Ikea quietly adds HomeKit support to Fyrtur smart blinds

Posted:
in General Discussion edited March 2020
Following an unexpected release in the United States in October, The "Fyrtur" range of Ikea smart blinds are reportedly starting to gain support for HomeKit, enabling the window blinds to be automatically controlled by Apple's smart home platform.




Furniture giant Ikea quietly launched the "Fyrtur" smart blinds in the US following delays, with the blinds able to be remotely controlled via a companion app. At its launch, it had limited support for third-party smart home platforms, working with Google Home but not Apple's HomeKit and Amazon's Alexa, though compatibility was said to be on the way.

According to a post on Reddit, owners of the blinds are seeing updates being made to their Tradfri gateway and to the blinds themselves. The unannounced updates are bringing the gateway's firmware to 1.10.28, some users state, with the remote brought to 2.2.010, and the blinds themselves to 2.2.009.

It also appears to be a phased rollout. While some US-based users are noticing updates being made to their Ikea smart home devices, UK users do not, even after manually refreshing the firmware. AppleInsider staffers in the US have not as of yet seen the update, but we have confirmed its availability through other means.

The added support for HomeKit will allow the blinds to be controlled via the Home app, as well as being included in automated scenes and adjustable via Siri commands. Control through the Ikea companion app will also be available as an alternative, though it is unclear if Alexa support has been added at the same time.

The Fyrtur blinds joins other items in Ikea's smart home range that support HomeKit, with the chief component consisting of the Tradfri smart bulb collection. There is also the Symfonisk, an AirPlay 2 bookshelf speaker created in partnership with Sonos.

Ikea also has plans to go further in its smart home endeavors, with more investment in the field potentially leading to more products and designs in the future.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 7
    entropysentropys Posts: 4,152member
    Can’t wait for these to come to Australia. I might actually go to ikea to buy them.
    watto_cobrakitatitsteveau
  • Reply 2 of 7
    steveausteveau Posts: 299member
    It would be a real winner if they can be set up to rise when my alarm goes off!
    libertyforallwatto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 7
    macguimacgui Posts: 2,350member
    Motorized, home-automation blinds. That's something that would make me feel like I'm livin' the dream, Jerry! And it's cheaper than a Lexus LF.

    My windows are big enough to make my wallet cringe at the current prices though, but if my budget of spendy money were bigger I'd have some, at least for the bedroom window.

    Having them raise when the alarm goes off or at a certain time of day, regardless of alarm, must be doable. I'd bet money that if IKEA didn't provide for that, some IFTTT hack is probably available.


    steveauwatto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 7
    macguimacgui Posts: 2,350member
    IKEA says:
    You can control your blinds wirelessly to adapt the light or create privacy depending on the activity taking place in the room.

    Cue WAKKA CHIKKA WAW  WAW music. B)

    watto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 7
    ayzeeayzee Posts: 1member

    If you are not in the USA and the 1.10.28 firmware update is not yet available to you, I have created a youtube guide on how to update the firmware by connecting the TRADFRI gateway to a Smart Router and connecting to a USA VPN.

    https://youtu.be/fyY8NeBQEJI

    The GL.iNet Smart Router can be purchased on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B073TSK26W/

    edited January 2020 watto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 7
    They need to be offered in LARGER sizes!  
    watto_cobradocno42
  • Reply 7 of 7
    docno42docno42 Posts: 3,755member
    It’s nice to see IKEA taking these mainstream but was surprised to see they cost more than the Bali motorized blinds I already own - and those are based on zWave - they already work with my home automation system and HomeKit with the most excellent HomeBridge. 

    I have them as they are blinds in the upper windows in my two story family room. It’s nice having them open automatically at sunrise, close after sundown or if the room starts to heat up too much in the afternoon sun - or if I lock my movie watching scene during the day. 

    I have thought about adding more to other windows I usually keep closed on the front of my house just to let more light in during the day. 

    It’s amazing what a quality of life enhancement automated blinds can make - as far as luxuries go they are pretty inexpensive even if you don’t have a specialty need like my windows two stories in the air. 
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