After embracing HomeKit in a big way starting in 2022, and testing several motion sensors in the intervening months, my recommendation for best HomeKit motion sensor is the Eve Motion.
The Eve Motion sensor connects directly to the Home app on your iPhone, triggers HomeKit automations quickly in response to motion events, and has a very reliable connection in my experience of many months of real world use.
Decent motion sensing range
According to the official tech specs, the Eve Motion sensor is rated to sense motion with a 120-degree field of view, up to 9 meters away. Achieving theoretical maximum range probably depends on your environment. I have mine positioned on the floor tucked under a cabinet, pointing outwards into the room. I find that I get a reliable detection radius at about 5 meters away, which I think is perfectly fine for most home needs and comparable to other Infrared motion sensors I’ve tested. The big win over the competition is the speed; via Thread, Eve Motion reports motion events near instantaneously.
I would note we are on the cusp of ultra wideband motion sensors coming on to the market, which can detect much smaller amounts of movement at much further distances, but a fully-packaged independent UWB HomeKit sensor just isn’t readily available yet. If you are interested in this and are feeling adventurous, check out the Aqara range.
Bonus light sensor
As a good HomeKit citizen, you can set up and use the Eve Motion inside of the Apple Home app, ignoring Eve’s own app altogether. But if you do have the Eve app installed, you can configure some additional settings (motion sensitivity / duration) and see a historical chart showing tracked sensor events over time.
Along with motion, the accessory also reports lux light levels, also exposed to HomeKit. Inside the Eve app, there’s a handy…
read more 9to5mac.com
