At Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked event, the company has unveiled Samsung Connect Home, a Wi-Fi mesh router that will connect to and interact with all of Samsung’s SmartThings connected devices as well as third-party devices.
The Samsung Connect Home uses your existing broadband connection allowing you to create your own fluid Wi-Fi network without too much complication. The device will launch in two variants, Connect Home and Connect Home Plus.
The Connect Home will feature a 2×2 MU-MIMO antenna, 710 MHz quad core processor, 512 MB of RAM, and 4 GB of flash storage. It offers speeds of up to 866 Mbps at 5 GHz and 400 Mbps at 2.4 Ghz. A single Connect Home has a range of up to 1,500 square feet. The “Plus” variant has better hardware than the standard variant and features a 4×4 MU-MIMO antenna and 1.7 GHz dual core processor. While the “Plus” variant has a powerful processor, it has the same range as the normal variant.
Similar to Google Wi-Fi, Samsung Connect Home also comes with its own app, which you can use to manage your home network. One small drawback is that you need the newly announced Galaxy S8 to use it. Samsung says, it will add support to other Android devices by this year end.
If you were a SmartThings Hub user, you will not need a separate hub if you bring home the Connect Home. The device has ZigBee and Z-Wave compatibility built-in, so your house can stay smart. It is also compatible with other smart home devices, including Philips Hue Lights and the Ring Video Doorbell.
Samsung has not offered any details about pricing or general availability. Hopefully, we will know more about Connect Home in the coming weeks and till then hang on.
