Long ago, on a continent far, far away.
We had no idea that such a huge range of products would be offered by the small company whose Android system was/is so popular. It's only been a few years since the first Xiaomi phone was released in 2012, the Xiaomi Mi1. Since then, the company's development and product range has been unstoppable. Today it boasts nearly 300 products that can be found in all areas of everyday life. The largest family is the smart home devices, including central units, power sockets, switches, ceiling lights, night lights, motion sensors, door sensors, oven cookers and many more, all of which are essential for an advanced, high-tech home.
In this article, you will learn about the basic package, which includes the following units:
- Central Unit (Getaway)
- Motion Sensor (Occupancy Sensor)
- Door / Window Sensor
- Smart Socket Plug (Smart Connector)
- Smart Wireless Switch
Note: Unfortunately, today it only has a Chinese wall socket, so it is mandatory to use a good quality converter for the Central Unit and the Connector.
The box is made of the usual recycled cardboard, but instead of the usual white colour, it's a real comm... I mean, Chinese red. Its quality brings the usual Xiaomi style, it's durable and offers enough protection for the smartness inside.
Central unit
The Getaway, or Central Unit, as the name suggests, is the heart of the entire Mi Smart Home ecosystem. It is the only one that can manage and control all the smart gadgets in your home. To control the Central Unit, the Mi Home app has been developed, which can not only control it, but also the units themselves, from your phone or from anywhere in the world. The Mi Home app is currently available in English/Chinese, but the MIUI Hungary team is working hard on a unified Hungarian app package that includes translated plug-ins for the units. You can read about the full software interface and how to use it in another article.
Motion sensor
Motion sensors are familiar to many people, as they can be found in every shop or workplace, usually in a corner. In terms of their function, they are all connected to alarms, which is how our little gadget can be used for this purpose. But the science doesn't stop there, because we can assign other events to it via our Mi Home app, because it's just another alarm. The device has a range of up to 7 metres and can cover quite a large area with a 170 degree field of view.
Smart socket
A smart power socket can be very useful if you have a device at home that you don't want to leave on all the time, but want to be able to switch on and off remotely. You can plug a power strip into the socket and control your entire media system, because why should you have 5 devices on if you don't use them? The Connector can be switched on either physically with the switch on the side, or remotely from the Mi Home app installed on your phone.
Connecting the Connector is completely safe as it uses an electronically controlled relay, providing adequate protection for the devices plugged into it. Another great feature of our Connector is the automatic switch-off after charging. This means that if you plug in your phone charger, it will monitor the power consumption and when the phone's battery is fully charged and no longer takes a charge, it will turn off the power.
Window shutter sensor
The open door sensor is not new, for many years you can buy a doorbell or an alarm that works on the same principle. It's just that this small device sends a signal to the central unit when they move away from each other (opening a closed door) or pass each other. The signal can also be configured here in the Mi Home app. The primary one is the bim-bam bell, but you can change it, give it a different tone or a different task.
Smart switch
The Smart Switch, as its name suggests, is a micro switch. When pressed, it also sends a signal to the central unit and can be programmed to your liking. You can turn on a light, a power socket, or set the Getaway to emit an audible alarm. You can also use it as a doorbell outside your door, or as a light switch in your room, and much more.
All devices except the Getaway and the power socket are battery operated.
- Motion sensor - CR2450
- Smart button - CR2032
- Window shutter - CR1632
It is better to stock up on these at least every six months, depending on how much they are used. Disassembling the battery operated devices is not a difficult job, just unscrew the lower grey part of the Motion Sensor in the opposite direction to the direction of travel. At a small gap under the battery at the bottom of the Smart Button, clearly visible in the picture above, carefully lift up the locking pin and unwind in the same way. Insert your fingernail into the small slot under the RESET slot on the bottom of the Opener, also grey, and gently start to pry it off from the top. Small tongues will release the top with an audible click.
For the mains-powered Getaway and Smart Connector, choose a quality converter to avoid damaging your devices or, in the worst case, causing fires and damage to your home! Don't mess around with it!
For example, I got this one, it's high quality and not too expensive. But it does make the devices look a bit interesting, but at least it's safe to use in any earthed wall socket or power strip.
Plus a bonus if you have a Xiaomi phone and want to use the factory Chinese charger in the Smart Connector. :D
Fixing of the three-element device with a self-adhesive surface at the bottom. So don't reposition it too densely, as it will quickly lose its grip. Instead you can use your own double-sided adhesive tape, which of course you can replace or exchange at any time.
For now, you can read about the devices in the bundle, how they work, how to use them, how to set them up and how to use the Mi Home app in a series of articles. Stay tuned, follow our Facebook page or subscribe to our notifications page to stay up to date with the most important Xiaomi news!!!
The Mi Smart Home Kit is available from XiaomiShop online store, we hope it will be available soon!
