Official Automating Your Home with the Tapo T100 – Smart Motion Sensor
Automating Your Home with Sub-GHz
Spotlight On: Tapo T100 - Smart Motion Sensor
If you want to bring hands-free control to your home, introducing a motion sensor can add more control than you think.
While these devices are called “Motion Sensors,” they actually measure changes in temperature (infrared radiation) across their field of view—this is why most objects or passing lights will not trigger the sensor while moving plants, pets, and humans will.
Matter Compatible via H100 Matter Bridging
Local Smart Actions allow your sensor and hub to communicate directly with other Tapo devices on your network, reducing automation delays and improving reliability.
Placement Tips:
- Avoid Reflective Surfaces and Window Panes: Infrared Radiation from Heat will Bounce Off Reflective Surfaces, causing inaccurate activations or missed events.
Consider Your Pets: Consider placing the sensor higher, lowering the sensitivity, and angling it to prevent your pet from triggering it. - For Discreet Placement, Try Placing the Device Lower to the Ground or under furniture. This is the most useful position when using the motion sensor to detect someone crossing a threshold, such as a hallway.
- Use Physical Obstacles to Obstruct Views: Consider the sensor's line of sight when placing it in a room; you can block the sensor’s field of view to prevent walkways or adjacent rooms from triggering a sensor.
- Adjust the Sensitivity: Sensor sensitivity dramatically affects overall detection; make sure to try a variety of sensitivities and detection intervals. The recommendation for using the sensitivity at specific distances is a general guide, and you may find different sensitivities will better suit your environment.
Use Detection Intervals to Protect Your Battery and Increase Control
The Tapo App lets you adjust the device detection interval from 4 to 60 seconds.
The Detection Interval will change how often the sensor updates its current state. This means that the sensor will not update until the interval has passed. Instead of the app showing “Motion Detected” every 60 Seconds, the app will show an update every ‘x’ seconds—this is also how long before the automation can be triggered again.
If your sensor is not detecting motion as accurately as you would like, try lowering the detection interval so that motion can be detected more often. Note that a lower detection interval will also increase the device's battery consumption due to the higher quantity of updates given in a period.
(10 Minutes @ 60 Seconds = 10 Updates vs. 10 Minutes @ 10 Seconds = 60 Updates) (2 Year Battery Life Based on 50 Triggers/Day or 25000 in Total)
Tip: Using a Lower Detection Interval will allow automations to be triggered more frequently, resulting in more accurate detections and refreshing of timers. Try using a detection interval of less than half your duration to ensure a smooth experience.
Use the “On Duration” Action for Lights
Smart Actions will Trigger Each Time the Sensor is Updated as having detected Motion, which is based on your detection interval. Using the “On Duration” Action allows your automation to be triggered each time this update is made – even if the lights are already on or if you haven’t left the room.
Smart Actions > Trigger (Motion Detected) > Action (“On Duration”) > 2 Minutes @ 80% Brightness
The above automation will ensure that once motion is detected, or if there is motion in a room, the lights will stay on for a minimum of 2 Minutes - with the timer refreshing each time an update to the sensor is made. I use a similar automation in my closet to turn on a light strip every time I reach into the closet.
Tip: Use the “Effective Time” feature to create automations specific for the night, such as turning on your kitchen lights at 20% during your midnight snack heist to prevent eye strain and save your sleep schedule.
Using Your Sensor with Third-Party Services:
As the device is compatible with Matter, the Motion Sensor can be used directly with compatible platforms by adding the Tapo H100 Hub as a Matter Bridge. Otherwise, it is available on other platforms such as SmartThings, Alexa, and Google Home through the official Tapo Integration.
Note: Detection Intervals and Sensitivity Settings must be managed within the Tapo App.
Example Smart Actions
Guard Your Home While Away with Your Hub, Sensors, and Cameras
Using the Smart Actions in the Tapo App along with a Tapo Camera, you can create an automation that will rotate your Pan/Tilt camera to a specific viewpoint (the location of the sensor), allowing you to keep track of what's going on in all corners of your home, even while away.
Your motion sensor can be used in areas such as a garage to alert you of any detected motion – whether from an intruder or you are simply looking to scare away the local trash bandits. Tapo Cameras’ onboard sirens and those on a Tapo Hub can also be triggered, allowing you and the intruder to know they are being monitored or to scare them away.
Smart Actions > Trigger (Motion Detected) > Action (Camera-Ring Siren for X Seconds) > Time (Between 10 PM and 6 AM)
Save Power with Motion Control for an Entire Room
An easy way to save power is to create an automation that turns the devices, fans, and lights off in a room after a set period. Then, you can create an automation or scene that will be triggered whenever motion is detected in a room, preventing fans or lights from draining your energy bill for no reason.
Whether used in your garage, bedroom, bathroom, or kitchen – your wallet will thank you.
Smart Actions > Trigger (Motion Detected) > Action(Turn on Devices/Set Lighting)
Set the Scene with Time-Specific Motion Automations
You can use a smart sensor with a smart light or plug to prevent blinding lights from coming on while roaming the house at night. Try placing a motion sensor on your stairs or in a room, such as a kitchen, to turn the lights to a lower brightness, preventing eye strain and saving your sleep schedule.
When creating and naming the Smart Action, set the “Effective Time” to when you expect everyone to be in or winding down for the evening. This way, you can have one set of automation parameters for daytime triggers and another for nighttime triggers.
Learn How to Apply an Effective Time to an Automation in this FAQ: How to Create Automations and Shortcuts in the Tapo App
View the Tapo T100 Product Overview Page
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