Aqara, a leading provider of smart home products, announced the wide availability of its Curtain Driver E1, a retrofit solution to automate traditional curtains. Build upon the Zigbee 3.0 protocol with improved reliability, range and energy efficiency, the curtain driver features a battery life of up to 12 months between each charge1, and connects with other smart home accessories to enable truly automated home experiences2. The Curtain Driver E1 has been made available on Amazon in both North America (US, Canada) and Europe (UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain), as well as via selective Aqara retailers worldwide3.
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With two variants, namely the Rod Version for rods and the Track Version for U-rails and I-rails, the Aqara Curtain Driver E1 are compatible with a majority of curtains on the market. Thanks to its quiet-yet-powerful motor, heavier curtains of up to 12 kilograms can be pulled. It also features a wide compatibility with third-party ecosystems and voice assistants, including HomeKit/Siri, Alexa, Google Home/ Google Assistant, IFTTT, and the upcoming Matter standard will also be supported after its roll-out4.
The installation is easy. Just mount the Curtain Driver E1 onto the curtain rod or rail, and no additional tools are required. The retrofit solution requires no new wiring to motorize the curtains, and the 6000mAh battery – which lasts for up to 1-year of use – can be charged via the Type-C port. It’s equipped with a built-in light sensor, allowing the curtain to close by its own when it’s too bright, and vice versa.
Apart from ambient brightness, the Curtain Driver can also be smartly controlled by other conditions, such as pre-set schedules, sunrise/sunset, local weather, and geofencing. For example the curtains open at sunset so that the beautiful view won’t be missed. When connect with other Aqara devices, more possibilities are made possible. Use a Wireless Mini Switch to open, close or stop the curtain by a simple press, or adjust the precise opening by turning the Cube. The Camera Hub G3 even allows the curtain to be controlled with hand gestures.
The Curtain Driver is designed with high flexibility to suit for different scenarios and use cases. Device grouping is supported, so that double sided curtains can be controlled simultaneously. The speed of the curtain driver is adjustable, and the device can be configured to work more quietly in the mornings so that the sleep won’t be interrupted anymore. Moreover, it’s possible to set the duration time for curtain movements, for example to pull the curtain from closed to fully open in an hour, which simulates a natural sunrise.
In celebration of the launch, Aqara now offers a 20% discount for the new device on Amazon. North American customers will enjoy the offer with the promo code USCURTAIN in the US and Canada, while European customers will enjoy it using the promo code CURTAINUKEU in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK. Both codes are valid on July 11th, 2022. And Amazon Prime members will continue to enjoy the discount from July 12th to 13th with no promo code required.