Aqara Panel Hub S1 Plus Review

Aqara Panel Hub S1 Plus: Introduction

• Connectivity: Dual-band 2.4/5GHz Wi-Fi, Zigbee, Bluetooth
• Compatibility: Aqara App, Matter, Alexa, HomeKit, Google Home, Homey, Home Assistant, SmartThings

Back in January, Aqara removed the covers from a bunch of new kits, including some fashionable new additions that competed for some wall space, as usual.

Most notable was the Aqara panel hub S1 Plus, which is reviewed here.

The Hub S1 Plus, which has been stuck on the walls of the kitchen for the past few weeks, is a 6.9-inch touchscreen smart home hub designed to employ the likes of the Amazon Echo Hub, or a premium control panel such as the Control4 and Crestron.

It is also a direct rival to the Brilliant Panel and Rithum Switch, as it is directly mounted from the existing wires of the regular Light Switch.

Check out our full review of the Aqara Panel Hub S1 Plus. In fact, what we’re testing here is the EU version. The US launch is still TBC.

Design and Build

• 1440 x 720 HD display
• Can be mounted on the wall or used in a dock
• Equipped with existing light circuit lines or USB-C

If the design of the Aqara Panel Hub S1 Plus appears familiar, it’s probably because it’s a carbon copy of the MagicPad S1 Plus, which lived in Southeast Asia and the Middle East a few years ago.

But that’s not necessarily a bad thing as it has added plenty of bells and whistles in between, and its recycled design is an incredibly smooth look kit.

Measured at 199 x 113 x 56mm and weighing over 500g, it’s a hugely larger approach to gaining smart controls than the Echo Show 15 or 21, and is a more trimmer than Amazon’s Echo Hub.

Boasting dual-band wifi and double the Zigby hub and Matter Bridge, the S1 Plus can handle everything from live camera feeds to thermostatic adjustments, allowing users to customize themes, dashboards, widgets or family photos.

It’s not the largest resolution in the world, but it has a good viewing angle and does a good job even in bright sunlight. It’s not designed for movie viewing, so it’s sharp enough.

Just a full-black front and a light bezel will give you the option of white or black trims to suit your walls.

As for controls, everything is handled on the screen or via the app (a little bit more about it), so there are four microphones on top for two-way communications, and some small speakers at the bottom are on top along the USB-C port and the reset button.

Unlike many of Aqara’s latest hub launches, the S1 Plus is not a problem controller, but it can be used as a dedicated Aqara Zigbee 3.0 hub for “child” devices, allowing those devices to be bridged to the problem system.

It comes with Bluetooth, but not just for streaming music, just to easily sync new Aqara devices to your system.

install

• Neutral wires are needed for power
• Make your stupid light bulb smarter
• Designed for 200-240V

When a gadget needs hardwire to the main, it is always a concern when its installation becomes difficult. The good news about the Aqara Panel Hub S1 Plus is that it’s not.

In fact, apart from the manual, there are a few screws along with the mini screwdriver, so you’ll feel at ease as soon as you open the box.

In fact, there are two ways to power the S1 Plus. Because most people have designed it. However, if you want to place it on the dock and on the side table, there is a USB-C port at the bottom for this purpose.

If you want to take this option, simply remove the two screws that hold them in place and remove the power block from the back.

In fact, it’s the first step in the installation, so even if you’re mounting it on the wall like your Aqara Bods intended, you’ll need to do it anyway.

In fact, the first step in the installation is to make sure your existing light switchback box is compatible. You can see that the power block is very single gang box size, but as long as there are lined up screw holes, it also fits in some double gangs. Aqara has a guide on this on the S1 Plus landing page.

That power block on the back is actually rounded at the corners. That means it should fit in both the EU and UK backboxes.

As mentioned earlier, this is officially a UK/EU device with input power loads listed as 200-240V, 50/60Hz.

After removing the power block, the pair of physical relay switches from the terminals in the back is on, so you’re ready to connect to the light switch: n, l, l1, l2 – pretty standard, and I’m hoping to be exactly what you’ll see with a dual light switch.

Obviously, you’ll turn off the power at this point, so simply follow the lighting circuit to connect the correct wires and screw them into the back box, as other light switches and devices are suitable. Click to undo the two screws, and that’s it.

The S1 Plus can control several dam lights connected to the switch wire, but it also supports Mars Tech’s smart load mode. This means you can also get more specific wireless controls for the Aqara smart light.

You can use this (and configurable via the app) to select the mode you want to use (usually, intelligent, or power) to create more precise controls like curtains, smart shades, thermostats, and more.

Initial Synchronization

However, I decided to turn on the S1 Plus. If you see the Aqara logo flashing up after reverting the power, you will immediately see that it was done correctly. Adding it to a smart home system proves as easy as adding a smart sensor. And if it’s your first Aqara device, it’s just as easy.

The first step is to select the language and tap the next button. After that, a QR code will appear, scan it and sync it to your smart home.

Well, at this point, there are actually two options. You can add it to your Aqara app or skip it completely and go directly to HomeKit.

In any mode, you will also see an option to add a pin security code to the device itself (this is not mandatory).

We recommend going down the Aqara app route as it is the only way to get the full functionality and full customization options of the S1 Plus. Think of things like wallpapers, icons and more in your photo.

And just because you chose Aqara for your initial setup doesn’t mean you can’t add it to HomeKit or actually expose it to importance. That was exactly what I did.

Synchronize with smart home system

Remember, whatever method you choose, you are probably in the suspect for an hour or two to make it work all accurately.

I imagine testing a Smart Home kit for a living with an incredibly “busy” smart home setup with a comprehensive Aqara system already in place alongside Alexa, Apple Home, Homey, Smartthings and more.

In the use case of the S1 Plus, I wanted to control two “real” buttons (i.e. physically wired to the lighting circuit) to two dam lights in the kitchen (spotlight and cabinet underlight), and use a “wireless” switch (up to 6) to control the permanent smart bulbs from the Hue system.

The first bit worked perfectly as soon as it started, and the next bit put in some effort.

I thought I could simply pair the S1 Plus with the Alexa system via the problem. The two wired switches and six wireless switches appear as individual devices, but it wasn’t just Alexa pulling the wired ones.

I also tried the old-fashioned skill approach, but I swayed the even more bizarre consequences of the fact that the panel itself was presented as a device and there were no switches at all.

My workaround was to configure those wireless buttons using HomeKit, which is the S1 Plus (and in my experience, Aqara as a whole).

Hue Lights was bridged to HomeKit via material, and when I added the S1 Plus to Apple Home (after generating a HomeKit QR code for the device itself), I was able to configure both the wired and wireless switches.

I might also have been able to go down the route exposing my Hue Bridge to the Aqara Hub M3 since it is a dedicated material controller, but I’ve had issues with the M3 and Hue in the past.

Like I said, prepare an hour or two of adjustments, especially if you have a complicated smart home setup like myself. But there are plenty of options. You may have done the above using a homely, a home assistant, or Smartthings.

For daily use

Although we focus a lot on the light control options on the Panel Hub S1 Plus, we run a massive disadvantage by classifying it as a smart light switch.

Yes, you can control two sets of physical lights from those wired switches, but wireless buttons can actually be configured in a number of ways.

Within the Aqara app, you can allow these wireless buttons to be synced with your existing Aqara smart home system to be more controlled than filling them with native Aqara devices, third-party material devices that work with Aqara, or other Aqara hubs, such as hub M3.

But to get really complicated, you can configure it to start automating things like Apple Home or Homey.

I’ve already talked about using wireless buttons to control some shades of light through the home kit, but that’s pretty basic compared to what you can do. Essentially, any automations that can be created in the Apple Home app can be configured to run after pressing the wireless button on the S1 Plus.

Using the Aqara app, you can customize the name and icon of the wireless button (actually, the wired buttons are also customised, which is suitable for the action you want to start.

Unlike Aqara’s physical smart buttons, these wireless buttons are limited to only a single press, so there is no option to configure a double tap or long press.

But another great use case for the S1 Plus is to show Aqara camera and doorbell live view on the screen, so buttons aren’t everything. You can choose to group all cameras into a single “card” that scrolls, or create each individual card.

You can also create automations such as having alarm sounds and customized sounds when people are detected who are recognized or unrecognised (i.e., if you have a new Aqara cam with facial recognition smart, that is).

The live view from the camera is very pimple, the footage is very clear and the doorbell and camera can also talk two-way.

I’ve talked a bit about the cards, but all of these play a role on the homeboard you set up (you can actually have 10). This homeboard is a bit similar to the Aqara app, with tiles and buttons that allow you to easily control various devices. These “cards” are Aqara, and can have up to 60 on the S1 Plus.

The default display on the S1 Plus is a switchboard that displays the configured wired and wireless switches, along with widgets indicating the time and weather. Now scroll down to access your homeboard.

All of these are customizable in the app, allowing you to choose from a variety of themes and wallpapers, and although it’s a 50MB limit, you can also add your own photos to the mix. I only had 10 photos to sync from my iPhone using the Aqara app.

By default, S1 Plus displays the app with a dimly lit version of the screensaver (there are several options to choose from) and uses the proximity sensor to launch a customized home screen when approaching.

The official Spiel says he’s riding the Aqara Copilot Voice Assistant, but that’s not yet the case outside of China.

Another feature that I can’t really say I’ve wrapped me is that power monitoring is available on two wired switches and you can monitor these in the app.

Final Thoughts

I’m already a big Aqara user, but the Panel Hub S1 Plus was really impressed. Yes, the initial setup with a complicated smart home may take a little patience, but the rewards are pretty smooth. This is more than just a flashy light switch. It is a centralized command center for the entire smart setup, offering excellent control and customization for Aqara, HomeKit and Matter devices.

Testing method

When publishing reviews, you can reassure them that they are the result of a long-term test “live.”

Smart home hubs and bridges play a key role in control, smart home ecosystems, or a variety of products where everything works in harmony.

As you test your smart home kit every day, you know what’s important and how a particular smart controller will compare to the alternatives you may be considering too.

Our reviews are comprehensive, objective and fair, and of course, you will not be paid directly to review your device.

For more information, see our guide to how to test your smart home hub.

Aqara Panel Hub S1 Plus: Specifications