Aqara
Aqara Camera Hub G3
- Native integration
- Local control
- Zigbee
- Wi-Fi
- Matter
Prices verified October 2026
See more cameras picks on our Amazon storefront →Our verdict
Two devices in one for UK flat-dwellers: a 2K pan/tilt indoor camera plus a full Aqara Zigbee hub for door sensors and buttons. It pairs with Home Assistant locally via the built-in HomeKit Controller integration (video included over WebRTC/go2rtc), but there's no plain RTSP stream and no Thread. A 2025 firmware update (4.3.4+) did add Matter bridging to the G3's hub via Aqara's Advanced Matter Bridging feature, but that only surfaces user-built Scenes/Signals as generic virtual entities, not raw child devices — so the Zigbee hub still barely reaches HA as individual door sensors and buttons. The newer G5 Pro still improves on native RTSP and true-colour night vision, and at current UK prices costs only around £30-50 more than the G3 rather than the old £80-110 gap, so it's worth comparing live prices before assuming the G3 is the budget pick. Buy the G3 only if you want cheap indoor pan/tilt coverage and don't care about the Zigbee side reaching HA cleanly; check current G5 Pro pricing before ruling it out.
What can Home Assistant control on the Aqara Camera Hub G3?
| Control | Type | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Camera | Camera | Live video via HomeKit Controller, streamed into HA over WebRTC/go2rtc — no plain RTSP source. |
| Motion | Binary sensor | The only motion state HomeKit Controller exposes; gesture and face-recognition detections stay app-only and never reach HA. |
| Zigbee child devices | Sub-devices (separate integration) | Don't bridge through the camera's HomeKit entity — they require the core Xiaomi Gateway (Aqara) integration paired directly to the hub, which multiple users report failing to discover the G3 at all. A firmware update (4.3.4+) added Matter bridging as an alternative path, but it only surfaces user-built Scenes/Signals as generic virtual entities, not the individual child devices. |
| IR blaster | Unsupported | No remote/climate entity is exposed for the built-in IR blaster on the HomeKit Controller path; IR remote control is confined to the Aqara app. |
| Gesture/face recognition | Unsupported | On-device AI runs and can trigger automations inside the Aqara app, but none of those events are surfaced as HA entities or triggers. |
The built-in Zigbee hub doesn't bridge through HomeKit Controller the way the newer G5 Pro's does. A 2025 firmware update (4.3.4+, Aqara Home 5.1.4+) did give the G3 Matter bridging via Aqara's Advanced Matter Bridging feature — Aqara's own announcement lists Camera Hub G3 among the supported older Matter bridges — but that only exposes user-built Scenes as a virtual Plug and Signals/Conditions as a virtual occupancy sensor in HA's core Matter integration, not the raw child devices themselves. To get individual door sensors and buttons into HA as their own entities you still need the separate core Xiaomi Gateway (Aqara) integration, and community reports show that integration frequently failing to even discover the G3, leaving those devices stuck outside HA. Whatever HomeKit Controller does expose is thin: just the camera feed and a motion binary sensor — no gesture- or face-recognition events, and the IR blaster has no HA entity at all, so remote control has to stay in the Aqara app. One G3-specific pairing quirk: the HomeKit setup-code screen only works if you start pairing within a short window right after the camera powers up or is factory-reset — wait too long and the wizard hangs mid-initialisation, forcing a power-cycle to retry.
Specs
| hub | Aqara Zigbee 3.0 hub for child devices |
|---|---|
| power | USB-C, 5V/2A, 10W max |
| extras | AI face/gesture/pet recognition on-device, IR blaster |
| storage | microSD card (not included), Class 4 or above, up to 128GB; HomeKit Secure Video optional |
| pan tilt | 340° horizontal pan / 45° vertical tilt (30° up, 15° down) |
| placement | indoor |
| streaming | local via HomeKit Controller integration + WebRTC/go2rtc; no native RTSP |
| dimensions | 123.4 x 85.1 x 67.8mm |
| resolution | 2K 2304x1296p, 110° wide-angle lens |
| night vision | infrared night vision (black and white); Aqara does not publish a range figure — see content-depth-backlog.md |
How does the Aqara Camera Hub G3 compare?
| Product | From | Protocol | Local control | Integration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aqara Camera Hub G3 (this product) | £119.99 | Wi-Fi, Zigbee, Matter | Yes | Native |
| Aqara Camera E1 | £48.98 | Wi-Fi | Yes | Native |
| Aqara Camera Hub G5 Pro (Wi-Fi) | £159.98 | Wi-Fi, Zigbee, Thread, Matter | Yes | Native |
| eufy Indoor Cam C120 | £39.99 | Wi-Fi | Yes | HACS |
Frequently asked questions
- Does the Aqara Camera Hub G3 work with Home Assistant locally?
- Yes. The Aqara Camera Hub G3 is controlled locally in Home Assistant through a built-in Home Assistant core integration (homekit_controller), so it keeps working if your internet connection or the Aqara cloud goes down. Control and state updates stay on your own network.
- Which protocol does the Aqara Camera Hub G3 use, and do I need a hub?
- The Aqara Camera Hub G3 uses Wi-Fi and Zigbee and Matter. To pair it with Home Assistant you need no hub — it joins your Wi-Fi network directly; or a Zigbee coordinator (for example a SkyConnect/ZBT-1 or Sonoff dongle) attached to your Home Assistant host; or a Thread border router if it is Matter-over-Thread, or just your Wi-Fi network if it is Matter-over-Wi-Fi. Aqara's own hub is not required when you integrate through a built-in Home Assistant core integration (homekit_controller).
- How much does the Aqara Camera Hub G3 cost in the UK?
- The lowest price we have listed for the Aqara Camera Hub G3 is £119.99 at Aqara UK Shop, with other UK retailers at up to £135. Prices were last checked in October 2026 and change often, so confirm on the retailer's page before buying.