AI wasn’t just a buzzword on the show floor in Berlin—it was the connective tissue holding together this year’s smart home breakthroughs. There were more products than ever nudging towards real utility, quieter operation and mainstream-levels of interoperability, whether they’re trying to make our stairs a little less dready, our security both subscription-free and lighter touch or our kitchen appliances more fully automated, for the chores we really care about. Here are the highlights, and what they tell us about the next wave of connected living.
Robot cleaners that can tackle multi-level homes
The Marswalker from Eufy may be the most practical thing spotted on the floor: a stair-climbing carrier for transporting the RoboVac Omni S2 between levels. The dock fits like a cradle and locks the vacuum in to ascend; or descend, then detach and vacuum another floor. If it works consistently, it eliminates the single biggest real-world pain point for robot vacuums-humans carrying them up and down stairs. You can expect checks on safety interlocks, fall detection and edge sensing to be carried out here, after all, houses are as unique as stairs are where autonomy meets liability. Yet it’s the most ambitious effort yet to fully hands-off whole-home automation.
Security doorbells that don’t require subscriptions
Philips Hue’s first video doorbell rests on a basic precept: security with no fuss. It has a 2K fisheye view, two-way audio and includes 24 hours of video history at no extra cost, distinguishing it in a “smart” industry that all too often could be read as “ pay forever.” Hue says better recognition is on the roadmap, but the bigger change is architectural: more processing at the edge, less reliance on the cloud. That is good for latency and privacy — concerns that have long been voiced by such organizations as the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office — as well as shaving ongoing costs from buyers.
Outdoor lighting is year-round design
The Outdoor Lights Prism are Govee’s take on the concept of permanent holiday lights, deployed as a flexible, addressable facade. Every module has three individually addressable LEDs, for smoother gradients and more accurate color than older, single diode strands. The new controller software also tightens brightness consistency and ups color fidelity — something you probably care more about if you’re into pretty seasonal themes than gaudy animation sequences. LEDs are also efficient by nature; the U.S. Department of Energy has found over and over that LED lighting can reduce energy use by 75 percent or more compared with legacy bulbs, making this a rare instance of more flair with less guilt.
Kitchen upgrades that truly save time
Midea’s refrigerator demo’d a nifty run on dispensers: push combination water, ice, on the appliance and after you set your glass down, a sensor-guided nozzle drops to your rim to fill without splatter. There’s even an auto-refilling pitcher in the door — mundane stuff, but the everyday automation that tends to stick. And LG offered a preview of a connected suite that promotes coordination more than connection. Refrigerators utilise embedded vision to recognise the type of food and adjust the compressor operation to keep food fresh longer, supplemented by a zero-hinge design which allows for a flush fit built-in, while providing full door clearance. If these systems shave compressor cycling even by a little, that creates change; the International Energy Agency says appliances and lighting account for a third or so of all home electricity use.
Autonomous mowing grows up
Roborock’s RockMow Z1 steps the companies mapping heritage out into the yard. With all-wheel drive, knobby tires and the ability to navigate steep grades, it’s built for real lawns, not just manicured postage stamps. ” The pitch reflects where high-end mowers are going: perimeter-wire-free navigation and AI-guided obstacle avoidance. That cuts down on installation hassles and everyday fiddliness — an important keystone as an increasing number of mainstream buyers seek out cleaner yards without the Saturday ritual.
Cleaner air, less noise
Dyson’s HushJet is a tiny purifier that zeroes in on what a lot of purifiers screw up: sound. A recast nozzle minimizes airflow noise but still delivers much of the air-moving capacity of the company’s larger machines. Silent is more important than spec sheets lead to believe; use case data in behavioral studies demonstrates that in poor air quality, users inactivate or down-select loud purifiers. Better to have a small, less-in-your-face unit that you actually leave running than a big one you seldom turn on.
What this wave says about the next phase of the smart home
Three themes stood out across the best products: frictionless automation, subscription restraint and better interoperability. The Connectivity Standards Alliance said it’s seeing “consistent growth” from Matter certifications, and vendors here increasingly positioned Thread radios and multi-admin support as table stakes, rather than spec-sheet filler. That alignment is long overdue — according to my research firm, Parks Associates, over 4 in 10 internet-equipped U.S. households own at least one smart home device, but the fragmentation is still among the most common complaints.
The AI turn is just as opportunistic. More on-device inference means quicker responses for things like motion classification and scene detection that the device can handle locally, lightening cloud workloads. It also encourages companies to have a clearer privacy posture — store those things that need to be stored locally, and let the rest disappear. Consumers will nonetheless want to look closely at encryption, data retention controls and third party integrations against certifications from UL Solutions for example, that can bust marketing from meaningful security.
If you’re prioritizing, start where the tech solves a real limitation: multi-level robot cleaning, a doorbell that’s useful without a plan, outdoor lights you won’t want to take down, or appliances that quietly shave time off daily routines. The product isn’t just a smarter home — it’s a calmer one, too.
