Wall-mounted triangular light panels, light-emitting aromatherapy diffusers, and connected deadbolts are a very useful, practical, and down right cool part of the smart home, but there is nothing quite like small changes that happen in the background without our immediate interaction.  This is where sensors come into play and I think I’ve made my obsession with them fairly well known here on myHomeKithome.  Today we’ll take a look at a relative newcomer to the HomeKit space and their initial offering: the Onvis SMS1 Smart Motion Sensor.  This sensor has a few fairly compelling aspects that are sure to at least capture your attention if not make you place your order. 

A review unit was provided to myHomeKithome for the purpose of this review, but no compensation was received nor was the content reviewed before publishing. All thoughts expressed are purely those of my own.

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Features

• 3-in-1 motion, temperature, and humidity sensor
• Bluetooth 5.0
• Event History (100 entries over 31 days)

Need to Knows

• Requires Apple home hub for automations and remote access
• requires 2 AA batteries lasting about 15,000 hours
• 7 meter (23 feet) motion sensor range with 100 degree field of view

Pros

We’ll start out with a banger here in the Pro column and that is by far its value.  Hovering around $20 USD the competition doesn’t hold a candle to the Onvis SMS1.  This is part of a wave of Asian manufacturers who are stepping up their game and throwing their hats into the ring and I fully embrace it.  One thing HomeKit users and critics of the home automation platform, perhaps rightfully, fault it for is a lack of device support.  The truth of the matter is that it’s all inter-connected.  The more accessories we buy, the more the market takes notice.  More competition in the market means a wider range of offerings and this usually means budget-friendly options.  This all in turn shows Apple that there is an interest in the platform leading them to devote more resources to the SDK which, coming fulll circle, means we get a more extensive, more reliable, and feature-rich platform.

We’ll go into this more in our discussion of he app below, but I do like that it does keep track of the sensor data, even if it is a fairly limited timeframe.  It is better than some products on the markets, but not as good as others, but at least we have something here.

Again shooting for the middle of the road, its size is medium when compared to other HomeKit motion sensors on the market.  Other manufacturers have large form factors with less features; others have similar features with smaller footprint.  In the end, it’s size doesn’t offend and is not  likely going to ruin any design aesthetic you may be going for.  Speaking of the design…

Cons

While I feel the size of the device is reasonable for its features, it has one thing in common with another HomeKit motion sensor that just weirds me out: the window.  I get a infrared needs a place to do its work, but there is something creepy about the window.  Other manufacturers have managed to either downplay this creepy hazy opening or have gotten rid of it entirely and I would like to see more of this with motion sensors.  Maybe it’s just me… it’s probably just me.

Another thing I want to comment on in terms of its design is its mounting.  The Onvis SMS1 comes with 3M style double-sided tape pre-stuck to the battery cover and they even include a backup piece for when you inevitably decide that positioning needs to be adjusted since it’s not picking up the action you want.  This is great, but extremely limiting.  In my experience, motion sensors work best in corners to take full advantage of their field of view and it is nearly impossible to mount this device in a corner with the provided mounting option that is if you want to take advantage of its 100 degree field of view.  This almost forces us to mount it in the middle of a wall which definitely makes it stick out like a sore thumb.  A mounting cutout would have been a much better option and might actually save some money in terms of production costs.

I certainly appreciate and actually hail this device for its ability to pack 3 very useful sensors into a small and very affordable package., but it is missing a crucial component that no motion sensor should be without: an ambient light sensor.  Thanks to HomeKit, we can use motion sensors to trigger just about anything, but I am willing to bet that the vast majority of users are using them for lighting, but if there is sufficient light from a window, an adjoining space, or some other source, it is a complete waste of money to have the lights turn on.  If we think back to the days when we struggled with physical light switches, if there is enough light in the room, we don’t even reach for the switch.  I want all motion sensors to address this and they can do so with an ambient light sensor.  The Onvis SMS1 is not the only motion sensor lacking this vital component so it could be cost prohibitive, but, personally, I’d give up either temperature or humidity, or even both, for an ambient light sensor.

The App

Honestly, I think Onvis did a pretty good job with their app.  Homes and rooms are easily accessible and navigable, and accessories are identifiable with icons that make sense though I wasn’t able to find a way to reorganize the rooms in the home or accessories in a room which is a bit of a headache.  Scenes are nicely grouped into their own tab leaving guest, zones, and automations to be configured into a separate tab which is a bit odd, but simple enough to figure out.  We also have the ability to change the background image of the app and change temperature units between Fahrenheit and Celsius, but that’s really about it in terms of what we can do with the app.

In terms of additional features for the SMS1 itself that the Onvis Home app offers that aren’t available in Apple’s Home app, we are able to access the last 100 events or 31 days of each of the sensors with not only the specific events, but a visual reference chart for quick glance metrics.  Unfortunately, we aren’t able to export this)data like we can with some of the competition.  As per usual, we also use the Onvis Home app for firmware updates of the SMS1 which thankfully one was available once I had set up the device.  

As for my “does it earn a place on the first page of my HomeKit app folder” test, it does not pass.  Personally, I do not look at sensor data over time as I really just want sensors to work at the moment.  Also, the app isn’t really any better than my go-to Eve or Home 3 apps for more advanced HomKit-ery.  So, it is relegated, along with so many others, to the second, third, and now, fourth pages of my HomeKit app folder.  I will say though that this isn’t a necessarily a bad thing.  There’s some very stiff competition out there and it really would be a feat for me to change up my app organization , but I extend the challenge

Final Thoughts

Simply stated, the Onvis SMS1 is potentially the best HomeKit bargain going when factoring in features and price.  Sure, it’s app isn’t anything to write home about and the design probably isn’t going to win any awards any time soon, but I would argue that because of the nature of HomeKit, the latter at least is really an afterthought.  I’m not hyped about the lack of an ambient light sensor, but the accessory has a ton of applications throughout the home.  Though I wasn’t able to get any information regarding its ingress protection, it would likely survive a bathroom as long as you keep the steam showers to a minimum and keep it away from splashes.  This sensor along with switches, outlets, lights, and just about any other HomeKit accessory can step up your home automation game and I would definitely consider picking one of these up if you’re looking for a multi-sensor…or even a uni-sensor.

What multi-sensors, or uni-sensors, have earned their place in your HomeKit home and how do you put them to work?  Let us know in the comments.  Stay up-to-date with all things HomeKit via our social media @myhomekithome.

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Links & Resources

Learn more about Onvis’ ventures into the HomeKit smart home at http://www.onvistech.com/

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