Aqara unveils IFA 2026 lighting lineup with Zigbee, Thread and Matter support

Aqara goes deep on lighting at IFA 2026

Aqara used IFA 2026 to roll out one of its largest lighting launches to date, according to The Verge. The range covers indoor and outdoor fixtures, from a pole-style floor lamp to permanent exterior lights, and the company says every product supports both Zigbee and Thread. The announcement follows a run of smart home debuts Aqara made at CES earlier this year, and it pushes the firm further into a category where rivals such as Govee already have a strong presence.

Floor Lamp T1 brings RGBIC to a pole design

The standout product is the Floor Lamp T1, which swaps a conventional lamp silhouette for an LED-equipped pole mounted on a base. It stands 4.6 feet tall, offers RGBIC lighting and includes 18 individually addressable zones. As The Verge notes, the lamp throws light onto the wall around it rather than illuminating a room directly, an approach comparable to Govee's floor lamp.

Outdoor lights and string lights join the range

Aqara is also targeting the outside of the home. The company introduced permanent outdoor smart lights with individually addressable LEDs, designed to be installed rather than draped seasonally. Alongside them come RGBIC string lights, which can be set to custom color combinations for occasions like holidays, or switched between warm and cool white tones for everyday ambience.

Updated strips and a second-gen downlight

Two existing categories got refreshes as well. The LED Strip T2 keeps the 16-million-color range of its predecessor but adds a new chip that enables multi-zone control, with 18 independent zones per three-meter section. A second-generation downlight arrives in 4-inch and 6-inch sizes, offered in either an RGB-CCT variant that pairs full color with tunable white, or a simpler RGB-only option.

Compatible with every major Matter platform

According to The Verge, all of the lighting products announced at IFA work with Matter-enabled platforms, including Apple Home, Google Home, Alexa, SmartThings, Home Assistant and Homey, connecting over Thread. What Aqara has not disclosed is pricing or availability, so there is no way yet to judge how the lineup stacks up on value.

Why it matters

Aqara made its name on affordable Zigbee hardware, and extending dual Zigbee and Thread support across an entire lighting lineup is a clear signal about where the company expects the mainstream smart home to go. Thread and Matter give buyers out-of-the-box compatibility with rival ecosystems without forcing them through a single vendor's app or hub, while continued Zigbee support keeps the products relevant to existing Aqara installations. For a market still fragmented across incompatible platforms, a budget-focused brand treating Matter as the default, rather than an afterthought, pushes interoperability further into the mainstream. The open question is price: Aqara's appeal has rested on undercutting competitors, and whether that positioning survives in the crowded smart lighting segment will decide how much pressure this launch puts on established players.