D-Link disconnects cloud services from 19 smart home devices and takes apps offline

D-Link disconnects 19 security cameras, baby monitors and other smart devices from its cloud services. The associated apps are also taken from the Play Store and App Store. It seems that the devices can no longer be used afterwards and therefore become e-waste.

D-Link announced the change via a support pagewhich was picked up a month ago by some German sites, including PC Games Hardware, but it did not receive wide attention. It is not clear when D-Link posted this announcement online. The changes planned by the Taiwanese company will take place on Friday, December 30, 2022.

These include IP cameras, smart sockets, motion sensors, a water sensor, Z-Wave hubs, a door and window sensor, a siren, a smoke detector and multiple cameras to keep an eye on babies or pets. The products that can be found in the Pricewatch show that they have introduction years ranging from 2013 to 2017. The closed apps are mydlink Home and mydlink Baby Camera Monitorcan still be seen in cached versions behind the links.

D-Link does not say it very explicitly, but it seems that after closing the associated apps and cloud services, the devices become completely unusable, i.e. e-waste. As far as we know, D-Link has not made any firmware source code available, which could still allow savvy users to write firmware themselves and, for example, develop compatibility with Home Assistant for continued use.

D-Link further states that the DCS-935L, DCS-5010L and DCH-Z510, two cameras and a siren respectively, no longer work due to closing the old apps, but that in these cases you can still switch to the newer apps mydlink, mydlink Lite or mydlink+. The support article states which app works for which device.

Update, Friday 3:59 PM: tweaker Jeanj says that, as a D-Link customer, he was informed of this closure by email in February of this year.