Tapo H500: New smart home hub supports Matter, HDMI and up to 16TB of storage

TP-Link has launched the Tapo H500, which the manufacturer describes as a smart HomeBase that’s designed to serve as a central hub for various smart home gadgets. This device easily integrates into a network via dual-band WiFi, which allows it to wirelessly connect to sensors and cameras. More specifically, it supports up to 16 Tapo cameras and up to 64 Tapo sensors. According to the manufacturer, video recordings from these cameras can be stored locally.

The HomeBase comes with built-in 16GB eMMC storage, which can be expanded to 16TB with hard drives or SSDs. 1TB of internal storage would be enough to store four 24/7 camera recordings for several weeks. If users only record events or alarms, 1TB can last for years. Local storage circumvents any privacy concerns and saves money on cloud storage fees. TP-Link cameras that lack built-in AI features, such as face detection, are expected to gain this capability when connected to this new smart hub, which is supposedly more accurate as well.

The smart home hub is not just compatible with TP-Link Tapo devices, as the HomeBase also supports the Matter standard. However, the Tapo H500 is just a base station, and not a smart display. That being said, a tablet can be mounted on the base station in order to use features like viewing live feeds, using the 3D dashboard or the overview of connected IoT devices. The hub can also double as an alarm system and can be used with a compatible smart doorbell. An HDMI port is available as well. The Tapo H500 Smart HomeBase is now purchasable in Europe for €130.