From February 24, Lidl will put connected objects from its Smart Home range back on sale. The opportunity to equip yourself at a low price with high-performance home automation products that are compatible with market standards.
For some, Lidl is still a simple chain of discount stores offering mainly food products. If this was indeed the case when it arrived in France, the sign has changed enormously in recent years. Completely brought up to date, its small local supermarkets no longer have anything to do with the sinister warehouses of the beginnings and its offer has been greatly diversified while moving upmarket, to the point of rivaling the big brands. And if its DIY items have already acquired a good reputation for their excellent value for money, its electronic products are following the same path. Without even mentioning the success of the famous Monsieur Cuisine Connect – a connected kitchen robot three times cheaper than the market benchmark, which literally sold out when it was released – the German brand has developed a wide range of appliances “technological” which sometimes have nothing to envy to more “prestigious” models and, above all, much more expensive. Witness the Silvercrest STSK 2 E5 wireless headphones (True Wireless), sold for barely 17 euros, which shine with their audio quality and which do not have to be ashamed in front of many luxurious references, no offense to the snobs…
Lidl Smart Home: an economical range
In the coming days, Lidl could well attract a number of curious and clever technophiles with its Smart Home rangewhich will be marketed from Thursday February 24, only in stores – the brand does not sell online in France, contrary to what it offers in Belgium – and for a limited time. Launched in 2021, this family includes several home automation products sold at really low prices, much lower than those of the competition. Thus, the Ethernet “central” – also called bridge, gateway, bridge or hub –, which serves as the heart of the system by connecting all the other objects connected to the Internet box or the wireless router via Wi-Fi, is offered at only 20 euros – 19.99 euros to be exact… –, when its equivalent in the Philips Hue range, the market reference, is marketed at around 60 euros. It’s even cheaper than the already inexpensive Trådfi, Ikea’s gateway. And the same goes for all the other connected members of the family: E27 white LED bulb at 8 euros, E14 RGB LED bulb at 10 euros, multicolored LED strip at 18 euros, single socket at 10 euros, multi-socket at 22 euros and pregnant at 40 euros.
Lidl Smart Home: simplicity and quality
At these floor prices, one would think that these are very low-end, barely functional products. It is not so. All manage the ZigBee 3.0 protocol, which serves as a standard in the world of connected objects. It is even possible to combine Smart Home elements with Philips, Jeedom, eedomus, Osram Lightify or Smart Life devices! As already checked home automation specialists during tests, all these modules work perfectly, with being controlled by voice with the Google Assistant or the Lidl mobile application, offering simple but sufficient functions. And the quality of manufacture is there: the simple classic electrical outlet supports a load of up to 3,840W at 16 A. A value above the average of equivalent equipment in other brands. Moreover, if controllable light bulbs can have a futile side, connected sockets have real advantages for controlling all kinds of electrical and electronic devices remotely.
In short, these are clearly excellent deals, which are sure to delight those who want to learn about home automation without breaking the bank and who are more attached to functions than to outward signs of wealth. Not to mention that Lidl also has other connected products in its catalog – marketed at various times of the year – such as actuators, remote controls or doorbells – thermostatic heads for radiators are even planned. Like Ikea, Lidl is slowly developing its home automation ecosystem, in its own way, and at its own price. Only regret: these products are not marketed permanently. So you have to watch the arrivals and go to the store to take advantage of it…