How to Choose a Hub

With six different Smart Home Hubs to choose from, we get a common question – which hub do I need? Here’s a guide and breakdown. First, let’s start with some basics.

What’s a Homesmart.sg Aqara hub and why do I need it?

Our range of Aqara Hubs can be thought of as a “Zigbee router”. Most of our Aqara smart home devices communicate with each other using a wireless protocol called Zigbee. However, the smart devices don’t talk to each other directly – instead, they communicate with one of our Aqara Hubs, much like how your smart phone connects to wifi through your router. So you can imagine your Homesmart.sg Aqara Hub creating a Zigbee wireless network, and all the other smart home devices connecting to the network as clients.

What are the Homesmart.sg Aqara Hubs available?

With these six hubs to choose from, the simple answer is that you just have to pick the one that suits your needs. All of them work as a hub, although there may be differences in signal strength. Here’s the breakdown.

ProductRGB LightSmart Aircon ControlSecurity CameraSpeakers (for alarms etc.)Ethernet Port
Aqara M3 HubxYes (works with HomeKit)xYes (loud)Yes, supports POE
Aqara M2 HubxYesxYes (moderate)Yes
Aqara M1S Gen 2 HubYesxxYes (loud)x
Aqara E1 Hubxxxxx
Aqara G2H Pro CameraxxYesYes (loud)x
Aqara G3 CameraxYesYesYes (loud)x

With these differences spelt out, it makes the choice easier. For example, if you need a home monitoring camera, it makes sense to pick our Aqara G2H Pro or the Aqara G3 cameras. If you don’t, the M2 or M1S may be more suitable.

If you’re just looking for the most affordable option, our Aqara E1 is your best bet.

Will I need multiple hubs?

As these hubs are creating a wireless network, naturally, there is a limitation of the wireless range. Depending on the size of your home, or on the spread of the Homesmart.sg Aqara smart devices you’re installing, you may need multiple hubs.

Each hub has a range of up to 20 metres (with no walls in between). In real world applications and considering walls, you should probably have one hub per 500sqft (this is an estimate). For best results, you may even consider one hub per room – this ties in nicely with our Aqara M2 or M3 hubs as air-conditioner controls, as they can only control the air-conditioners in the room it’s in.

An exception to this would be if you have Aqara neutral switches installed at home. As neutral switches work as repeaters, you may require less hubs.

Can I use different hubs in one home?

Yes! That’s the point. You could, for example, use the G3 in the living room for home monitoring + smart aircon control, and the M2 in the bedroom for smart aircon only.

What we like about each hub

Homesmart.sg Aqara M3 Hub

The latest and most powerful hub, the M3 is for those who want to future-proof their smart homes. Designed mostly as an ‘upgrade’ to the M2, the M3 basically adds on to the feature list – including Thread, POE, and support as a Matter Controller. It’s packed with a lot of new technology, such as Hub Clusters. Self-healing mode, and more.

This is the only hub that currently supports Thread, which is found in the range of P2 products – the Aqara Motion Sensor P2, and Aqara Door Sensor P2. It’s also the only hub that works as a Matter Controller (the M2 is a Matter Bridge).

Most importantly, air-con control for the Aqara Hub M3 can be added to Apple Home through Matter – something new and exciting!

We generally recommend this product over the M2 due to its many new features and because it’s future proof. Still, the higher price point requires some consideration – the M2 hub still remains a very attractive product for those on a budget.

Homesmart.sg Aqara M2 Hub

The Aqara M2 Hub is our most popular hub, probably owing to its well-rounded mix of features, and its attractive price point. It has an ethernet port, and has the best theoretical Zigbee strength and range.

The Smart aircon controller is probably its standout point, making it an easy choice for most clients.

Unfortunately, the speakers on the M2 Hub is a bit soft.

Homesmart.sg Aqara M1S Gen 2 Hub

A very nice product with a great idea of an RGB light that can create a localized mood in a corner of your room. Its built-in speakers can also get pretty loud, making it a good option for a doorbell, security alarm, or to get notifications. You’re able to create automations that combine both lights AND sounds, so it could be a great way to have notifications that alert you both audibly and visually.

We’re not a big fan of the plug-in design as it makes placement of the hub a bit harder. Also, it’s only available in a 2-pin plug version.

Homesmart.sg Aqara E1 Hub

The perfect hub for covering up weak spots, or for those who just aren’t looking for extensive smart features. This no-frills hub plugs the gap nicely for smaller applications, and is reasonably priced.

Homesmart.sg Aqara G2H Pro Camera Hub

Our favourite camera, the G2H Pro is compactly sized and easy to mount – features we consider important for a camera. It might not have all the bells and whistles of its bigger brother, the G3, but is perfectly capable in its own right.

Some customers prefer a camera that can pan and tilt (you’ll need the G3 for that), but we’re not convinced pan-tilt is an important consideration for a home monitoring camera.

Homesmart.sg Aqara G3 Camera Hub

The most feature-packed hub in the list, our Aqara G3 gives you both home monitoring camera functions (complete with pan-tilt controls), and smart aircon control. It’s a bit bulky and hard to mount, but that’s not a problem when you’re seating it on a shelf, counter, or console. Its many features also dictates its price – but considering you’re combining many functions into one unit, maybe that’s a good deal!