More and more people are choosing to make their home smarter. The first steps are often smart lighting and a doorbell. Another product group that is interesting to automate are blinds. You can buy this ready-made, but are very expensive. An alternative is to automate your existing blinds using the affordable Switchbot Blind Tilt.
Recently we have tested the Switchbot Blind tilt in practice our experiences can be read in the review. Small spoiler, they work perfectly!
What is the Switchbot Blind tilts?
The Switchbot Blind Tilt is a retrofit solution that can operate blinds. When your blinds are provided with a rod to tilt the slats (open and close) then you can use the Switchbot solution. You can automate the vast majority of budget blinds that you can buy at Leen Bakker, Kwantum and the hardware stores with the Switchbot solution.
The stick of the blinds is placed in a motor that can be controlled the tilting mechanism. It is therefore important that a bar is present, it does not work if the position of the slats has to be adjusted with strings. The great thing about the system is that you can still operate the blinds manually.
The Switchbot Blind Tilt is a Bluetooth device (BLE 5.0), if you want to operate the blinds with your iPhone then you must be within the Bluetooth range. If you don’t want this, you can place a Switchbot Hub Mini or Switchbot 2 within the range of blinds.
These hubs make it possible to operate a Switchbot Blind from any location in your home and even if you are not at home. The hub is connected to the app with the help of WiFi.
Charging internal battery with solar energy
The Switchbot Blind Tilt is equipped with a built -in 2000 mAh lithium battery, which according to the manufacturer has a battery life of 10 months with normal use. A modest solar panel is also included with the device that you can attach to the window. If you connect the solar panel, the device is automatically charged. If you do not want to install the solar panel, you can easily charge the TILT motor via USB-C with a universal mains power adapter, which is not included.
The solar panel is also used to measure the light intensity. An automation can be set based on the measurement data. Do not place your solar panel, then you also have no decision on these measurements.
Installation of the Switchbot Blind Tilt
The installation of the Switchbot Blind Tilt is fairly easy and can be carried out by everyone. It is important that you have installed the Switchbot App and that you have created a Switchbot account.
After this you can get started with the physical installation of the TILT motor. You do Dir by tapping the ‘+’ symbol at the top right of the app. Select ‘Add device’ and select the ‘blind dimmer’ in the overview.
The app guides you step by step through the entire installation process, you can also watch an installation video. The instructions that you see in the app are also present in the packaging in paper version.
The most important installation steps
You start by measuring the thickness of the rod with which you operate the blinds, you do this with the help of a supplied measuring tape. This indicates which adapter you should attach to the rod, this adapter is controlled by the engine.
For the exact placement of the device, a mold is supplied that you have to attach to the base of the blinds. This mold indicates where you can best place the tilt engine compared to the control bar. It is important to be able to operate the control rod as vertically as possible.
You can place the tilt motor both left and right of the control bar using a mounting plate. Switchbot prefers the right, but if you do not have room on the right side, the left side is also possible. The mounting plate is provided 3m double -sided adhesive tape, don’t forget to degrease the surface first with the supplied alcohol cloth. Optionally, the mounting plate can also be secured with a screw.
The installation of the Switchbot Blind Tilt is simple and all steps are clearly explained in the installation manual, both on paper and in the app.
Perform calibration and operation of the blinds
After the Blind Tilt engine is installed, it must be calibrated. The app asks you to turn the rod manually so that the blinds close and open completely. This way the blind tilts how often he has to turn the rod to get to different positions. You can calibrate it again at any time if you think it is not accurate enough.
The Blind Tilt engine has a silent mode and a performance mode. The silent mode is quieter, but it takes longer to open the blinds, compared to performance mode.
You can operate the blinds with the help of the Switchbot app. In addition to shortcuts, a slider is available to adjust the position of the blinds. The app shows the status of the blinds, this status is also updated when the blinds manually open and close.
Remember that your iPhone must be within Bluetooth range to serve the blinds. If you want to serve the blinds with Siri, Homey, Google Assistant, Siri or outside the reach of Bluetooth, then you need a Switchbot Mini Hub or Switchbot Hub 2.
Automate blinds
Via the Switchbot App you can indicate what percentage the slats must be opened or closed. You also have automation options, such as opening and closing based on a time. If you use the solar panel, you can automatically close the slats at sunset and open it again at sunrise.
It is also possible to include the blind lift in scenes, something that can be handy if you have multiple tilt motors and/or other switchbot products. With a scene you can operate multiple tilt motors simultaneously, so for example if you have four windows, all four blinds open 30%.
For example, you can also set a goodnight scene where all your blinds are closed. But where your Switchbot lighting is also switched off and the Switchbot smart door lock is automatically locked.
HomeKit Support
If you want to operate the blind tilt motor from the home app, then that is also possible. For this, however, you have to go over one Switchbot Mini Hub or Switchbot Hub 2 have. These two hubs can add the blind tilt to HomeKit via Matter, so that it is added to the home app. With the coming advantage of this is that you can also use the blinds in HomeKit Scenes.
With a Switchbot Mini Hub you can add 3 devices via Matter to HomeKit, with the Switchbot Hub 2 that are 8 devices.
Switchbot Blind tilts in practice
We have been using the Switchbot Blind for some time now lifts on four different windows with standard ‘cheap’ blinds from Leen Bakker without any problems. It is important that the blinds are provided with a stick with which the tilting of the slats can operate. These kinds of blinds are for sale for a few dozen tens.
The installation is simple and is well explained. It is important that you take the time for the installation and more importantly the calibration. During the calibration you can accurately close and open the blinds on the millimeter, so that they always close completely below.
The possibility of being able to operate the blinds by hand is super handy, because you do not always have your iPhone at hand immediately. A manual adjustment is registered by the device, so that the calibration is maintained. To be able to operate the blind tilt you must be in the Bluetooth range of the device. For that reason it is advisable to purchase a Switchbot Hub. This then takes care of communication with the blind tilt and makes it possible to serve your blinds anywhere in the world. You can also use this them with all other Switchbot products.
The supplied solar panel registers the light intensity and ensures that the battery is automatically charged. Based on the light intensity, actions can be set, such as the automatic opening of the blinds when it becomes light in the morning.
For a jealousy 140×175 cm, with a built-in EVE engine you quickly pay € 500+. For comparison, at a hardware store a jealousy with these dimensions costs around € 45 and the Switchbot Blind Tiltt has a suggested retail price of € 69. The Switchbot Blind Tilt is much cheaper and they also work perfectly.
Conclusion: Switchbot Blind Tiltt
Review Score
The Switchbot Blind Tilt is a smart device with which you can make existing blinds smart. The installation is simple and the Switchbot app guides you through the entire installation and calibration process. If you want to make a traditional jealousy smart, the Switchbot Blind tilts one of the better solutions.
- Easy to install
- Silent and powerful engine
- Charging battery via solar panel
- Supports many types of blinds
- The blinds can still be operated manually
- You must be a range within Bluetooth to be able to operate unless you have an optional switchbot hub.
Where to buy?
The Switchbot Blind Tilt can be purchased in the web shops below and have a suggested retail price of € 69.99. Different webshop also offer cheaper bundles so that you can save on the price.
