this post was submitted on 06 Apr 2026
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Disappointed with Aqara - Zigbee hub, but no 3rd party? (sh.itjust.works)
submitted 18 hours ago by CocaineShrimp@sh.itjust.works to c/homeassistant@lemmy.world
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Correct me if I'm wrong, but...

Buyer Beware! Aqara hubs use the Zigbee protocol, but lock out 3rd party devices!

A few months ago, I bought an Aqara hub and went deep into their ecosystem. I saw their hub and sensors had good reviews, plus they were using the Zigbee open protocol, so I figured I'd stick with their stuff. I had no reason to try other devices until recently.

I picked up a tilt sensor for my garage door from a 3rd party. I made sure it was also using the Zigbee protocol, so I assumed it would be compatable. Unfortunately, when I tried connecting it to the hub, I was wrong and it wouldn't connect. Turns out, Aqara uses the Zigbee protocol, but locks out 3rd party devices. [source]

If anyone has a workaround to integrate a 3rd party device with an Aqara Hub (IIRC, I have the M3?), I'd love to hear about it. But until then - I'm looking for a refund. I would have never picked up their hub if I had known about their shennanigans; and consequently, I wouldn't have picked up so many of their sensors.

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[–] thr0w4w4y2@sh.itjust.works 1 points 17 hours ago

Fortunately there are plenty of Zigbee dongles that are compatible with HA, and just as fortunately they will all support Aqara sensors using MQTT with very little effort.