Episode 573 - Backdoors, Bots, and Baby Monitors

HomeTech 574: Backdoors, Bots, and Baby Monitors

Gavin Campbell, TJ Huddleston, & Seth Johnson

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On this week’s show: Ubiquiti doubles down with a new UniFi NVR and a major Protect 7.1 update, Unraid ditches the USB stick (finally) with internal boot, and smart vacuums are getting weirder, Blink goes 2K on a budget, Yarbo promises to close its mower’s backdoor, the FBI is resetting routers, and over a million cameras were alarmingly open to hackers. All of this, a pick of the week, project updates, and so much more!

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Show Notes

• HomeTech Headlines
  • Network Video Recorder G2 Pro - Ubiquiti Store United States - store.ui.com
  • Welcome to Protect 7.1 - blog.ui.com
  • Eufy’s New Robovac Combines Matter and a Built-in Fragrance Module - homekitnews.com
  • These new Roombas are smaller and cheaper | The Verge - theverge.com
  • Blink bumps its budget buzzer to 2K | The Verge - theverge.com
  • The FBI may have reset your wireless router; if so, you should replace it - 9to5mac.com
  • A million baby monitors and security cameras were easily viewable by hackers | The Verge - theverge.com
  • Yarbo says it will remove the intentional backdoor from its robot lawn mower | The Verge - theverge.com
• Unraid | Unraid 7.3.0 Stable Now Available - unraid.net

Episode 573 - Slothbot

HomeTech 573: Slothbot

Gavin Campbell, TJ Huddleston, & Seth Johnson

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On this week's show: TJ gets ready to head to Canada, Apple pays for promising too much from Siri, ULTRALOQ goes tap-to-unlock with Aliro, and Homebridge 2.0 finally speaks Matter. The Roomba creator builds a furry robot friend, Matter.JS Server gets smarter debugging, BEGA lights up Home Assistant, and the new HA beta tunes into sub‑GHz RF. Plus, a pick of the week, project updates, and so much more!

Fan of the show? Want to support our efforts? Please consider becoming a Patron!

Show Notes

• Apple Will Pay $250 Million for Overhyping Siri. Canadian Users Get to Watch | iPhone in Canada - iphoneincanada.ca
• HomeTech Headlines
  • ULTRALOQ achieves Aliro certification for Latch and Bolt locks | Matter Alpha - matteralpha.com
  • Homebridge 2.0 is here, and it speaks Matter | The Verge - theverge.com
  • Google's Gemini-powered Home speaker is MIA - mobilesyrup.com
  • Introducing Dream Machine Beast - blog.ui.com
  • Bose takes a swing at Sonos with its new home speakers | The Verge - theverge.com
  • Sonoff Unveils NSPanel Pro Gen2 with Matter, dual relays, HA Support - homekitnews.com
  • The creator of Roomba is back with a furry robot companion | The Verge - theverge.com
  • Matter.JS Server now offers ultimate tool to troubleshoot Matter and Thread | Matter Alpha - matteralpha.com
  • BEGA joins Works with Home Assistant - Home Assistant - home-assistant.io
  • 2026.5 Beta: We're on the same frequency now 📡 - Home Assistant - rc.home-assistant.io

Episode 572 - The Self-Care Chair

HomeTech 572: The Self-Care Chair

Gavin Campbell, TJ Huddleston, & Seth Johnson

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On this week's show: Walmart’s Vizio TVs can’t stream without an account, La‑Z‑Boy gets loud with Klipsch‑powered furniture, and Govee keeps lighting up everything from ceilings to patios, one fixture at a time. Home Assistant hikes the price of Green, eero gets a government seal of approval, ubisys joins the club, and Unraid teams up with 45HomeLab for a monster NAS. Plus ap pick of the week, project updates, and so much more!

Fan of the show? Want to support our efforts? Please consider becoming a Patron!

Show Notes

• U.S. government recognizes eero as a trusted and secure provider of routers – The Download - blog.eero.com
• Home Assistant Green price hiked, here’s why | Matter Alpha - matteralpha.com
• HomeTech Headlines
  • Alexa+ is Now Available in Early Access in Spain - thurrott.com
  • The New Site Manager - Now Official - blog.ui.com
  • TP-Link Announces Forthcoming Matter downlight with Dual Light Sources - homekitnews.com
  • Govee expands premium smart home fixtures with the Ceiling Light Ultra | Matter Alpha - matteralpha.com
  • Govee’s new colorful outdoor lights are its first with solar power | The Verge - theverge.com
  • Newly purchased Vizio TVs now require Walmart accounts to use smart features - Ars Technica - arstechnica.com
  • La-Z-Boy’s recliners and sofas are getting built-in Klipsch speakers | The Verge - theverge.com
• Pick of the Week
  • Release RoomRelay v1.0.4 · guicn555/RoomRelay · GitHub - github.com
• ubisys joins Works with Home Assistant - Blog - Home Assistant Community - community.home-assistant.io
• You asked us to tell you first. The X15 is here. - dua63.r.a.d.sendibm1.com
• Unraid | Meet the X15 | 45Homelab >< Unraid Partnership Signature Series - unraid.net
• You can now visualize your smart home network with Thread Group's new Network Diagnostics app [UPDATED] | Matter Alpha - matteralpha.com

Episode 571 - SkeetVac

HomeTech 571: SkeetVac

Gavin Campbell, TJ Huddleston, & Seth Johnson

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On this week's show: Alexa+ learns Italian while Amazon’s new Fire TV Stick gets slimmer and smarter, Netgear dodges a router ban, Ecovacs blasts stains with cleaning jets, and Aqara quietly launches a new Matter sensor. Ubiquiti unveils EAV switching for pro AVs, Apollo celebrates open source with a new ESPHome starter kit, and BLUETTI wants to keep your fridge alive through any storm. All this, a pick of the week, project updates, and so much more!

Fan of the show? Want to support our efforts? Please consider becoming a Patron!

• HomeTech Headlines
  • Netgear Wins FCC Conditional Approval on Its Consumer Routers, Exempting Them From Ban - Strata-gee.com - strata-gee.com
  • Alexa+ Launches in Early Access in Italy - thurrott.com
  • Toronto could get Canada's first 'virtual gated community' using controversial tech - mobilesyrup.com
  • BLUETTI FridgePower Review: Silent Backup That Saves Your Fridge | iPhone in Canada - iphoneincanada.ca
  • Amazon's New Fire TV Stick HD is 30% Slimmer and Supports Alexa+ - thurrott.com
  • Ecovacs’ new robovac spots and pretreats dried stains using powerful jets | The Verge - theverge.com
  • New Aqara FP310 sensor brings 24GHz radar and Matter support to China - Matter Alpha
  • Introducing EAV Switching - blog.ui.com
• Pick of the Week
  • Illumibot - House of Glass - TikTok
• State of the Open Home 2026 Was Incredible and We Announced the ESPHom – Apollo Automation - apolloautomation.com
• Birdbuddy : Home
• Birdfy Smart Bird Feeder Camera | AI Bird Watching & Identification
• TJs Bird Friend

Episode 570 - The Gift and the Curse

HomeTech 570: The Gift and the Curse

Gavin Campbell, TJ Huddleston, & Seth Johnson

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On this week's show: Google finally lets Workspace users into the Google Home party, Aqara keeps busy with new hubs, thermostats, and sensors, Samsung trims the price tag on its 2026 Frame TVs, Hisense adds a smaller CanvasTV that still wants to be art, LG shows off a mighty new MAGNIT Micro LED system, and Sony teases some serious RGB tech. There’s also a peek at the Home Assistant roadmap, project updates, and so much more!

Fan of the show? Want to support our efforts? Please consider becoming a Patron!

Show Notes

• HomeTech Headlines
  • Google Home App Now Supports Google Workspace Accounts - thurrott.com
  • Aqura Hub w200
  • Aqara W200 Thermostat Release Video
  • Aqara Multi-State Sensor P100
  • Samsung announces 2026 Frame TVs and the Pro costs less than last year’s
  • Hisense Adds 50-Inch Model to Its CanvasTV Lineup - Residential Systems
  • LG Introduces New MAGNIT Micro LED TV - Residential Systems
  • Sony Introduces True RGB Technology for Its Televisions
• Home Assistant Roadmap
• TJ's Trench