Tapo H110 Smart IR & IoT Hub

An old air conditioner or fan does not need to be replaced just because its remote is not smart. Tapo H110 can learn supported infrared controls, manage compatible Tapo sensors, and bridge the useful parts into Matter. At roughly the price of a smart plug, it is an appealing way to modernize one room without pretending every appliance has become a native Matter device.

Matterhome has not tested the H110, so appliance compatibility and the exact controls shown by each ecosystem still need checking. The case for buying it is strongest when you can name the appliance and command you want before the box arrives.

Start with one room

Infrared control is local and directional. Put H110 in the room with the television, fan, light, or air conditioner it needs to reach, then use the Tapo app to match or learn the remote. TP-Link says its database covers 18 appliance types and more than 8,000 brands, but that is a vendor compatibility claim, not proof that every button on a particular remote will map cleanly.

Set up the Tapo side first. Update the hub, add the Tapo sensors you plan to use, and test the important commands from the app. A cooling routine is only useful if power, mode, and temperature behave predictably. Once that works, add the H110 as a bridge to the Matter controller already running the home.

The hub uses 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi and the regional Tapo sub-GHz radio, not Thread. It also needs a separate 5V 2A USB power adapter. The cable is in the box; the adapter is not.

Matter shares a smaller control surface

The H110 is a Matter bridge, not a Thread border router and not the controller that runs Apple Home, Google Home, Alexa, or SmartThings. TP-Link explicitly requires a separate Matter controller such as a HomePod, Nest Hub, Echo, or SmartThings Station for that setup path.

That distinction sets the right expectation. Matter can carry supported appliance controls and sensor states into another app, while the Tapo app remains responsible for infrared learning, firmware, schedules, and brand-specific settings. TP-Link's support page also says Tapo buttons such as S200B and S200D are not currently compatible with the Matter bridge path. A camera may join a Tapo automation, but H110 does not turn its video feed into a Matter camera.

Buy it instead of replacing a working appliance

H110 makes sense for a bedroom air conditioner, a media cabinet, or a living-room fan that works well but has no useful smart-home path. It is also a modest bridge for Tapo sensors when basic states in another ecosystem are enough. The low price is part of the appeal, but only if the target appliance is compatible and the hub can sit where infrared reaches it.

Skip it when the real need is Thread coverage, a general-purpose Matter controller, or deep automation across several brands. Aqara Hub M3 adds Thread border-router and controller duties at a much higher price. SwitchBot Hub 3 costs more but adds a display, dial, and physical controls around a similar infrared-and-bridge idea. IKEA DIRIGERA is the better comparison when the devices you want to share are primarily IKEA products.

Buy the H110 for one conversion you can test. If the goal is simply to collect another hub with a Matter logo, it will not fill the infrastructure gaps that logo might suggest.