My home is getting smarter

My smart home is slowly coming together, and I’m finally at the point where everything is starting to work the way I imagined. My new front door unlocks with Apple Home Key and UWB, so I can walk up to the door and have it unlock without reaching for keys or my phone. I’ve also installed a new Aqara doorbell and camera, both hardwired, so I no longer have to worry about batteries running flat. An old iPad has a new purpose: mounted in the kitchen as an Apple Home dashboard, it gives us an easy way to see and control everything around the house.

Of course, not everyone in the household is as enthusiastic about smart-home technology as I am. My wife understandably still prefers a normal light switch. The problem was that switching off smart lights at the wall cut their power, making them unavailable in Apple Home. The solution was to upgrade to Aqara H2 switches. These allow me to decouple the physical switch from the relay. The relay remains permanently powered, while pressing the switch triggers Apple Home scenes and automations instead. It’s a small change, but a clever one. My wife can use the lights exactly as she always has, while I retain all my smart controls. Sometimes the best technology is the one that simply gets out of the way.