It was over a year since we first announced that a new five-button smart switch from Onvis was coming, but it seems this Thread-enabled device is finally with us, with it now listed on Amazon’s stores in the US, UK, Germany, Spain, Italy, and France, with the list price in the US coming in at US$39.99, the UK at UK£34.99, and the EU at €39,99.
The Onvis HS2 is a wireless controller featuring five individual buttons, with the design of the HS2 showcasing a rounded square surface with the first button positioned at the centre, while the remaining four buttons are placed in each corner. To aid visibility, each button is adorned with small noctilucent dots that emit a glow in the dark. The central button is labelled as ‘one,’ followed by buttons ‘two,’ ‘three,’ ‘four,’ and ‘five’ in the respective corners.
Similar to Onvis’ previous release – their Contact Sensor CT3 – the HS2 operates using Thread, meaning it’s fully compatible with HomeKit. This integration enables each button to offer standard functionalities such as single, double, and long-press options. With this, users can program a minimum of fifteen customizable actions on this single device.
Moreover, the HS2 comes with a magnetic holder serving as a pedestal. This holder allows for convenient mounting on various magnetic surfaces, while still granting the freedom to carry the controller around when needed.
The HS2 is currently only compatible with Apple Home, using HomeKit over Thread, but there are talks that it could receive an update to support Matter, and therefore other Matter-enabled platforms later down the line. Obviously, you should treat any future update promises with caution.