This small box from Samsung goes by the name Smart Things Station, and it is Samsung’s own take on the Smart Home scene. While Apple has Homekit and Google has Google Home and both of them are quite established in their own ecosystem, where does the Smart Things Station stand in this regard? As it turns out, Samsung went all-in with this one to bring the entire Galaxy ecosystem under a single button. But it certainly has some limitations, and we are here to talk about all the highs and lows regarding it. Let’s get started.
Smart Things Station: Overview
Similar to the standard smart home hubs on the market such as the Switchbot Hub 2, this one also has Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Matter, and Zigbee compatibility. Both Android and iOS devices are supported, and you can seamlessly create and manage automation via the Smart Things companion app. And just like the Switchbot Hub 2, this one is also needed to be paired up with smart speakers such as the Apple Home Pod for voice control, given there is no integrated microphone on it.
But one thing that is missing on the Smart Things station is the Zwave radio, which can be a bummer if you own a lot of Zwave devices in your smart home. While we did mention this device having Bluetooth connectivity, you can’t directly connect devices such as the Switchbot to it. Bluetooth is only limited to the SmartThings Find feature where you can keep track of Earbuds, Smartphones, and Watches via connected via the Smart Things app.
But where the Smart Things Station does shine is in its additional features other than acting as a smart home hub. We mean, it’s not every day that you see a smart home hub wirelessly charging your smartphone. That’s right, Smart Things Station can wirelessly charge your Qi-enabled Galaxy phone at up to 15 watts. But there is a really cool feature tied to this. When it detects the smartphone, it automatically adjusts the room for a good night’s sleep. Such as turning the lights and TV off, making the floor more heated, and so on. And as mentioned earlier, the SmartThings Find is another awesome feature that enables you to track down any and all devices connected via Bluetooth to it. This thing also works as a Matter controller and thread router at a really lower cost compared to an actual border router.
Smart Things Station itself is pretty compact and has a single button with multi functionalities. A single press triggers a Good Night Scene, whereas holding it down for a couple of seconds will enable a Morning setup. The device itself gives off a discreet vibe and is available in both black and white models to match the rest of the appliances. It costs around $59 without the power adapter and 79 if someone requires the 25 Watt power brick.
Wrapping Up
Everything considered, the Smart Things stations have a lot of potential for Samsung’s very own ecosystem. It meets the standard requirements of being a reliable hub and has more tricks up its sleeves other than being a hub. The smart home scene is getting pretty competitive, and it is nice to see popular brands coming up with their own “do-it-all” solutions for their respective ecosystem. And as a platform, the Smart Things Station might just have the broadest compatibility.
