Aqara HUB M1S, a central, night light and alarm system in a single accessory

We analyze the Aqara Hub M1s bridge, an accessory with which We will be able to add more Aqara devices to our home automation network, which also acts as a night light and an alarm for the security system that we can configure thanks to it, and all this being compatible with Homekit.

Central accessories, night light and alarm

This Aqara Hub M1S has a main purpose: to be the bridge through which to add up to 128 Aqara accessories, making use of the Zigbee 3.0 protocol. Many of the Aqara devices, such as the G2H camera we reviewed in this article, connect directly to our HomeKit control panel, but there are others that require their own central, this M1S, to be able to connect. That is the mission of this bridge that we are analyzing today.

The fact that it uses the Zigbee 3.0 protocol means that the devices that we can link can use battery or batteries to work, without having to worry about changing them in a long time, thanks to its low consumption. It also solves many of the problems of Bluetooth in terms of range, being able to place accessories at a greater distance than with conventional Bluetooth.

It also has an RGB light that we can turn on and off by automations, varying color and intensity. The light is designed as a ring that surrounds the entire device, with a translucent plastic that serves as a diffuser. It is not a light that allows you to illuminate a room, rather a perfect companion light To place in a corridor to be able to pass through it at night without having to turn on other lights, or as a night light for a room for the little ones at home. It also has a light sensor that allows the intensity to vary depending on the ambient light.

And we cannot forget that it has a speaker, but that we cannot use it to listen to music, but it is a loudspeaker for an alarm system that we can create making use of this base and other Aqara accessories. Soon we will have another article and video on the channel explaining how we can create this alarm system, without subscriptions, to our measure, and for much less money than you can imagine.

Configuration

The configuration of this hub is done like any other HomeKit product. We can do it directly from the Home app, but I always recommend using the manufacturer's native app, because there can always be some functionality that Home does not have, or simply that there is a formare update available, which we will always have to do from the Aqara app (link). There is not too much mystery in this, we follow the steps as seen in the video and in a minute everything will be configured to work. To connect, use the WiFi network, as usual, only 2,4Ghz.

Once configured in the Aqara app, it will be configured at Home at the same time, so we will not have to perform the task twice. If it were only a bridge there would be nothing to do with this device, but as we have already told you, it is a light and an alarm, so We do have functionalities within the application, which we can control from the Aqara app or the Home app. The same thing that I told you before that for the configuration I prefer to use the native one, to control the accessories I always use Home.

We can see the light and alarm as a single box, or separate them within the device settings. Light control is what you would expect from any RGB bulb. We can regulate intensity, color and change them from the application or through Siri. We can include it in automations and environments. The alarm allows us to use four different situations: Home, Away from Home, Night and Off. We will go into the details of the alarm in an article dedicated solely to this matter.

Editor's opinion

Aqara has wanted his HUB M1S not to be a simple bridge, and has endowed it with two quite practical functionalities. A simple but effective companion light and a control unit for your own alarm system that you can create with other Aqara accessories. With good connectivity, a quick response and a fairly discreet design, this Aqara Hub M1S is a perfect accessory for home automation lovers, because it opens the doors to dozens of Aqara devices that have very affordable prices. The central is priced at € 48 on Amazon (link)