Smart home news, reviews, and guides — making your home smarter.
Smart home news, reviews, and guides — making your home smarter.
Code leaks from tvOS 27.2 and HomePod 27.2 beta 3 reveal new Apple TV 4K and HomePod features ahead of Apple’s expected October 13 launch: Apple Intelligence with Siri AI on Apple TV, HomeKit controls in the iPhone’s Dynamic Island, HomePod surround-sound system matching, and Apple TV+ characters as profile pictures.
Read MoreToday’s best smart home deals: the Blink Battery Doorbell 2K at 55% off, the Roborock Qrevo Series robot vacuum at 32% off, the Echo Show 11 at 40% off, plus discounts on the Google Nest Thermostat and Aqara U400 smart lock. Every price was verified on the retailer’s live product page on October 6, 2026. Act fast — sale-event smart home deals can change or sell out at any time.
Read MoreSamsung has detailed a major SmartThings app update: a redesigned interface, AI-powered SmartThings Now suggestions, up to 30% faster local control, a new offline diagnostics page, and Matter 1.6 support — making it the first platform to adopt the new standard. Here’s what changes for your smart home.
Read MoreThe Connectivity Standards Alliance has released Matter 1.6.1, a maintenance update that finalizes Groupcast for faster, synchronized group control and adds separate volume and mute controls for doorbell chimes. Here is what changes, why your lights will react together, and when platforms will catch up.
Read MoreAmazon’s new Fire TV Stick 4K (2026) arrives with a slimmer body, a quad-core 1.7GHz chip, Vega OS with Alexa+ built in, and a completely redesigned tactile remote. It costs $59.99 and claims up to 40% faster streaming, but there’s a catch: it drops to $39.99 during Prime Big Deal Days starting October 6.
Read MoreIKEA’s 21-device Matter lineup has pushed smart home prices to new lows, with a color bulb at 9 pounds and sensors at 7 pounds. But pairing failures, devices dropping offline, and weak owner ratings show that the ecosystem’s biggest challenge is reliability, not price.
Read MoreMark Gurman reports Apple is developing a smart home camera (codenamed J450) that won’t record video. Instead, the device uses on-device Apple Intelligence to analyze the room and report in text: who entered, what happened. No footage, no cloud uploads, no subscription — a privacy-first challenge to Ring, Nest, and Arlo. Not expected at the October 13 event, but it signals Apple’s long-term smart home strategy.
Read MoreVerified smart home deals for October 5, 2026: Ring Wired Doorbell Plus at 47% off, Yale Assure Lock 2 at 37% off, plus robot vacuum deals from Roborock and Shark at Best Buy. All prices confirmed on live product pages.
Read MoreEZVIZ has launched a dedicated smart home security ecosystem in Australia with six new devices — cameras, video doorbells, smart locks, and a control screen — unified by one app and built around subscription-free local storage. Here is what the launch includes, how the pricing model differs from rivals, and why the company is betting on Australia’s fast-growing security market.
Read MoreApple is reportedly adding new device categories to HomeKit while working directly with third-party manufacturers ahead of its October 13 smart home hardware launch. We break down what the expansion means for the Siri-powered home hub, why ecosystem depth matters more than new chips, and what to watch as Apple takes on Amazon and Google in the smart home.
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