Home 4+

*update* the worst part about Apple HomeKit is how live/stream recording is PROHIBITED. While you can view a stream, HomeKit only records in short segments of video, meaning this is only good for general home convenience rather than legitimate security. Not sure if your garage door is open? Check your cameras. Need to be rest assured someone isn't in your home? Do not trust Apple HomeKit for this!

There is no balance or control in this app. Scenes are just an overwhelming wall of same-size items that are tough or impossible to sort and you see all or nothing. You can't hide Automation or Discover tabs. Only one person is able to view a camera at a time! There is no limited access control so you cannot stop others from seeing specific cameras or controlling specific lights. There is a lot to be desired and little to be found. It's useful yet bloated with problems. MOTION SENSORS that are found in the Discover panel of the app and bought on Apple's own website are useless because they don't work with Apple Home's automation: you can detect motion but lights will not fluently stay on with active motion or will not turn off after a set time; overall it's really frustrating that you spend extra money for such a limited set of products to hardly work and you're given no discounts, no extra products, no bug fixes (after years of asking for them), etc etc etc.

Maybe the main reason is because this app did have issues in the past as I understand. But I really don’t understand why there are so many negative reviews. I use this and the Google home app and I like this one much better. I use this app with about 10 smart switches and smart plugs, three HomePods, and I even have Homebridge running with an alarm system, and my Google nest thermostat integrated into it. The only thing that gives me even remotely any issues is the Google nest thermostat functionality when set to hot and cold at the same time but after all, it’s not native to this app in anyway so that’s not surprising. If you’re not gonna take the time to learn how to use and set up something appropriately, then don’t leave it such a negative review just because you don’t understand, which seems to be the main issue here. I get it, setting up, smart home stuff is not the easiest thing in the world, but if you take your time, read tutorials and learn how to do it the right way this app works great. And also if your main issue is because devices are disconnecting, that has nothing to do with HomeKit that has to do with your router and your network set up. If you got one router sitting in your basement and you wonder why you’re losing connectivity to stuff on your second floor we’ll go figure.

HomeKit and the Home App may not be as feature rich as Google Home, but it is light years better when it comes to stability and privacy. Any HomeKit enabled device can work completely offline, with a HomeKit hub (HomePod, Apple TV, and/or iPad) handling any of the remote access stuff. This drastically increases both your privacy and security.

Furthermore, in conjunction with the Shortcuts app, Home allows for the creation of some really intricate and complex automations. For example, I have an older swamp cooler connected to a smart outlet and a couple of temperature sensors throughout my place. I have an automation setup that when the temp in my bedroom goes above a certain degree, the swamp cooler turns on automatically. However, to prevent the living room from getting too cold, there’s a temp sensors throughout there, that when it goes below a certain temp the swamp cooler turns on. To make things more complex, there’s swamp cooler has separate power for the pump and the fan. It’s a good idea to run the pump for a few min before the fan starts, and to run the fan for a few min after the pump stops. I have an additional automations set to start the pump for 10 min before the fan starts, and keep the fan running for 10 min after the pump stops. It’s great!