Ikea already have a good set of products to turn your house into a smart home. So far, all bulbs, sensors and home automation devices from the Swedish brand were compatible with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa, but did not have as good integration with Apple's voice assistant. Luckily, the brand is also putting its effort into getting its technology to HomeKit. Two of the products that will enjoy this compatibility from its launch will be the new smart blinds that will go on sale very shortly.
Ikea expands its range of smart blinds
The huge catalog of Ikea blinds will be expanded with two new members: TREDANSEN and PRAKTLYSING. These two products have not been officially confirmed by the brand, but they were mistakenly published in various Ikea online stores in Europe for a short period of time and the journalist Dave Zatz took the opportunity to take note. These two models of smart blinds seek to fix the disastrous launch of the FYTUR and KADRILJ models in 2019, which were good products, but were heavily criticized after receiving numerous delays in the delivery date and for postponing the Apple HomeKit compatibility.
As is usual with Ikea home automation products, it will be necessary to obtain the TRÅDFRI footbridge if we get one of these new blinds regardless of whether we use Alexa, Google Assistant or HomeKit. A single gateway will be more than enough to control dozens of devices. Later, we will be able to control the blinds with the voice assistants, with the integration in the iPhone or directly with the Ikea Home app.
What novelties do the TREDANSEN and PRAKTLYSING blinds from Ikea bring?
The TREDANSEN be a folding blind —what we know here as a Venetian blind— and will have a length of 195 centimeters. It will be sold in widths of 120 and 140 centimeters. They will not need any type of plug, but will work through a battery which can be removed from the top mount for reloading. They will depart from the 149 Euros and they will be equipped with a rather interesting translucent material. You can see a video of it working captured by Dave Zatz:
On the other hand, the blinds PRAKTLYSING they will retain the same style as the two 2019 models, that is, they will be blinds roll-up. They will have the same length and will also be sold in lengths of 120 and 140 centimeters. The shortest model will start from the 129 Euros here in Europe. The idea is that this new model is positioned as Ikea's high-end roller blind. However, the type of power they will use has not been confirmed, despite the fact that everything indicates that it will also work with a battery system identical to that of the TREDANSEN. Both models can also be activated by a small remote control. In addition, presumably it can be integrated with other products from the Ikea TRÅDFRI range, such as motion sensors, for example.
For the moment, Ikea has not made this information public, because normally, the brand makes a gradual launch of this type of home automation devices. In addition, in recent months, the company has been seriously affected by the Crisis in the microchip and transport sector, so it would not be strange if it took us a few months to be able to buy these new smart blinds.