IKEA started out as a mail-order business in 1943 out of a small rural town in Sweden. Today, it’s the world’s largest home-furnishing retailer that sells everything from furniture you have to put together yourself to kitchen appliances to office supplies. And yes, as of 2012, IKEA entered the smart gadget market with a collection of products that were part of its IKEA Home smart project.
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IKEA invested more into its smart gadgets in 2022 when it launched the Matter-ready DIRIGERA hub and new IKEA Home smart app. This gave loyal IKEA shoppers a platform to control all of their smart home devices from the Swedish retailer. DIRIGERA with the IKEA home smart app is easy to set up and lets you organize all of your IKEA devices individually or into their designated rooms. It functions similarly to other apps like Alexa, allowing you to set up scheduled routines and create scenes for different activities.
Customers can now stroll into any IKEA to pick-up smart devices like its lighting fixtures that can be controlled via remote light switches or the IKEA Home smart app. From the basic TRÅDFRI light bulb to the stylish MITTLED light strip, there isn’t a shortage of options for smart lights. The retailer also carries Wi-Fi speakers, motorized blinds, air purifiers, and even manufactures its own smart plug that lets you control non-smart appliances from the IKEA Home app.
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There are ups and downs with IKEA’s smart device compatibility
In 2017, IKEA gave its smart devices some voice functionality by enabling them to work through the more popular voice assistants like Amazon’s Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple’s Siri. Furthermore, IKEA collaborated with SONOS, the audio brand known for its fantastic speakers and headphones, to create the SYMFONISK speaker series. These are all certainly points for IKEA’s smart products, making them more appealing to smart home purists, but before you go stockpiling your smart house with everything IKEA, there are some drawbacks to consider.
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Unfortunately, according to IKEA, if you want to use IKEA’s smart gadgets –even if you already have another hub at home– you need the DIRIGERA hub “to use the IKEA Home smart app and to connect smart products from IKEA to your smart home.” Additionally, IKEA’s hub and app isn’t as all-encompassing as many may prefer — you’re not able to connect and control non-IKEA devices in its Home app unless they run on Zigbee.
That can be frustrating for anyone who has a mixture of devices from a variety of brands because it means they have to download additional apps to their phone that they might not otherwise need. IKEA’s smart products might not be as widely used as competitors like the Google Home Hub, but it does add one more option, especially for fans of the minimalist or Nordic aesthetic. Just understand their limits for the time being before you invest too much.
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