HomeKit Weekly: Why aren’t we seeing new HomeKit Safe Video cameras?

HomeKit has turn into a robust platform, with Apple persistently enhancing its options whereas staying true to its privacy-first method. They’ve even contributed to the Matter commonplace, increasing what the Dwelling app can do. However there’s a giant downside we have to tackle: HomeKit Safe Video. Distributors are largely ignoring it, and whereas this isn’t solely Apple’s fault, it’s an issue they should resolve.

HomeKit Weekly is a sequence centered on good dwelling equipment, automation ideas and methods, and every thing to do with Apple’s good dwelling framework.

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What’s HomeKit Safe Video?

HomeKit Safe Video was Apple’s reply to good dwelling video again when Amazon and Google rolled out their managed providers, and it debuted in 2019. It permits you to use your house safety cameras with the Dwelling app, the place video footage is analyzed privately in your Dwelling hub earlier than being securely saved in iCloud. What’s nice about it’s that it doesn’t rely in opposition to your iCloud storage limits, and it’s designed with privateness in thoughts—every thing stays end-to-end encrypted, which means solely you and people you belief can see the recordings. Not even Apple can see it. It’s a stable function that matches completely into Apple’s broader dedication to retaining your information protected.

What are a few of my favourite HomeKit Safe Video Cameras?

All the cameras listed above are actually nice choices for HomeKit Safe Video. They arrive from varied producers, and so they’ve been rock stable. I’ve no points recommending any of those cameras to make use of with HomeKit Safe Video.

The place are the brand new cameras?

If you happen to examine the discharge dates for all of those cameras, you received’t discover a single one launched in 2024. The truth is, most had been launched between 2020 and 2021. Aqara has launched a handful of latest cameras up to now few years, whereas Eve launched its flood digital camera in 2022. Earlier this summer season, we additionally coated the confusion round Logitech’s HomeKit Digital camera lineup and whether or not Logitech was nonetheless promoting them.

Why that is Apple’s downside

As I mentioned in the beginning, Apple can not power producers to launch new cameras, however it should pay attention to this. That is one purpose Apple has hesitated to depend on outdoors distributors throughout its historical past. When Apple relied on Microsoft for Workplace within the Nineteen Nineties, it bumped into notion issues when Microsoft didn’t maintain it present.

Google and Amazon make their very own cameras. They help their very own Cameras. They management their future relating to good dwelling video cameras. It’s time for Apple to do the identical. It’s clear that there isn’t sufficient income for HomeKit Safe Video cameras for distributors to proceed to innovate, and it’s comprehensible. Google presents a Nest Conscious subscription designed to supply further options for its first-party cameras. I exploit the Google Nest Flood Cameras paired with Starling Dwelling Hub to bridge it to HomeKit and HomeKit Safe Video, as I’m not proud of the innovation occurring within the cameras that natively help HomeKit.

So, what’s the answer for Apple? The reply is evident: it’s time for Apple to take management and develop its personal lineup of good cameras that totally help the most recent and best HomeKit options. By doing so, Apple can set a brand new commonplace within the good dwelling digital camera market, simply as they’ve finished in so many different classes. It’s time for a recent wave of innovation, the place Apple’s signature design meets cutting-edge know-how. A product that not solely appears to be like nice but in addition seamlessly integrates with the HomeKit ecosystem, delivering the privateness, safety, and ease of use that Apple customers have come to count on.