Philips expands Hue's HomeKit support, Chamberlain ships new MyQ Smart Garage Hub

Philips on Tuesday updated the Hue iOS app and firmware with retroactive Apple HomeKit support for its Tap, Dimmer Switch, and Motion Sensor accessories. Chamberlain meanwhile upgraded its MyQ Smart Garage Hub, which supports HomeKit when paired with the MyQ Home Bridge.

Prior to today, the Tap, Dimmer Switch, and Motion Sensor could only be controlled and configured through the Hue iPhone and iPad app. The Tap is a unique accessory designed to trigger specific scenes on-demand, or shut off all lights simultaneously, rather than just cycle through them as possible on the Dimmer Switch.

The updated Hue app also lets people reset accessories to defaults, manage routines created elsewhere, or jump into the iOS Home app to configure devices. Philips has also added an automatic firmware update option, which lets users schedule a specific time for installations to take place.

Chamberlain's MyQ Smart Garage Hub should now have better communication with its garage door sensor, including improved battery monitoring. It will also automatically identify Wi-Fi networks to streamline installation.

The MyQ Smart Garage Hub is $99.99, and works with a number of garage opener brands such as Craftsman, Genie, LiftMaster, Stanley SecureCode, and Chamberlain's own. The Home Bridge is $49.99 solo, or available in a $149.98 bundle.

6 Comments

patchythepirate 12 Years · 1254 comments

About 7 years ago

This is great news! Thanks for posting. I have a chamberlain waiting to be hooked up to homekit, and I've been wondering why my phillips motion sensors havn't been showing up in my Home app.

maestro64 19 Years · 5029 comments

I can now get rid of my insteon system for my garage door.

customtb 12 Years · 346 comments

So you need the hub to make it myq compatipble and then the bridge to make the hub HomeKit compatible? Wtf

techrider 12 Years · 102 comments

customtb said:

So you need the hub to make it myq compatipble and then the bridge to make the hub HomeKit compatible? Wtf

At CES, or at least the way it was reported on AI in January, the announcement read like:
only the Smart Garage Hub was needed to make an older opener HomeKit controllable, and
only the (cheaper) Home Bridge was needed to make a native MyQ garage opener HomeKit controllable.
There's a graphic in the article that illustrates this.

It seems Chamberlain abandoned the Smart Garage Hub's HomeKit feature set, depicted in the 'right side' of that graphic, and now require both products to make an older (non MyQ) opener HomeKit controllable. The Smart Garage Hub only makes the opener Wi-Fi controllable, and the Home Bridge makes the Smart Garage Hub HomeKit compatible.

If you have 2 doors to open, you also need to buy a second door sensor as the Garage Hub only comes with one.

Did Chamberlain run into an issue, or did they just decide to increase profit from owners of older openers?

techrider said:

customtb said:

So you need the hub to make it myq compatipble and then the bridge to make the hub HomeKit compatible? Wtf

At CES, or at least the way it was reported on AI in January, the announcement read like:
only the Smart Garage Hub was needed to make an older opener HomeKit controllable, and
only the (cheaper) Home Bridge was needed to make a native MyQ garage opener HomeKit controllable.
There's a graphic in the article that illustrates this.

It seems Chamberlain abandoned the Smart Garage Hub's HomeKit feature set, depicted in the 'right side' of that graphic, and now require both products to make an older (non MyQ) opener HomeKit controllable. The Smart Garage Hub only makes the opener Wi-Fi controllable, and the Home Bridge makes the Smart Garage Hub HomeKit compatible.

If you have 2 doors to open, you also need to buy a second door sensor as the Garage Hub only comes with one.

Did Chamberlain run into an issue, or did they just decide to increase profit from owners of older openers?

It won’t increase profit from me... after waiting months I’ll wait longer for a one piece solution from them or someone else.