A Safer, More Secure Home with “Motion”

We’re excited to unveil a brand-new category in the SmartThings Dashboard today that’s designed to keep your home safer, smarter, and more secure: “Motion.” Here’s everything you need to know…

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Tapping “Dashboard Preferences” lets you edit or remove the “Motion” category.

Today, you’ll be able to find the new “Motion” category in your SmartThings Dashboard directly below the “Damage & Danger” category. This category will make it easier than ever for you to get alerts when there’s unexpected motion inside or outside your home, or to receive valuable notifications that keep you informed when there is expected motion–such as when young kids go to sleep, when pets return from walks, or when loved ones come home.

To get started, tap on the gear icon to the right of the word “Motion.” You’ll then be asked to name the area that you’d like SmartThings to keep an eye on (ex: “Living room,” “Back patio,” etc.).

The next screen asks you which of your different motion sensors you’d like to use to monitor motion. The SmartSense Motion sensor is a great option to monitor movement inside your home, while the Aeon Labs Multi-Sensor is perfect for anyone who wants to monitor movement in an outdoor setting like a driveway, porch, or patio.

The final screen lets you customize what happens when there is motion in the area you’ve selected. You can choose to get a push notification, text message, or both; and also opt to get notifications only during certain times of the day, on certain days, or when you’re in a specific Mode.

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Once you tap “Done” and have set up the Motion category, you’ll be able to monitor movement in and around your home directly from your Dashboard. Simply scroll to the Motion category and you’ll see a live newsfeed that shows you what’s happening at your home now, and what has happened recently. Green means there’s no motion, and yellow means that there is motion:

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And… that’s it. It just got easier to keep an eye on your home from anywhere.


Note: You can also trigger an alarm to flash and blare if unexpected motion occurs in your home. To do this, simply go into the “Damage & Danger” category and follow the easy steps listed in the prompt: “Unwanted Access to Valuable Items.”

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SmartThings Updates
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Join the conversation! 12 Comments

  1. Looking forward to getting the updated app on my phone!

    Any timing on when we can adjust the sensitivity on the SmartThings Motion? Right now its impossible to use for security if you have pets.

    Reply
    • Hi, James:
      Do you mean that your motion sensor(s) is detecting when pets move? You might try angling the motion up so that it’s not facing the floor or placing it on a table. That could help reduce the amount of false-positives (ie: sensed movement from your pets that you don’t care about) you’re receiving.

      Also, if you happen to have the Aeon Multi, you can adjust the sensitivity on that.

      Hope that helps,
      Eliot

      Reply
  2. All of these new things are nice, but are any of the new features ever going to make it to Android. You seem to forget (as in the recent survey) that none of these new “Dashboard” options even exist for many users.

    Reply
    • Hey, Michael:
      Fully aware, and all of the new features we’ve been rolling out for iOS users will be available for Android users. We’ve increased the amount of closed beta users who are test-driving our new and improved Android app and are looking at a full release for all Android users in weeks, not months.

      Thanks,
      Eliot

      Reply
  3. how difficult is it to link motion sensor activity together? For instance, if I trip a motion sensor upstairs during nighttime hours, and THEN trip a motion sensor downstairs when I get a drink in the kitchen, can the order be taken into account to NOT cause alerts to be sent?

    The flip-side would be, if a motion sensor downstairs was tripped all by itself, I’d expect an alarm, as the family would all be expected to be upstairs…

    Reply
  4. When is smart things coming to Australia? I mean most of it will work but not the wall plugs or anything as we have different volts and connections? I really want one, if not many to resell in our store. Can someone please indicate when this is going to become big and to Australia?

    Reply
  5. Isn’t it annoying to have all these information about ‘motion, no motion’ in the dashboard? The purpose is to tell when there is motion in specific areas, using notifications for example, right?

    Reply
  6. I love that you feel so secure and that it’s so convenient at the same time. I purchased my wireless intercom a few weeks back and it works just perfectly. Just one site I have to mention is http://doorbellhome.org They give you all sorts of wireless doorbell reviews and important information.

    Reply

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