Xiaomi vs Aqara Hub | Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 vs Aquara M1S Hub, The Best Smart Home Hubs?

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Want to build a smart home? Check out our Xiaomi vs Aqara hub comparison to choose the best smart home hub.

If you are someone considering the idea of converting your home into a smart home, then you would have surely heard of devices called smart hubs. Smart Hubs are devices that connect to other subdevices, this allows you to control all devices easily from a single app under one home network.

You are also likely to be confused about the options when it comes to choosing a smart hub. Since there are so many smart hubs in the market, it can be a tough task to choose the right one. This is where I will help you, I have chosen two of the most popular and well-received smart hubs in the market to compare them against each other. 

Xiaomi and Aqara have been working on smart devices and smart hubs for a few years now and they have refined their lineup very well. This article will compare the Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 and the Aqara M1S hub. Read on to know which is more suited for your needs. 

To build your own Xiaomi Home Hub

	Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3	Aqara Hub M1S
Wi-Fi Protocol	Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz	Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz
Zigbee Support	Zigbee 3.0	Zigbee 3.0
Power	USB	Built-in plug
Region Support	All regions	China
Alarm Mode	No	Yes
Speaker/Buzzer	No	Yes
LED Light	No	Yes
Extras	Bluetooth/Mesh Gateway support	None
Features	Uses WiFi 2.4 GHz to connect to your network Can support up to 128 child devices Uses Zigbee 3.0 to connect to child devices Acts as both a Bluetooth hub and Bluetooth Mesh hub for Mijia Bluetooth and Bluetooth Mesh devices Uses a Micro-USB port for power Works with Apple Home and Mi Home apps No audio speaker, only a buzzer to confirm certain functions	Uses WiFi 2.4 GHz to connect to your network Can support up to 128 child devices Uses Zigbee 3.0 to connect to child devices Uses a built-in plug Works with Apple Home, Mi Home, and Aqara Home apps Four alarm modes – Off, Away, Home, Night/Sleep (syncs with HomeKit) Includes audio speaker (for alarm) and LED ring light
Availability	Check it out here	Check it out here

Xiaomi vs Aqara Hub

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Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 Features

• A multi-functional gateway that can connect up to 128 devices.
• The Mijia Multi-Function Gateway can now connect to Xiaomi Air Purifier, Millet Water Purifier, Yeelight Smart Light, and many more devices.
• The Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 has support for more smart devices compared to the Aqara M1S hub.
• Comes with Zigbee 3.0 offering support for all Zigbee devices. 
• Features support for Apple HomeKit and Home Assistant.

Check it out here

Aqara M1S Hub Features

• A control center for your entire smart home and uses Zigbee protocol, similar to Xiaomi.
• You can use the Home app to control the hub and connected accessories.
• The Aqara M1S also features support for Apple HomeKit and the open-source Home Assistant. 
• Aqara M1S hub can also connect up to 128 devices at any given time.

Check it out here

Design 

I would argue that Smart hubs don’t have to look great as you can just hide them away and they are fairly small. But if you do want to show off your smart hub or want it to be a part of your home decor, then I would choose the Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3.

The Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 looks clean, sleek, and elegant. On the other hand, while the Aqara M1S Hub is not a badly designed product, it just isn’t as good-looking as the Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3. I don’t like the Aqara M1S Hub’s dot pattern design, it feels a bit dated. I prefer the smooth, sleek finish of the Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3. 

The Aqara M1S is also powered by plugging it directly into a power socket, so it means it will almost always be a showpiece. The Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 is powered using a USB cable. So while you can hide the Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3, wires are much clumsier than Aqara’s approach of sticking the device into the power socket.

Overall, I would choose the Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 over the Aqara M1S Hub based on the design, it looks minimalistic and will fit in well in any home. But smart hubs are not all about just the design, so let’s move on to devices’ support of the two hubs. 

Supported Devices

Both the Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 and the Aqara M1S hub run on Zigbee protocol, so they support all Zigbee devices. And both Xiaomi and Aqara offer support to popular smart home platforms and their devices.

Still, Xioami has a larger catalog of supported devices compared to Aqara, thanks to Xiaomi having connections with a lot of Chinese manufacturers and their products. When it comes to device support, Xiaomi wins. 

App Support

When it comes to apps, both devices support multiple platforms and their respective apps/ For example, both hubs can run Mijia Home, Aqara Home, Apple Homekit, Google Home, etc., and all these smart home platforms have their apps like Mi Home App, Aqara Home App, Apple Home App, and Google Home App. But in this section I am going to compare Xiaaomi’s and Aqara’s apps, that is the Mi Home App and Aqara Home App.

This is a simple comparison as both apps do a good job of adding and controlling devices. One noticeable difference is how complicated the Mi Home App can be, it gives you tons of options that can make some users feel overwhelmed. On the other hand, the Aqara app is much more simple and offers just the right amount of options.

The Mi Home app has an edge over the Aqara Home app when it comes to supporting Mi devices like Mi Air Purifiers, Mi Smart locks, and more. So if your home has a lot of Xiaomi products then the Mi Home App will be better suited for you. 

Integration with other systems

If you have researched smart devices and smart hubs then you know there are different systems you can use. HomeKit and Home Assistant are some of the most popular and widely used smart home systems, I will focus on them. 

HomeKit is a smart home management system that is developed and maintained by Apple. When it comes to HomeKit, both Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 and the Aqara M1S Hub support it. The Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 will show up as a gateway, this means that you won’t see it on the main screen of your home app. On the other hand, the Aqara Hub will appear as an alarm or a lamp, you can either set an alarm or switch the light on and off. 

And Home Assistant is an open-source system where anyone can develop and add integrations that other users can use. Since Home Assistant is open source it may not be the best way to use these hubs and you might face some issues, but you can have the versatility of choosing from tons of smart home integrations.

When it comes to Home Assistant, the Aqara M1S hub gets added easily and works like a charm. The Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 on the other hand, can be easily added, but only through HomeKi which means you need an Apple device. And guess what, the majority of Home Assistant users are Android users, this puts the Mijia Gateway 3 at a huge disadvantage. 

So, when it comes to the integration of other systems, the Aqara M1S Hub is much better than Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3.

Smart hub Features

Smart hubs can do a lot and some smart hubs can do it better than others. So I will list the features of the Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 and Aqara M1S hub and you can decide which one will better suit your needs.

Additional Features

Both the Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 and the Aqara M1S Hub are more than just smart hubs. 

The Aqara M1S hub can be used as an alarm and a lamp too. It comes with a ring-like light and a loudspeaker too. The light can be controlled remotely or it can be set to turn on when motion is detected. The loudspeaker inside the Aqara M1S can also be set as an alarm from the Aqara app. 

While some models of Xiaomi smart hubs have light and alarm features, the Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 doesn’t. But the Xiaomi Mijia Gateway 3 has a Bluetooth gateway feature through which you can add Bluetooth devices to the smart hub and control them remotely. 

Xiaomi vs Aqara Hub – Conclusion

Smart homes are the future. While it can be overwhelming right now to manage a smart home and all the devices, I feel like we are moving in the right way thanks to companies like Aqara and Xiaomi. They are simplifying the process of setting up a smart home and maintaining it using smart hubs and apps. 

Both Xiaomi and Aqara are supporting more smart devices, developing better smart hubs and smart home apps that in the end will benefit users. The Aqara M1S is the superior product in my opinion in this comparison thanks to its addition of an LED light and loudspeaker. 

What makes the Mijia Gateway 3 a better buy is its superior support for Xiaomi devices, so if you are invested in a lot of Xiaomi products then, go for the Mijia Gateway 3 else I feel you would be better off with the Aqara M1S as it is a more complete product. Keep in mind that these extra features of the Aqara M1S do cost more than Mijia Gateway 3 but they are worth it. 

Xiaomi vs Aqara Hub – Comparison Table

	Protocol	Child devices	Zigbee 3.0	Power	Regions	Alarm modes	Speaker	LED light	Extras
Aqara Hub	WiFi 2.4GHz	32	No	Built-in plug	CN / EU / US / HK	Away / Off	Yes	Yes	–
Aqara M1S	WiFi 2.4GHz	128	Yes	Built-in plug	CN / EU / US	Away / Home / Sleep / Off	Yes	Yes	–
Aqara M2	WiFi 2.4GHz / Ethernet	128	Yes	USB	CN / EU / US	Away / Home / Sleep / Off	Yes	No	IR transmitter
Aqara P3	WiFi 2.4GHz	NA	Yes	Built-in plug	CN	Away / Home / Sleep / Off	Yes	No	IR Transmitter
Aqara G2H	WiFi 2.4GHz	64	Yes	USB	CN / EU / US	n/a	Yes	No	Camera
Aqara G2H Pro	WiFi 2.4GHz	128	Yes	USB	CN / EU / US	Away / Home / Sleep / Off	Yes	No	Camera
Aqara E1	WiFi 2.4GHz	128	Yes	USB	CN / EU / US	Away / Home / Sleep / Off	No	No	Built-in WiFi repeater
Aqara G3	WiFi 2.4/5GHz	128	Yes	USB-C	CN / EU / US	Away / Home / Sleep / Off	Yes	Yes	Pan & Tilt, Facial, Gesture recognition
Mi Smart Gateway	WiFi 2.4GHz	128	Yes	USB	All regions	n/a	No	No	Bluetooth/Mesh gateway

Xiaomi vs Aqara Hub – FAQs

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