Philips Hue September Lineup, Shelly Gen4, and HomeKit Secure Video AI

This week in smart home: Philips Hue accidentally revealed its September lineup, Aqara shipped the Power Plug H2 with Matter over Thread, and Shelly is examining Matter over Thread for the Gen4 series. On top of that, AI summaries arrive for HomeKit Secure Video in the iOS 27 beta, plus a tip on Thread border routers.

Philips Hue: September Lineup with Festavia, Semeru, and Hue Go XXL

Philips Hue accidentally published its September lineup ahead of time. The Festavia string lights come in three variants with 250 LEDs each and connect over Matter over Thread. The Semeru outdoor wall lights ship in square and rectangular shapes, both with Zigbee and Matter over Thread. As an eye-catcher, Signify also showed the illuminated Hue Go XXL outdoor lounge table at its Capital Markets Day.

Shelly Gen4: Matter over Thread via Firmware Update Under Review

Shelly is examining whether selected Gen4 devices could gain Matter over Thread through a firmware update. The hardware already supports WiFi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, and Matter over WiFi, and the Thread radio is built in but still disabled. The benefit would be a power-efficient Thread mesh instead of WiFi, easing the load on your network. There is no timeline yet.

Worth Watching: Fixing Device Pairing in Apple Home

Eric Welander shares a quick trick for tracking down the cause when a new device won't pair with Apple Home.

In Brief

Aqara Power Plug H2: Smart Plug with Matter over Thread

Aqara's new smart plug connects over either Matter over Thread or Zigbee and is available now in EU and UK variants. It switches up to 16 amps (3,680 watts), monitors energy consumption, and protects against overload and overheating. A child lock is built in. Price: €32.99.

AI Summaries for HomeKit Secure Video

With the iOS 27 beta, video summaries generated by Apple Intelligence arrive in the Home app. For now the feature can be enabled on at most five cameras, even though the 2 TB iCloud+ plan supports unlimited HomeKit Secure Video cameras. Whether this is a beta-only restriction remains unclear.

Tip of the Week: Using Thread Border Routers Correctly

Devices with Matter over Thread need a Thread border router in your home. A HomePod mini, a HomePod (2nd generation), or a recent Apple TV 4K all qualify. The original HomePod and the Apple TV HD do not. You can check the status in the Home app under Home Settings and then Home Hubs & Bridges.