After a change of heart, Belkin has now officially announced that it will bring HomeKit support to its ecosystem of Wemo smart home accessories later this year with the unveiling of a new HomeKit Wemo Bridge.
The bridge will enable all Wemo devices currently on the market to interact with an Apple user’s HomeKit setup. This will allow voice control of Wemo lights, plugs and switches via Siri as well as manual control through the iOS 10 Apple Home app.
The bridge will be available to buy in the fall for an unannounced price. The small puck-sized bridge connects to the home Wi-Fi router via an Ethernet cable. It then uses the Wi-Fi signal to communicate with Wemo devices in range and any iOS devices on the network, allowing the products to interoperate via HomeKit.
Like bridges from other HomeKit accessory makers, the Apple Home app will display all Wemo accessories independently even though they are originating from the single Bridge. This allows users to individually toggle lights and add select accessories to scenes and automation triggers, as if they were independent products.
The news means current and future Wemo products will work seamlessly with Apple devices (including a potential Siri Speaker rumored to be announced next month) once the bridge is available to buy. HomeKit integration means that Wemo users will be able to tell Apple’s voice assistant, Siri, things like ‘Turn off the lights’ and have their Wemo light switches dutifully obey.
Belkin says the announcement answers an overwhelming request from customers who want to use Wemo devices with HomeKit.
The beauty of HomeKit is that it allows iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch owners to integrate smart home products from different manufacturers into a single experience. This means if you already own some Wemo smart devices today, you can add them into your HomeKit home alongside accessories from Philips Hue, or whoever else.
The Wemo Bridge will be available in the fall with pricing yet to be announced.
