Episode 571 - SkeetVac

On this week's show: Alexa+ learns Italian while Amazon’s new Fire TV Stick gets slimmer and smarter, Netgear dodges a router ban, Ecovacs blasts stains with cleaning jets, and Aqara quietly launches a new Matter sensor. Ubiquiti unveils EAV switching for pro AVs, Apollo celebrates open source with a new ESPHome starter kit, and BLUETTI wants to keep your fridge alive through any storm. All this, a pick of the week, project updates, and so much more!

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• HomeTech Headlines
  • Netgear Wins FCC Conditional Approval on Its Consumer Routers, Exempting Them From Ban - Strata-gee.com - strata-gee.com
  • Alexa+ Launches in Early Access in Italy - thurrott.com
  • Toronto could get Canada's first 'virtual gated community' using controversial tech - mobilesyrup.com
  • BLUETTI FridgePower Review: Silent Backup That Saves Your Fridge | iPhone in Canada - iphoneincanada.ca
  • Amazon's New Fire TV Stick HD is 30% Slimmer and Supports Alexa+ - thurrott.com
  • Ecovacs’ new robovac spots and pretreats dried stains using powerful jets | The Verge - theverge.com
  • New Aqara FP310 sensor brings 24GHz radar and Matter support to China - Matter Alpha
  • Introducing EAV Switching - blog.ui.com
• Pick of the Week
  • Illumibot - House of Glass - TikTok
• State of the Open Home 2026 Was Incredible and We Announced the ESPHom – Apollo Automation - apolloautomation.com
• Birdbuddy : Home
• Birdfy Smart Bird Feeder Camera | AI Bird Watching & Identification
• TJs Bird Friend

Episode 570 - The Gift and the Curse

On this week's show: Google finally lets Workspace users into the Google Home party, Aqara keeps busy with new hubs, thermostats, and sensors, Samsung trims the price tag on its 2026 Frame TVs, Hisense adds a smaller CanvasTV that still wants to be art, LG shows off a mighty new MAGNIT Micro LED system, and Sony teases some serious RGB tech. There’s also a peek at the Home Assistant roadmap, project updates, and so much more!

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Show Notes

• HomeTech Headlines
  • Google Home App Now Supports Google Workspace Accounts - thurrott.com
  • Aqura Hub w200
  • Aqara W200 Thermostat Release Video
  • Aqara Multi-State Sensor P100
  • Samsung announces 2026 Frame TVs and the Pro costs less than last year’s
  • Hisense Adds 50-Inch Model to Its CanvasTV Lineup - Residential Systems
  • LG Introduces New MAGNIT Micro LED TV - Residential Systems
  • Sony Introduces True RGB Technology for Its Televisions
• Home Assistant Roadmap
• TJ's Trench

Episode 569 - Ring Goes 4K, Home Assistant Goes '95

On this week's show: Ring launches 4K video doorbells and a whole developer portal while Ubiquiti sends AI to the edge with a new series UniFi G6 cameras. Reolink shines bright with its solar floodlight cam, Nuki taps into Apple Home Key, and DEWENWILS dives into Matter with a smart pool pump timer. Matter 1.5.1 gets better camera streaming, Heatit joins Works with Home Assistant, and backup encryption gets a serious upgrade. Plus, a pick of the week, project updates, and so much more!

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Show Notes

• Artemis 2 live updates: launch time, pre-flight checks - thestar.com
• HomeTech Headlines
  • Ring finally brings 4K video to its battery-powered doorbell camera | The Verge - theverge.com
  • Ring Developer - developer.amazon.com
  • Introducing G6 Edge Series - blog.ui.com
  • Reolink’s first solar-powered floodlight camera offers wire-free home security | The Verge - theverge.com
  • Nuki adds Apple Home Key to its smart lock | The Verge - theverge.com
  • DEWENWILS launches the world's first Matter-compatible smart pool pump timer | Matter Alpha - matteralpha.com
  • The latest Matter update improves camera streaming | The Verge - theverge.com
• Pick of the Week: GitHub - piitaya/ha95: Home Assistant 95 · GitHub - github.com
• 2026.4 Beta: Infrared never left the chat - Home Assistant - rc.home-assistant.io
• Music Assistant 2.8: Let's get this party started! - Music Assistant - music-assistant.io
• Heatit joins Works with Home Assistant - Home Assistant - home-assistant.io
• We now make the best Zigbee and Z-Wave repeaters and open whole-home audio - nabucasa.mailcoach.app
• Modernizing encryption of Home Assistant backups - Home Assistant - home-assistant.io
• HAGHS
• GL.iNet GL-BE3600 (Slate 7) Portable Travel Router, Pocket Dual-Band Wi-Fi 7, 2.5G Router, Portable VPN Routers WiFi for Travel, Public Computer Routers, Business Trip, Mobile/RV/Cruise/Plane
• Anker Nano Power Strip, Desk Clamp with 1500J Surge Protector, 5ft Extension Cord, 70W Max Gaming Desk Accessories, 6 AC, 2 USB A, 2 USB C, Home Office Essentials, Fit 0.6~1.8'' Tabletop Edge

Episode 568 - Smart Home, Dumb Ads

On this week's show: Josh.ai takes smart homes to a whole new level of language learning, Amazon’s Alexa+ crosses the pond with a serious accent, Telus launches an all-Canadian AI butler, and Hisense decides you need ads with your HDMI inputs. The FCC bans foreign-made routers (so, almost all of them), and Brava joins the long list of smart gadgets that got cooked by their own cloud. All this, a pick of the week, project updates, and so much more!

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Show Notes

• HomeTech Headlines
  • Josh.ai Keynote 2026: Home in Harmony Showcases a New Era of Adaptive Home Control - josh.ai
  • Amazon's Alexa+ Assistant Launches in the UK - thurrott.com
  • Telus Launches New AI Smart Home Assistant to Control Thousands of Devices | iPhone in Canada - iphoneincanada.ca
  • Hisense TVs force owners to watch intrusive ads when switching inputs, visiting the home screen, or even changing channels — practice infuriates consumers, brand denies wrongdoing | Tom's Hardware - Tom's Hardware
  • Another smart oven shuts down. - The Verge
  • The US government just banned consumer routers made outside the US | The Verge - theverge.com
• Pick of the Week GitHub - danielwoz/ubiquiti-protect-onvif-event-listener: A binary that listens to the configured third party cameras for detection events and sets up ubiquiti protect events with thumbnails. · GitHub - github.com

Episode 567 - Wago Matters

On this week’s show: UniFi drops Protect 7.0 with customizable dashboards, smarter event review, local AI image search, and a $4,999 Enterprise NVR Core to store all that footage—plus a $39 Relay and a whole lot of 25G. WAGO says Matter is finally electrician-friendly, while Ikea proves Matter still means “it depends.” Aqara launches the first Matter-certified camera, a new PoE doorbell with HomeKit Secure Video, and we check in on a Navimow mower integration for Home Assistant. A pick of the week, project updates, and so much more!

Fan of the show? Want to support our efforts? Please consider becoming a Patron!

Show Notes

• HomeTech Headlines
  • Introducing Protect 7.0 - blog.ui.com
  • Enterprise NVR Core - Ubiquiti Store United States - Ubiquiti Store United States
  • Protect Relay - Ubiquiti Store United States - Ubiquiti Store United States
  • Wago and Matter: “We Want to Really Get Into This Market” - matter-smarthome
  • Ikea tried to build a smart home for everyone — here’s why it’s not working yet - The Verge
  • Hands on with Aqara’s new Matter-compatible camera - The Verge
  • Aqara Camera Hub G350: The World's First Matter-Certified Camera - Aqara
  • Aqara’s first wired doorbell works with Apple’s HomeKit Secure Video and costs $100. - The Verge
• Pick of the Week: High Security for the Catnip
• GitHub - segwaynavimow/NavimowHA - GitHub