U might want to make an automation wich put the brightness bavk to 100% afterwards otherwise if ur aqara hub goes off/on it wil be at 31% stil and arm alarm
Great solution, thanks Tommy.
I have the alarm set when i leave the alarm wil arm and return it wil disable trough homekit, the alarm itself need to be linked whit triggers trough mi home app
Weird if it use to work before, maybe try reset/restart the hub and modem/router? I also had to try it 2/3 times but stopped at randomly percent, also if u succeed to connect to mi home, dont bind annything in aqara app anymore because then nothing wil work in mi app..
After fiddling around a bit with changing the WiFi 5 GHz name on my AirPort Expresses and setting the region in the Mi Home app to Mainland China (it was set to Europe automatically, I live in Europe), I finally got it to work! Thanks Tommy! The Mi Home app is indeed more capable than the Aqara Home app, now everything works in HomeKit, including arming and disarming the alarm! And all HomeKit automations work as expected! 🙂
Hi:
The zigbee outlets doesn’t appear at homekit but the aqara zigbee switch (the old one) now is visible at home app.
This update is pretty pointless, or maybe I just don’t get it??
If you add it to the Mi Home App, it deregisters it from Homekit and the Aqara App, and once in the Mi Home App, I cant add Child devices to it, I can automate it with other devices, but thats moot as none of it will share back to Homekit.
The Alarm feature only works in the Mi Home App, so it has nothing to do with Homekit what so ever.
There is nothing in the Aqara app that allows you to setup and Alarm, if there is a way of making this Homekit Hub integrate the contact and motion sensors into an alarm and add it to Homekit, then please correct me, other wise its limited to JUST the Mi Home eco system and about all you can use it for is a siren and a flashing light, nothing more, I have just wasted more time with this hub, honestly, its a waste of money.
Trying to use this thing is like relieving ones self into a head wind, so back in the desk draw it goes.
I would love to be the QA guy at a company like Aqara, if they brought this product to me to test, I would ram it down the engineers mouth and tell him to go back and do it properly.
I moved hub to mi app and wireless switch now allows double and long press in Homekit app
Interesting, i have the single rocker switch and it only gives me the option on / off, there is an option for the switch trough settings mi home app ‘ change this switch to wireless switch( lights no longer respond)’ i enabled this but still only on/off in homekit app 🙁
As already said: It not possible to arm the security system via HomeKit. The switch suggests that the system is active, but it’s not. This update seems to be buggy.
It is possible, if u configure it trough mi home app
It is now possible if you set it up via the Mi Home app. Based on all the replies posted here, along with another colleague who has shown how it works, I’ll try and do a new post that goes through the procedure.
Hello when the update will be available because my 2 Aqara hubs still don’t see it? But I can see in the Mi Home app that Aqara hub can be added. Ihave even tried to do it in Me Home app even message was that is was successful added but after then didn’t appear in Mi Home app.
I had to sign in again. The app had for some reason signed me out so couldn’t see the update.
I transfered all the sensors(6 sensors) and the hub to the mi home app. Except for some translations, like the door sensor(open/close) option in the automation section wich still is in chineese, everthing works great!
But i still have a few questions. Maybe some of you know the answer.
I don’t have anything in the Aqara app. Not even te hub itself everything i got is in the mi home app. Do i still need the Aqara app for updates of the hub? When i open the Aqara app it asks me if i want to bind the hub. But i’m afraid that if i do that, everything in the mi home app will be gone🤔
Hi Rik
It seems that if you open the Aqara app after having gone through the procedure of adding the Hub to the Mi Home app, it will then spot the Hub and (as you’ve seen) ask if you Bind the Hub. If you do this, it will then re-add the Hub back into the Aqara app and remove it from the Mi Home app. The Hub and all attached devices will still be seen in the Mi Home app, but they will appear as ‘offline’.
Will it now be possible to add the smoke/gas alarm aswell?
I know someone who can add their Mijia/Honeywell smoke detector to the Aqara hub (via the Mi Home app), but it will not be exposed to HomeKit as a device at this point. Maybe that’s a forthcoming update.
Thanks, that means I’ll just have to use the ‘old’ hub for that, for exposing it to HomeKit.
I highly recommend You to start use Mi Home app (even if You got same as me whole set Aqara!)
FORGET about Apple HomeKit – it is even more USELESS :/
Please read my bottom comment
I’ve been FORCED to switch to Mi Home app (under Chinese SLOW servers!) as Aqara app is useless!!!
Still no TRUE arm/disarm alarm!!!!
Apple HomeKit is a not funny joke!! No informations WHEN it was activated – no time when opened doors nor motion!!!!! USELESS!!!
In Mi Home app – I’ve been FORCED to learn Chinese language to translate automations – as still most settings in Chinese!!!!
At least I could change TimeZone there as in Aqara THERE IS NO SUCH A OPTION – just Chinese timezone and….. hell knows what is in “Other Region”
Sorry – I feel SCAMMED by Aqara pay EXTRA for “international” version Hub – wich is DOUBLED PRICE against Xiaomi Hub – which I was STUPID and sold for £7!!! As it was/is working as that STUPID Aqara Hub!!!!
There is MUCH MORE MADNESS just cannot remember – if new Buyer of this Aqara Hub – they will GO THROUGH HELL to understand what is going on in this CRAZINESS!!!!
I just got my Aqara Hub and applied the update. I managed to add the Aqara and Mi door sensors, motion sensors, temp sensors. I also added the Mi button switch but when I try to add the Aqara button the hub says ‘Child device added’ but never makes it to the next screen. I’ve only used the Aqara Hub with the Aqara app and haven’t tried adding the Hub to the Mi app yet.
I also managed to use the sensors to run HomeKit automations to control Hue Lights and the Eve Power outlet.
I then created an account on the China server and logged in which yielded another firmware update which I Guess is the one everyone is talking about. V1.4.7.
The Aqara app now has an added tab for automations. I didn’t bind the hub to the Mi Home app but all the accessories and room settings in the Aqara have gone to default. The hub and accessories are still in the Home app though.
my goodness where are you from you got 30th Nov – I still got 29th Nov and even 5:15pm (17:15)!!!
I’m in Malaysia. It’s about 1:30am. I should be sleeping instead of playing with this. Haha
Logging into the China server seems to set everything in the Aqara app to default and it doesn’t seem to be picking up HomeKit info. If I log out and set to other regions all the HomeKit info and accessories I added earlier are there
Hello! I live in Argentina, and the only update for the aqara app is 1.4.5 (not the 1.4.7 you wrote in an article before). I don’t know if there are updates by different app store localizations.
Aqara hub firmware updated to 1.2.35.
In Aqara app I don’t have the “Automation” button so I don’t have the option to setup an alarm. I don’t have anymore US servers to connect like in the prior version . I can’t login except for mainland china.
Home App shows Mi zigbee outlet (unavailable in previous version).
Hi Marc
I can’t see in the article where I mention the update numbers, but never mind, I’ve just double checked my app and firmware – it’s the Aqara Hub Firmware that is v. 1.4.7. The app is at v. 1.4.5. Just double check that when updated the app it hasn’t signed you out, as that is what happened to me. Previously I was signed in to the China, but after the app update it said I was on ‘other region’. Once you are signed in to the China server there should be a firmware update for the hub.
Hi Simon!!!! thank you for your comments. I found about Aqara app version number here: https://homekitnews.com/2018/11/22/bulbs-mi-home-alarms/ “Update for Aqara hub to 1.4.7, due 25 Nov, also showing ‘Works with Mijia’ logo”
I’m still in 1.4.5 and no updates in Apple App Store for v. 1.4.7. It is no problem if I have no alarms yet. But I would like to have a better integration and more devices from Aqara and Mijia in my Apple Home App
Keep this website like this. It’s great!!!!!
Hmm both homekit and Aqara app said today that the hub was offline. After many restarts i desided to reconnect it to mi home. However now i can’t connect it to hi home or Aqara app 🙁 it findes the hub at trues to connect and then fails. I have trues But english end china server both nothing works 🙁 please help Simon
Hi Søren
although there’s no documentation from Aqara regarding a lot of the new changes to the Aqara app and the Mi Home app, there are a few things I can make you aware of that will hopefully help.
First of all you can only have the hub in either the Aqara app or the Mi Home app, not both. what will happen though, if you add the Aqara hub to the Mi Home app, is that as soon as you then open the Aqara app again, it will try and get you to ‘bind’ the hub to HomeKit, which actually just takes the hub back out of Mi Home and into the Aqara app again. This also happens with the Mi Home app in different way. My advice is to use the Mi Home app, as it makes the alarm functionality a lot easier than the Aqara app. Just make sure that if you ever do open the Aqara app, to ignore the ‘bind accessory’ pop up window.
Onto the issue with adding the hub; I can’t guarantee this will all help, but first of all,
1. make sure you wifi network name (SSID) doesn’t have any non-standard characters, like commas or apostrophes etc.
2. ensure that you have a 2.4gHz wifi network available. If you’re using an Apple Airport Express or Extreme, these have two networks – 2.4 & 5.0gHz, but they usually work together under one name, which can cause the Aqara hub to not connect, so you need to separate them out into two networks, via the Airport Utility on mac. If you’re using other routers, then this is done in the way their manuals should explain.
3. make sure your hub is well within range of the wifi network signal, as the hub doesn’t have a great wifi reach.
4. before you try adding the hub (Via Mi Home is my recommendation), press the button on the Aqara hub 10 times in succession. This will totally reset the hub and clear any old data that could create conflicts. Eventually the light ring will turn white and eventually start flashing yellow constantly, followed by a chinese voice prompt.
5. start adding the hub to the Mi Home app, ensuring that you are registered with Mi Home and have an account, are signed in, and it’s set to the Mainland China server.
6. when you add the hub at the point of scanning the HomeKit code, you may want to try this way instead;
(a) instead of scanning the code, click on where it “don’t have a code or can’t scan?”
(b) on the next page, where it says Manual code, press ‘Enter code… and enter your HK code
(c) once you do that, the hub should appear, although you may want to wait for a bit
(d) from there, everything else if as normal and eventually you should see the section where it will add the light, the alarm and the hub
(e) it will say there is more setting up to be done. This usually involves going back into the Mi Home app.
(f) in the Mi Home app, across the top above the device tiles, there are a list of rooms, scroll horizontally until you see a ‘HomeKit’ tab
(g) click on this and you should see you hub, click on it and it will complete the procedure. Any devices that were tied to the hub should appear in HomeKit, although they may not if you’ve had to reset the hub.
(h) devices in specific rooms don’t sync with the Home app, so if you want them to be the same, you’re going to have to do it manually.
From there, it’s just a case of setting devices and automations up.
Let me know how you get on.
Hi Simon,
After three hours with attempt after attempt it suddenly worked! Running only with mi home app and home app and it works now! Thanks for the support Simon 🙂
Great. I don’t know why it sometimes takes a few attempts, which was also the case with me, but as long as it gets there in the end that’s all that matters I guess.
Bonjour,
Très bon sujet de discussion !
Mais si quelqu’un arrive à créer une règle concernant le déclenchement de l’alarme Aqara par le biais de HomeKit ou bien d’une application tiers comme Elgato Eve ou Koogeek. Car je possède déjà des capteurs de porte et fenêtre de marques différentes.
Any ideas how i could use motions sensors ( from another brand camera) to trigger the alarm? Since i need to add it trough mi app, they should give us a extra option in homekit automations so we can actually trigger it via homekit ‘IF ….. THEN activate the sirene’, and not only put alarm on and off, now its only possible other way around ‘IF sirene goes off THEN ….. ‘
Looks like we are forced to use trigger devices only from xiaomi to use the aqara hub as an alarm for now?
It would seem you can only use Xiaomi/Mijia or Aqara sensors at this point. That may change, but for now this is the only way.
Oui peut-être qu’une prochaine mise à jour permettra de pouvoir ajouter des capteurs de marque différentes à la fonction alarme.
En ce qui concerne l’activation de l’alarme quand on part de son domicile, j’ai trouvé une astuce avec HomeKit.
J’ai des caméras D-Link brancher sur une prise Elgato Eve qui s’active quand je pars de mon domicile.
J’ai créé une règle disant, active alarme si prise et t’activer et du coup cela fonctionne.
c’est une excellente solution. Merci d’avoir partagé.
In the Mi Home app, I went to Profile-Settings-Region, then changed it to Mainland China. Didn’t have to sign out.
It took multiple resets (by pressing the button 10 times, and holding down for more than 5 secs) on the Aqara hub, but i finally managed to add it to the Mi Home app.
Since I reset the hub, I had to add back all the devices.
In the Home app, the devices I had previously added to the hub then bind to home kit appeared off line. So I deleted the hub and then added it back it. It then went through a list of all the devices.
So far, all the devices I added via Mi Home works.
Selecting the Aqara Hub, Device tab. There is a Add child device button here. I seems that only the devices which are compatible here will be exposed to home kit. For example, I can add the Mi Bedside Lamp and Xiomi Mijia Bluetooth Temperature & Humidity Sensor (the one with the LCD display) in the Mi Home app, but it won’t appear in Home app.
I have managed to also add the older Xioami gateways in Mi Home but they also won’t appear in Home app. I’m using them as nightlights triggered by Automations in Mi Home.
I also setup an automation in Home to trigger Hue lights with the Aqara sensor.
So far so good, its been fun tinkering around with all this, even though at this point it seems like more of a hobbyist thing with a lot of trial and error.
I do have an Aqara wired wall switch that i will install one of these weekends when i find the time. It appears that the vibration sensor and smoke detector work with the Aqara hub so I’ll order those. I also want the curtain motor, but need to find out how it actually works with the curtain rail.
Hi Eric
Glad to hear you (finally) got it all working. You are correct, that only devices compatible with the Aqara Hub will appear in the device panel list, although there is an option for “other devices”. Just remember that if you ever open the Aqara app, so not click on the option to bind the hub, or you’ll have to add the hub back into Mi Home all again. Hopefully there’s no need to use the Aqara app at all now.
Thanks for the reminder and all the helpful tips.
Hello! Looking for help with my hub.. I was trying to reset it by clicking 10 times and now it’s stuck flashing white, not visible for connection. No voice prompt or yellow light after holding button for 10 sec. Two and three clicks working, can manually connect to child device or arm security, but can’t be connected to wifi… any suggestions? Tried, ten clicks reset multiple times, all the same outcome..
Hi Sergei
Sometimes I have found that holding the switch for 10 seconds, waiting for all activity to stop, then 10 quick successive presses on the button, then waiting again, will result in the yellow flashing light – but you do have to wait. Other than this, I don’t know what else to suggest, as you need the flashing yellow light before anything else.
Thank you for your reply. It looks like I managed to actually damage the device, or crashed its firmware/ boot sequence..
Hopefully not. My best suggestion now is to contact Aqara directly. The best place is – https://community.aqara.com – post your question or issue and they will reply.
Hi, I am experiencing the same than sergei. I contacted directly support from aqara and this is the answer I got:
”
Hi,
1. If you find that you can’t add and reset the Aqara Hub reset button ten times in an hour after the update, Aqara Hub will be reset back to the previous version. If it is more than one hour after the update, It just disconnects the network and clears the local data as well as the network cache.
2. Now let’s try it out, except for adding to Aqara Home and MIHome APP. Aqara Hub can also be added directly to Apple’s Home APP. This method of addition requires you to press and hold the Aqara Hub reset button until the Aqara Hub flashes yellow and has a voice announcement to add it by scanning the HomeKit code.
3. For what you said, it seems that the gateway has not entered the mode that can be found to be allowed to add. You can power off the Aqara hub and then power it on. Then wait for the Aqara Hub’s indicator to stabilize (the indicator is no longer automatically switched). Press and hold the reset button for about 10 seconds until the Aqara Hub flashes yellow and has a voice announcement. The Aqara Hub can enter the mode that is allowed to be added.
Kind regards.
support@aqara.com
”
Unfortunately nothing, worked….
The only thing extra I see is that The gateway is broadcasting a wifi network lumi-gateway-aqhm01_xxxx I can connect to it but I cannot do anything….
Please help T_T
Before anything else, I just need to check if you’ve read my Troubleshooting Tips post regarding the Aqara Hub and Mi Home app. I recently updated it to include another tip regarding changing the DNS settings.
Hi again, I have followed the troubleshooting guide. Just to clarify I had the aqara hub working ok up until the update. After the update it was working fine on the aqara app, then I removed the hub to add it to mi home. In order to do so, I did a reset of all settings (10 rapid clicks) and my problems begun. Then, following your guide step 5 does not work. I reset the hub (flashes yellow a couple times and then it restarts) but no voice prompt nor yellow flashing happens after the restart. Only a very slow flashing white light.
Thank you very much!
Hi Tony,
The process of moving over from the Aqara app to the Mi Home shouldn’t have required resetting the hub, as the move is done within the Aqara app, but it shouldn’t make any difference if you’ve reset your hub anyway. I can only say that the method I outline in the steps has worked for me on both of my hubs, and others have reported it working for them too, but not everyone unfortunately. Sometimes you have to just leave the hub for a while and let it go through the process, as the flashing yellow light does sometimes take a bit of time to appear. Beyond all this, the only option is to contact Aqara directly via their forum/community page.
Hi Simon,
Thanks for your help. I had to reset because the aqara app didn’t offer such option. I couldn’t add it to the mainland China server so I had the hub in the international (not logged in) server. That’s why I had to reset the hub. I’ll wait for the answer from aqara as I did send them some videos now. If I have any progress I’ll let you know so that we can help other people with the same problem.
Thanks…. 🙂
Just one more question… I can see a wifi named lumi-gateway-aqhm01….. there might be a way to connect directly to the hub via FTP but I haven’t figured out the password :/…. ssh does not respond so I guess it is not activated by default….
Hi
I know it’s a bit moot now, and I don’t know if you updated the Aqara app to the latest version, but basically when you go into the settings for the hub, there should be an option that says ‘Support Mi Home app’ then ‘yes’ next to it. This is where the transfer process starts, although there are other steps to do. If you’re somehow able to get it back into the Aqara app any easier, then maybe try that way, but ultimately if you can just get it into the mi home app, you’re saving yourself a couple of extra steps. I don’t know when you last checked the troubleshooting guide but I did update it a couple of days ago with a bit more info, but ultimately you do need the flashing yellow light before anything else. It took me a few times to get there too but I got it eventually. It’s disappointing that Aqara haven’t given any real guidance on this at all really.
I appreciate your help and support. Unfortunately I didn’t check for that option after the update. Definitely is probing impossible to get the yellow light. The hub has been plugged in all night and hasn’t changed it’s state. Once again Thank you.
Best wishes
Hi, one last comment. I ve got an official answer from aqara. See below:
“Hi,
Your situation should be caused by a failed gateway restart after the upgrade.
We can guarantee it, but since you are abroad, the quickest way is to replace the gateway with the platform that bought the gateway before, and then the platform can find us to replace it. This way you can get the products available faster.
We will investigate the cause of this problem and resolve it as soon as possible.
Kind regards.
support@aqara.com”
I spend hours and hours getting it to work.
I ended up hard resetting the device for 10+ times and signing out and removing both the Mi Home app and the Aqara Home app many times and I finally got it working in the Mi Home app with not even touching the Aqara app.
Happy, because all seemed to be working as it should, for the first time since September. I could even set the alarm in homekit, the alarm worked and I could access all Aqara devices in Homekit without any problem. The Mi Home app seemed to a welcome refreshment.
I went to bed happily 🙂
But,… this morning I left to work and I noticed I couldn’t reach any of the Aqara devices in Homekit when accessing remotely.
my 10+ other homekit devices all respond correctly, but none of the Aqara ones are ‘reachable’.
I know the hub is online and has network access because I can access it through the Mi home app remotely. But not via the Homekit app.
Anyone else having this problem?
It actually hadn’t occurred to me to test the remote access functionality, so I’ve just tested it and in my case everything is accessible.
Well, nothing beats a good old ‘do it again another 10 times’ 😉
I removed it all again, did some resets, did that about 10 times, because there was always something not working as intended, but in the end it’s all back in Mi Home, Homekit, working like it should and it’s remotely accessible.
So, seems like I’m finally gonna use Aqara! 🙂
My advise is just stay in the Mi Home app from now on, and if you do happen to open the Aqara app make sure you ignore the ‘binding’ popup window. I’ve to two Aqara hubs, one in Mi Home and one in Aqara app, but this is so I can make sure of any changes in either app, besides other tests. If I had only the one Hub, I’d keep it on the Mi Home app. More options and data.
Hi again, I have followed the troubleshooting guide. Just to clarify I had the aqara hub working ok up until the update. After the update it was working fine on the aqara app, then I removed the hub to add it to mi home. In order to do so, I did a reset of all settings (10 rapid clicks) and my problems begun. Then, following your guide step 5 does not work. I reset the hub (flashes yellow a couple times and then it restarts) but no voice prompt nor yellow flashing happens after the restart. Only a very slow flashing white light.
Hi guys! I’m considering the idea of improving my security system by installing the Aqara door and window sensors. I’m looking for something cheap, relatively stable and comfortable to use, that’s why I landed on something HomeKit compatible. Question to the users: is the Aqara system reliable? For example, its connection is stable or sometimes it does disconnect from the network? I’m going to install the hub really close to my router and I ‘ve created a specifically for IoT 2.4ghz network already used to connect some smart devices I have such as the Yeelight bulbs and strips. Moreover, can I use both the Aqara and Mijia Door sensors? Will the Mijia sensors work with HomeKit or it is better for me to buy the genuine Aqara sensors? Thanks in advice to everyone and have a nice new year!
Hi Robert, I’ve had the Aqara Hub since August and it has literally not disconnected from the network at any time! I actually have two of them now, and they’ve both been super reliable on respect to network connections. Both the Aqara and Mijia door sensors have the same spec, so if you already have Mijia sensors they’ll work fine with HomeKit. The Aqara motion sensors are better than the Mijia equivalent only because they have an ambient light sensor, although this is not currently exposed to HomeKit.
Since the update which exposed the alarm to HomeKit I had no hiccups whatsoever. It’s extremely stable and fast here.
I leave my home and it gets armed. I return and it’s automatically disarmed before I put my key in the door.
(I did use a loophole here to have this done automatically without the need to confirm arming and disarming) but until now it never failed.
I’d go for the Aqara sensors if I were you since they are confirmed to be HomeKit compatible and seem to be newer hardware to me.
You brought me to the dark side, thanks! I’ll wait for a good discount Gearbest or whatever
I think the Aqara hub is a great device for getting access to very cheap and reliable sensors into HomeKit. It’s not without its problems, but many of these are due to people not knowing the best way to get them set up, which is really Aqara’s fault. I’ve tried my best to create guides and troubleshooting tips to help, but some people still struggle. With the next firmware update things will hopefully improve even more.
@Robert, one thing if you wish to have Homekit automatically arm and disarm your security system whenever you enter or leave your street.
Apple, not Aqara, limits this a little bit, by having you confirm each time your alarm needs to be armed or disarmed. This annoyed me, since I had it numerous times that I didn’t notice the notification asking my to confirm to disarm the house, and I entered my house having the alarm system triggered.
In my last post I told you about the loophole I use. I think it’s somewhere in the comments or in one of Simons tutorials, but I thought I shared it again.
I’ve set up a scene where my Aqara hub’s light get set to 30% and a scene where it’s set to 40% (choose whatever values you want).
Then I made 2 automatisations. If Aqara bulb is 30%, arm the house and turn back off the Aqara light. the other one, is when Aqara’s bulb is 40%, disarm the alarm and turn back off the Aqara light.
This way I can have geofencing trigger the first scene when I leave and trigger the second scene when I arrive and the house will get armed and disarmed without having to confirm it each time in Apples Home App.
Again, this has nothing to do with Aqara, but with Homekit. Apple wants to have you confirm arming and disarming of an alarm system, but to me, this kind of defeats the whole ‘automatisation’ thing.
Thanks for the advice! I know what you are talking about and it should not be a problem for me