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Smart Home Archive

Archives for July 2025

Andrew Liszewski
Andrew Liszewski
DJI’s first robot vacuum is being announced on August 6th.

After months of questionable leaks that haven’t revealed many details, DJI has shared a teaser video and image of its first robot vacuum being announced next week. The DJI Romo features a traditional circular robovac design with a pair of extended brushes and what appears to be a sensor array on the front.

It will also utilize a dock, but despite what the teaser image shows, the transparent version might just be DJI showing off the dock’s internals and functionality.

Two versions of the DJI Romo robot vacuum parked in its dock.
Will the DJI Romo robovac actually be available in a white or transparent version? We’ll find out soon, and whether the company plans to release it in the US.
Image: DJI
Andrew Liszewski
Andrew Liszewski
Govee’s new outdoor smart light projects different colors in four directions at once.

The company says its Outdoor UpDown Wall Light is the “industry’s first” with “independently adjustable colors on all four sides.” Through the Govee app users can choose from over 16 million shades and while the up and down beams cast a brighter glow than the sides, overall the light can illuminate over 120 square feet of wall space.

It’s available starting today through Govee’s website and Amazon for $129.99 individually, or $229.99 for a pair.

Thomas Ricker
Thomas Ricker
Improved Google Home this fall.

Increasingly frustrated users of Google’s smart home platform just got tossed a lifeline. After apologizing for Google Assistant’s reliability, the platform’s chief product officer offered this promise:

Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Hunter Douglas adds Matter support to its smart shades.

A firmware upgrade for its PowerView Gen 3 platform is now available, allowing users to control their shades locally via Matter platforms, including Apple Home, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, and others.

Hunter Douglas first said it would bring Matter to its smart shades back in 2022, and is finally following through. However, the upgrade is only coming to the gen 3 shades connected to a PowerView Gateway or Gateway Pro.

Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Ring’s drone camera may fly again.

The Always Home Cam could be (re)launching soon in “limited quantities,” according to Business Insider. The publication cites sources who say that recently returned CEO Jamie Siminoff has been testing the indoor flying camera in his office and plans to make it available soon.

Announced in 2020 under Siminoff’s first tenure, the camera never shipped despite a brief invitation program. I saw it fly at CES in 2023; maybe 2025 will finally be its year.

Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
Shelly goes long.

Several of the European smart home company’s new Z-Wave Long Range products are now available in the US. Announced at CES 2025, the Shelly Wave line leverages the increased range offered by the Z-Wave LR protocol, allowing it to extend over a mile from your house.

Available now are a $38 energy monitoring plug, a $37 motion sensor, a $35 humidity and temperature sensor, and a line of electrical relays starting at $28.99, with the rest arriving later this year.

Note: If you buy something from these links, we might get affiliate revenue.

Shelly’s Z-Wave Long Range devices are now available.
Shelly’s Z-Wave Long Range devices are now available.
Image: Shelly
24 hours with Alexa Plus: we cooked, we chatted, and it kinda lied to me

My first impressions after one day with Amazon’s smarter, more conversational, generative AI-powered assistant.

Jennifer Pattison Tuohy