The best smart sensors: Zigbee, Z-Wave, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi

If smart lights, thermostats and security cameras are the staples of the smart home, think of smart sensors as the invisible network meshing everything together. Or, if you prefer, the eyes of the smart home.To get more news about door and window security, you can visit securamsys.com official website.

But the word sensor is itself pretty vague. There are many sensors out there designed to fulfil different purposes: movement sensors, light sensors, temperature sensors, and plenty more.And there's a huge range of different methods for how these sensors work and how they transmit data.

Zigbee, Z-Wave, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi have been the staples for the past few years but, as we move into 2022, we can also expect to see a lot more smart home sensors built with Matter in mind, communicating using the Thread protocol.

Explainer: What is Matter for the smart home

Complicated communication protocols aside, the best part about using sensors is that they’re (mostly) super easy to install, often with no wiring required, which will be music to the ears of renters.But, before we dive into the specifics of each type of sensor and the best sensors on sale now, let’s go over some need-to-know pointers.

Smart sensors: Things to know first
Many of the sensors you pick up today are wireless and battery-powered, allowing you to place them wherever you like. But the position of these sensors is key; if you have professional installing your smart home they should be able to provide some pointers – or just do it for you.

If you’re going DIY, think about the locations that are going to be most effective but least likely to cause false alarms if you're using them for security. Say you’re using a motion sensor, you’ll want to put it in a place an intruder is most likely to pass by, but not somewhere it might be triggered by daily visits from the next-door cat.Sensors can also be used to transmit data to your different smart home devices - the first step of home automation.

If you have a hub-based smart home, using SmartThings, HomeKit, Google Assistant or Alexa to tie everything together, sensors are another form of control, triggering routines and home automations just by "sensing" your presence.

Here, you also need to think about compatibility. Are the sensors Z-Wave or Zigbee, Bluetooth or Wi-Fi? Are they going to support Matter and Thread in the future?Do you want to buy the sensors as part of a bundle, which companies like Ring and Samsung offer, or are you better off buying the sensors individually?

Will they connect directly with smart home hubs like SmartThings and HomeKit Hubs, or do they also need their own native hubs and bridges to operate?Don’t duplicate the sensors that you already have. For example, if you have a smart alarm system, you’ve already got motion sensors and window/door sensors that you may be able to use elsewhere.

Look at the kit that you’ve got, too. Smart doorbells can often be turned into motion sensors for other jobs, while your smart thermostat will double as a temperature sensor and, possibly, humidity sensor.Below, we've broken things down into the major categories of smart home sensors, and included some of our top picks.
Smart home motion sensors
No points for guessing what these do. Motion sensors detect movement in a select area of your home, and can send you an alert, trigger a siren or turn other connected devices, such as lights, on or off based on motion or lack of it.

One thing to be aware of: You want to put motion sensors in a place someone is likely to pass by, not simply walk in front of. This will make it more accurate at detecting movement. There's no end of options out there for most every smart home ecosystem, whether your home runs on Zigbee, Z-Wave, HomeKit or Amazon Alexa.Most motion sensors have an adjustable sensitivity. In researching motion sensors, you might come across something called PIR. This stands for passive infrared sensor, which detect warm bodies as they pass by. Other types of motion sensors include MW (Microwave), which bounces microwave pulses off objects; ultrasonic waves; vibration, which is a little less accurate and more prone to false positives; and sometimes a combination of more than one type.

Having an adjustable range can be hugely beneficial, depending on the space you're using it in. The key thing is to check the motion coverage and sensitivity before you buy, and whether the platform you're using it with will let you adjust those (Amazon Alexa doesn't allow sensitivity tweaking).