Home security hubs are having a moment. TP-Link just dropped its Tapo H500 Smart Hub, and it’s coming for Amazon‘s lunch money. At £127.99 in the UK, this speaker-shaped device promises to wrangle up to 16 cameras and 64 sensors without breaking the bank or your privacy.
The H500 isn’t trying to be your kitchen TV. No fancy display here. Just a hub that actually hubs. Connect it to your TV via HDMI if you’re desperate for visuals, but that’s not the point. This thing’s all business – 16GB of built-in storage that expands to a ridiculous 16TB with external drives. That’s years of footage if you’re recording events, not just running cameras 24/7 like some paranoid suburbanite.
A security hub that actually hubs – no fancy screens, just pure functionality and massive storage.
What makes it interesting? AI-powered detection that actually works. The hub adds facial recognition, pet detection, and vehicle spotting to cameras that don’t have these features built-in. Your basic Tapo camera just got a brain upgrade. No more generic “motion detected” alerts when it’s just your cat being dramatic. The system even tracks individuals across multiple camera views, following their movement patterns throughout your property.
Matter support’s here too, but with a catch. WiFi devices only – no Thread Border Router means your fancy Thread-enabled gadgets need to look elsewhere. Classic TP-Link move. They also threw in ONVIF support for broader camera compatibility, which is genuinely useful if you’ve got a mixed ecosystem.
The 110dB alarm siren‘s loud enough to wake the dead. Or at least scare off intruders. Local storage means your creepy neighbor videos stay on your device, not floating around some server farm. Privacy advocates will love this. Cloud subscription haters too. The hub even doubles as a communication point for doorbell voice calls, complete with built-in microphone and speaker.
Sure, it’s not perfect. Early app integration was wonky, though updates fixed most issues. Not all Tapo cameras play nice immediately. And that speaker design? Let’s just say it won’t win any beauty contests.
Unlike Rogers Smart Home Monitoring, there’s no need to worry about backup batteries during power outages affecting your security coverage.
But here’s the thing: Amazon’s Echo Hub costs more and does less for actual security management. Eufy’s offering looks prettier but can’t match the device support. TP-Link positioned this perfectly – a dedicated security hub that doesn’t pretend to be a smart display. Sometimes focused beats fancy.
