Smart Home & IoT

Berlin – September 16, 2026 -- Zendure took home two honors at the Global Product Technology Innovation Awards 2026, with its SolarFlow 4000 Mix Pro home battery system winning Gold in the Sustainable Home Energy Storage System category. The awards were handed out during the opening of IFA 2026 in Berlin, where Zendure also received the Smart Energy Solutions Brand Award for its broader approach to home energy management.

The SolarFlow 4000 Mix Pro packs whole-home power into a plug-in format

The system is a plug-in, bidirectional, AI-driven home energy storage unit rated at 4 kW AC. A single unit stores between 8 kWh and 50 kWh, and capacity can scale up to 150 kWh when paired with Zendure's PowerHub, which supports up to 13 kW of total solar input. Zendure positions the setup for large households, heat pumps, and electric vehicle charging points.

Berlin – September 16, 2026 -- TCL collected more than 30 international awards at IFA 2026, including seven IFA Innovation Awards and five Global Product Technology Innovation Awards, recognizing new display, AI and smart-home technology.

TCL's SQD-Mini LED TVs win top display honors

The TCL X11L SQD-Mini LED television received Android Authority's IFA Breakthrough 2026 Award and Tom's Guide's Best in Show Award, both citing its next-generation SQD-Mini LED technology. The TCL C8L SQD-Mini LED TV earned an IFA Innovation Award for its display technology and design. The TCL X3 Series OLED+ gaming monitor also won an IFA Innovation Award for its contrast, refresh rate and design.

Los Angeles – – September 15, 2026 -- Fanttik has unveiled a new round of automotive and DIY tools, headlined by the Luma K10 Apex dash cam and the O11 Pro cordless circular saw, expanding its catalog of driving and home-project gear.

The Luma K10 Apex pairs a 4K front camera with a 2K rear unit for sharper footage.

The dual-channel dash cam uses a Sony STARVIS 2 IMX678 sensor alongside an AI NPU and ISP engine to adjust image quality in changing light and road conditions. It includes 5.8GHz Wi-Fi 6, GPS recording, and a 2.8-inch IPS touchscreen, and downloads 4K footage wirelessly at over 20 MB/s. Drivers can control it via the touchscreen, a physical dial, or a companion app.

Shenzhen – September 15, 2026 -- AKEEYO Global has launched the XPRO, a 4K dash cam built exclusively for the Toyota RAV4 that replaces the plastic housing behind the rearview mirror instead of sticking to the windshield. The camera is now available in North America at akeeyo.com for $289.

The camera draws power from a connector already near the mirror

There is no suction mount, no cable taped down the glass, and no visible hardware on the dashboard. AKEEYO says installation takes about four minutes: owners remove the factory mirror cover with an included trim tool, plug in a supplied adapter, tuck the cable into the XPRO housing, and press the unit into place. The process requires no drilling, cutting, or wire splicing, and the original mirror housing can be reinstalled at any time, a detail relevant for leased vehicles and resale.

Berlin -- September 10, 2026 -- Midea used IFA 2026 to showcase a new lineup of heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems built around the natural refrigerant R290, part of what the company calls its 'Green Vision, Blue Future' push.

Midea has sold more than 10 million R290 air conditioners since 2018

R290 carries an ultra-low global warming potential, near-zero CO2 emissions, no PFAS chemicals, and roughly 10% higher energy efficiency than standard refrigerants. Midea says the 10 million-plus units sold since 2018 have cut carbon emissions by about 5.2 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent, a reduction the company compares to the carbon absorption of 6.2 million hectares of Amazon rainforest. A transparent demo unit at the booth let visitors watch the compressor technology operate live.

Berlin – September 15, 2026 -- EcoFlow collected nine industry awards at IFA 2026 in Berlin, with its STREAM home battery system, PowerRock 4000 portable power station and RIVER Gen4 power stations all recognized by European and international tech publications.

STREAM home battery system earns six separate honors

The STREAM platform received Best in Show awards from TechRadar, T3 and The Ambient, plus recognition from ComputerBILD's Messe-Highlight 2026, the home&smart Innovation Award 2026, and CHIP.de's IFA Highlights Award specifically for the STREAM AC 5000 model.

Atlanta – September 15, 2026 -- Bark Technologies has launched a new Bark Watch built on the Samsung Galaxy Watch8 (40mm LTE) platform, combining Samsung's hardware with Bark's AI-powered safety software for kids.

The device costs $10 a month for 24 months, plus a $15-a-month plan for cellular service and parental controls. Optional device protection covering accidental damage, loss, or theft is available for an additional $4 a month.

The watch replaces smartphone features with kid-focused safety tools

Built with Armor Aluminum construction and an IP68 durability rating, the watch supports standalone LTE calling, group texting, speech-to-text dictation, and text-to-speech playback for children who need reading support. It also includes built-in Emergency SOS and GPS location tracking, along with health tracking features like step count and fitness activity monitoring.

New York – September 13, 2026 -- Nanit, the baby monitor company used by more than one million families, has appointed two former wearable-tech executives to senior leadership roles as it expands beyond sleep tracking into a broader early-childhood intelligence platform.

WHOOP's former product chief joins as SVP of Product

Alexi Coffey, previously VP of Product at WHOOP, will lead product and design at Nanit. At WHOOP, she helped expand the fitness wearable into a broader health platform, overseeing product moves into longevity and women's health and the launches of WHOOP 5.0 and WHOOP MG.

ŌURA veteran to shape company strategy

Geoff Wylde joins as SVP, Head of Strategy, after roles at ŌURA and the World Economic Forum, where he worked on policy tied to connected health technologies. Both Coffey and Wylde are parents and existing Nanit users.

Berlin – September 10, 2026 -- Segway picked up two gold medals at IFA 2026 in Berlin for its next-generation electric scooters, the ZT3 MAX and the MAX G3 Pro, ahead of their European launch in October 2026.

The ZT3 MAX took gold in the Off-Road E-Scooter Technology category, while the Ninebot MAX G3 Pro won in the Long-Range Riding Technology category. Both awards come from the Global Product Technology Innovation Awards, handed out annually at IFA, one of the world's largest consumer electronics trade shows. The prize was established in 2014 by International Data Group (IDG) and the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK), with continued backing from IFA.

Hoofddorp – September 12, 2026 -- Smart home company EZVIZ has expanded its lineup of AI-powered entry devices, showcasing video doorbells, video intercoms and door openers at IFA in Hall 1.2, aimed at European households of varying sizes and home types.

The EP8 Ultra doorbell adds an AI-driven screen for facial recognition

Launched just before IFA, the EP8 Ultra video doorbell features a built-in AI display designed for tight entryways such as apartment hallways. Unlike dual-lens doorbells that separately detect visitors and packages, the EP8 Ultra combines an interactive screen with AI characters for emotional engagement and facial recognition technology to optimize power consumption.