Smart Home & IoT

Berlin – September 12, 2026 -- TCL picked up more than 30 awards at IFA 2026 in Berlin, including seven IFA Innovation Award Honoree titles and five Global Product Technology Innovation Awards, alongside recognitions from Android Authority, TechRadar, Tom's Guide and What Hi-Fi?.

The X11L TV wins top honors from two major outlets

The TCL X11L SQD-Mini LED television took home the IFA Breakthrough 2026 Award from Android Authority and the Best in Show Award from Tom's Guide, both citing its next-generation SQD-Mini LED display technology. The TCL C8L SQD-Mini LED TV separately earned an IFA Innovation Awards Honoree title for its display engineering and design. The TCL X3 Series OLED gaming monitor also received Honoree status for its high contrast, refresh rates and design.

Berlin – September 11, 2026 -- Zendure's SolarFlow 4000 Mix Pro home battery system took home the Gold Award in the Sustainable Home Energy Storage System category at the Global Product Technology Innovation Awards 2026, presented during IFA 2026 in Berlin. The company also won the Smart Energy Solutions Brand Award, recognizing its broader approach to home energy management.

The SolarFlow 4000 Mix Pro scales from 8 kWh to 150 kWh per setup

The device is a 4-kW bidirectional AC all-in-one plug-in storage system that uses AI to combine home-storage-level capacity and power in a plug-in format. A single unit scales from 8 kWh to 50 kWh, and pairing it with Zendure's PowerHub pushes total capacity up to 150 kWh. It accepts up to 13 kW of combined solar input, making it suited for larger households, heat pumps, and electric vehicle charging.

San Diego – September 11, 2026 -- Sony Electronics has introduced the SEL814G, its first fisheye zoom G Lens for full-frame Alpha E-mount cameras, with pre-orders opening Sept. 8, 2026 at 7 AM PST.

The lens covers an 8 mm to 14 mm zoom range with a constant f/3.5 aperture, shifting from circular fisheye at the wide end to diagonal fisheye at 14 mm. Both settings produce a 180-degree angle of view, letting photographers and filmmakers adjust framing without swapping lenses.

The lens weighs just 314 grams for all-day handheld use

Measuring roughly 63.1 mm in diameter and 82.8 mm in length, the SEL814G is built for mobility across handheld, gimbal, and rig-based shooting. An inner zoom mechanism keeps the center of gravity stable while zooming, and a fluorine coating on the front element paired with dust- and moisture-resistant construction supports outdoor use.

New York – September 11, 2026 -- Nicely Done Productions has spotlighted Carrier's connected HVAC innovations in a new mini-documentary hosted on National Geographic's global digital platform.

The episode airs as part of a broader documentary series on connected infrastructure

Titled "Cooler Homes, Smarter Cities," the episode is part of the "Threads of Connectivity" mini-documentary series produced by Nicely Done Productions and distributed on NatGeo.com. The series examines how connected technologies shape more efficient, resilient communities.

Irvine, Calif. – September 11, 2026 -- TP-Link Systems Inc. is rolling out four exclusive Tapo smart home security bundles to 500 Home Depot stores nationwide and online, each shipping with a free 32GB microSD card so customers can start recording footage as soon as they get home.

The bundles skip the usual upsell tactics: mounting accessories and local AI features through the Tapo app come included, with no extra purchases or subscriptions required.

Four distinct cameras target different parts of the home

The TCH80 KIT is a two-pack of solar-powered outdoor cameras with 1080p live view, AI person alerts, color night vision, and up to 180 days of battery life per charge, rated IP65 for weather resistance. The TCH62 is a compact indoor/outdoor wired camera aimed at families and pet owners, offering 2K video, AI alerts for people and crying babies, dual spotlights for color night vision, and customizable privacy zones.

Berlin – September 11, 2026 -- Hisense is showing off a new lineup of AI-connected home appliances at IFA 2026, letting visitors ask a fridge what to cook and have an oven, wine cabinet and dishwasher carry out the rest of the process automatically.

The AI Companion Suite links appliances from meal planning to cleanup

The system, powered by Hisense's ConnectLife platform, starts with the AI Companion Refrigerator, which scans stored ingredients and suggests recipes based on personal preferences. Once a dish is chosen, the AI Companion Oven can begin automatic cooking while the AI Companion Wine Cabinet suggests a pairing and keeps it at proper storage temperature. Afterward, the AI Companion Dishwasher checks how dirty the dishes are and adjusts its cleaning cycle accordingly.

Berlin – September 10, 2026 -- ECOVACS has unveiled OZMO ROLLER 3.0, the third generation of its self-washing roller mop technology, debuting in the new DEEBOT X12S OmniCyclone robotic vacuum at IFA 2026 in Berlin.

The roller mop category now covers 2.8 million shipped units worldwide

ECOVACS says more than 2.8 million OZMO ROLLER-equipped units had shipped globally as of July 2026, according to the company's internal shipment data. The technology first launched with the DEEBOT X8 series in 2024, followed by OZMO ROLLER 2.0 on the DEEBOT X11.

Warsaw – September 10, 2026 -- Nocpix, a developer of outdoor electro-optical imaging technology, has unveiled the next generation of its flagship thermal riflescope, aimed at professional hunters who demand sharper detail and faster decision-making in the field.

The new scope builds on a traditional tubular platform

The upcoming model combines Nocpix-developed thermal sensors, high-performance optics and eyepiece zoom within a classic tubular scope design. Select versions will also integrate a laser rangefinder and ballistic calculation tools, continuing a feature set the company has expanded since the series' first generation.

Berlin – September 10, 2026 -- TCL unveiled its AI-driven home ecosystem and next-generation display lineup at IFA 2026, centered on an immersive exhibit called "Inspiration Habitat."

TCL's X11L TV hits 10,000 nits of HDR brightness

The TCL X11L SQD-Mini LED television offers up to 100% of the BT.2020 "All-Scene" color gamut, precise brightness control, and a peak HDR brightness of 10,000 nits. TCL also showed the RayNeo GT Max, which the company says are the first Dolby Vision-certified augmented reality glasses, extending premium visual experiences beyond the living room into mobile use.

Hangzhou – September 10, 2026 -- Hoymiles has launched a 22-kilowatt V2X DC charger designed to work with its HiOne all-in-one battery energy storage system, letting homeowners turn an electric vehicle into a backup power source for the house.

The charger lets EVs send power back to homes during outages

The V2X charger supports bidirectional charging, meaning it can move electricity in both directions between a vehicle and a home. Through Vehicle-to-Home (V2H) mode, it can supply emergency backup power if the grid goes down. Through Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) mode, households can participate in load balancing and virtual power plant programs. The unit also includes an EU-MID certified meter for accurate energy monitoring.