This Aqara smart home hub looks like a memory stick – and it’s only $25!

Aqara has just launched the cheapest smart home hub on the market – and it looks a lot like a memory stick. The Aqara Hub M100 plugs directly into a USB-A port to act as a Matter controller and to extend your Aqara-powered network, plus you won’t believe the price.

At CES 2025, Aqara announced many new smart home products, including the Aqara Hub M100 which has finally been made available to the UK market. But while the Aqara Hub M100 promises to be a beginners’ gateway into creating their own smart home ecosystem, its design and capabilities are basic compared to other brands, and even Aqara’s other smart hub devices.

The Aqara Hub M100 doesn’t look like your average smart home hub, most of which have a screen or are a sizable device that you can speak to, like an Amazon Echo Dot. It looks vastly different to the Aqara Panel Hub S1 Plus which debuted in January 2025, and instead looks more like a memory stick – which it sort of is.

How the Aqara Hub M100 works is it plugs directly into a USB-A port, so it can be powered by any USB-equipped device, like a plug, power bank or laptop. It’s extremely small and can be adjusted by 210-degrees, so if it’s being used in a plug wall outlet, it doesn’t get in the way or take up too much space.

While the Aqara Hub M100 is described as a smart home hub, it doesn’t have as many ‘hub’ capabilities as other hubs do. Instead, the Aqara Hub M100 is better used as a Matter controller or bridge, or a way to support Zigbee and Thread devices, of which it simultaneously supports 20 devices from both brands.

Many of Aqara’s smart home gadgets are Matter compatible now, so the Aqara Hub M100 could be a handy device to connect to your other Aqara devices and third-party Matter and Thread products. In terms of automations, the Aqara Hub M100 offers local automations for Matter and Zigbee.

Is the Aqara Hub M100 the most advanced smart home hub out there? No, but if you simply want another way to connect your Aqara devices, or you’re new to smart home gadgets, then the Aqara Hub M100 is worth considering – and it’s insanely cheap, too.

The Aqara Hub M100 is priced at $24.99 and can be bought at Aqara or Amazon. As of writing, the Aqara Hub M100 is only available in the US and Amazon has given it a 20% discount, so you can get it for $19.99.