Smart home news, reviews, and guides — making your home smarter.
Smart home news, reviews, and guides — making your home smarter.
Google has officially ended production of the Nest Mini and Nest Audio, its two longest-running smart speakers, clearing the lineup for the new $99 Gemini-powered Google Home Speaker. Existing owners will keep receiving software updates, security patches, and Gemini for Home, but Google’s budget-friendly entry point into its smart home is gone for good.
Read MoreToday’s smart home deals from SwitchBot’s US store: a robot vacuum at 50% off, a fingerprint smart lock at 20% off, a video doorbell at 33% off, and an air purifier at 58% off. Verified October 18, 2026.
Read MoreAiMOGA Robotics, Chery’s robotics brand, is opening global pre-orders for Mobo, its first consumer-grade humanoid robot built for home companionship. Powered by the MoAgent AI system, the robot can plan multi-step household tasks, recognize family members, and navigate homes with dynamic obstacle avoidance. The formal global debut takes place at Chery’s international user summit in Wuhu, China. Here’s what Mobo is, what it can do, and what it means for the home robot race.
Read MoreAmazon has unveiled two AI wearables under the Bee brand — the $74.99 Frontier wristband and the $99.99 Eclipse phone attachment — with always-on conversation memory and direct Alexa+ integration. Orders are open for the Frontier; a $11.99/month Bee Pro subscription unlocks unlimited summaries and deeper integrations. Here’s what the devices do and why the Alexa+ link matters.
Read MoreArduino has updated the Arduino Nano Matter’s Core toolchain to version 5.0, adding Zigbee networking to a board that already spoke Matter over Thread and Bluetooth LE. The single-radio update lets DIY makers build Zigbee devices with no new hardware, opening Arduino’s low-power board to the millions of Zigbee bulbs, sensors, and switches already in people’s homes.
Read MoreApple has revealed the full list of apps shipping on HomeView at launch. The $299 smart home display arrives November 13 with 19 Apple apps — most preinstalled, four requiring an iPhone on the same Wi-Fi network. Third-party support is limited to CarPlay audio and video apps, with Spotify expected on day one. Here’s what made the cut, what didn’t, and what it means for buyers.
Read MoreUniFi Network 11 brings detailed Matter device monitoring and Thread network diagnostics to Ubiquiti’s network controller, showing manufacturer, firmware, battery and signal strength in the same topology view as your Wi-Fi and Ethernet gear, plus a Time Machine view of past outages. Here is what it covers, the manual pairing catch, and how it relates to the upcoming SuperLink Gateway HA.
Read MoreToday’s best smart home deals in North America: the Roborock Saros 10R flagship robot vacuum at 44% off, the budget-friendly Dreame D20 Air Plus at 23% off, and a 4-pack of Govee E12 smart candle bulbs at 26% off. All prices verified on the brands’ official US stores on October 17, 2026.
Read MoreLEDVANCE has joined the Works with Home Assistant program with 116 Matter-over-Wi-Fi devices — one of the largest certified lineups to date. The SMART+ lighting range, plus plugs and switches, connects directly to Home Assistant’s built-in Matter Server with no hub or Thread border router required. Here is what the certification covers and why the program’s local-first testing matters.
Read Morebeflo’s Tenon Smart Adjustable Desk has been named a winner of the inaugural 2026 Forbes Vetted Smart Home Awards in the Home Office/Productivity category. The connected desk combines four-motor height adjustment, posture sensors, an integrated touchscreen, and a companion app with lighting control and firmware updates, signaling that smart furniture is becoming a serious category in the modern smart home.
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