Wyze cam vulnerability, new HomeKit widgets & more on the HomeKit Insider podcast

HomeKit Insider

On this episode of HomeKit Insider, we break down the recent Wyze cam security vulnerability, discuss a new updater for HomeKit widgets, and more.

Recently, it was uncovered that Wyze had a crucial security vulnerability with its V1 smart home cameras that allowed hackers to gain control. While this still wasn't easy to achieve and often would require a hacker to be within the network, Wyze opted to not disclose this information.

Instead, the company released a new version of the camera and recommended nobody continue using the first version. These cameras are not HomeKit compatible but offer up another reason why users may prefer to stick with Apple's smart home ecosystem.

HomeKit Secure Video cameras offer additional security and don't rely on outside servers. As HomeKit products, their external access can also be limited with a HomeKit router.

In more positive news this week, the excellent Home Widgets app was updated to version 1.2. This update includes many new widget options including those for quickly accessing HomeKit cameras — both snapshots as well as live feeds.

There are other new features too such as the ability to view battery levels from the widget and the ability to change light colors from your Home Screen.

Links from the show

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2 Comments

AppleZulu

said about 2 years ago

The secret, imperfect but really pretty good third option for ceiling fans is to use Bond Bridge. This works with most fans and their own RF remotes. The Bond Bridge device will replicate all the commands for the fans' own remotes and send out the requisite RF signal to turn them on or off or set them to certain speeds, etc. You can then program shortcuts to issue Bond Bridge commands, which makes it possible to operate the fans via Siri.

Initially I had Bond Bridge along with a Raspberry Pi Home Bridge setup, to link it in and make it all function in HomeKit, but I found the Home Bridge thing to be seriously wonky and not particularly reliable, so I eventually 86'd the Raspberry Pi. The one advantage was that the HomeBridge would fool HomeKit into thinking it was getting a return status signal from the fans, which is required for HomeKit compatibility. Of course, it wasn't really getting that return signal, which contributed to the wonkiness of that arrangement. The on/off on the fan's light is really just a toggle, with the same RF signal to switch it either way, so when that gets out of sync with what the HomeBridge is telling HomeKit, it's a fail anyway.

So the shortcuts-only arrangement with Bond Bridge lacks full HomeKit integration, but functionally, it has been highly reliable. Tap the shortcut on your phone or tell Siri to do the thing, and it does the thing. The Bond Bridge is $99 and there's no subscription. So if you already have ceiling fans with RF remotes in the house, this one device will get you almost fully automated with Siri control for all of them via shortcuts.

Andrew_OSU

said about 2 years ago

AppleZulu said:

The secret, imperfect but really pretty good third option for ceiling fans is to use Bond Bridge. This works with most fans and their own RF remotes. The Bond Bridge device will replicate all the commands for the fans' own remotes and send out the requisite RF signal to turn them on or off or set them to certain speeds, etc. You can then program shortcuts to issue Bond Bridge commands, which makes it possible to operate the fans via Siri.

Initially I had Bond Bridge along with a Raspberry Pi Home Bridge setup, to link it in and make it all function in HomeKit, but I found the Home Bridge thing to be seriously wonky and not particularly reliable, so I eventually 86'd the Raspberry Pi. The one advantage was that the HomeBridge would fool HomeKit into thinking it was getting a return status signal from the fans, which is required for HomeKit compatibility. Of course, it wasn't really getting that return signal, which contributed to the wonkiness of that arrangement. The on/off on the fan's light is really just a toggle, with the same RF signal to switch it either way, so when that gets out of sync with what the HomeBridge is telling HomeKit, it's a fail anyway.

So the shortcuts-only arrangement with Bond Bridge lacks full HomeKit integration, but functionally, it has been highly reliable. Tap the shortcut on your phone or tell Siri to do the thing, and it does the thing. The Bond Bridge is $99 and there's no subscription. So if you already have ceiling fans with RF remotes in the house, this one device will get you almost fully automated with Siri control for all of them via shortcuts.

I love the Bond controller! I'm so bummed that it doesn't support HomeKit natively but I tested this a couple of years ago and my parents still use one in their bedroom! They've always said it works great and is probably one of the most reliable smart home products they have.

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