smart home News - Page 13 of 34 - CNX Software

February 12, 2024February 12, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

SparkFun Thing Plus – ESP32-C6 board comes with 16MB flash, LiPo battery support

SparkFun has launched yet another ESP32-C6 board with the “Thing Plus – ESP32-C6” based on the ESP32-C6-WROOM-1-N16 module with 16MB flash and a PCB antenna and range of I/Os and power options. The board features 28 through holes with up to 23 multi-function GPIOs and a Qwicc connector for expansion, and supports 5V or LiPo battery power through respectively a USB-C port a 2-pin JST connector combined with a charging chip, and a fuel gauge. SparkFun Thing Plus – ESP32-C6 specifications: Wireless module – ESP32-C6-WROOM-1-N16 MCU – ESP32-C6 32-bit single-core RISC-V microcontroller with 2.4 GHz WiFI 6, Bluetooth 5 LE, and 802.15.4 radio (Zigbee and Thread); Matter-compatible Storage – 16 MB flash PCB Antenna Storage – MicroSD card slot USB – 1x USB Type-C port for power and programming Expansion 12-pin + 16-pin headers with 23x multifunctional GPIOs Up to 7x 12-bit ADC channels Up to 2x UART channels (with […]

February 9, 2024February 10, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Hubitat Elevation Model C-8 Pro Home Automation Hub supports Zigbee, Z-Wave, and Matter devices

Hubitat has recently launched the Elevation Model C-8 Pro Home Automation hub with a Z-Wave 800 radio, a Zigbee 3.0 radio, Wi-Fi, and Ethernet connectivity that upgrade on the earlier C-8 model with more memory (2GB RAM), and a faster 2.0 GHz Cortex-A55 processor. I’ve never written about Hubitat Smart Home solutions, but they seem to have an active community of users, so I’ll check out their latest Elevation Model C-8 Pro gateway and what they have to offer in terms of software and device support. Hubitat Elevation Model C-8 Pro specifications: SoC – Arm Cortex A55 processor @ 2.016 GHz (that could be the Amlogic S905X3 found in the ODROID-C4 SBC) System Memory – 2GB RAM Storage – TBD Connectivity Ethernet RJ45 port WiFi Z-Wave 800 radio Zigbee 3.0 radio Matter support 2x external antennas Power Supply – 5V via USB-C port Dimensions – 8.2 x 7.5 x 1.7 […]

January 30, 2024January 29, 2024 by Paisit Wongsongsarn - 5 Comments

Review of SONOFF SNZB-03P new Zigbee motion sensor with eWelink and Home Assistant

SONOFF continues to release new Zigbee products series including the wireless switches/buttons (SNZB-01P) and temperature and humidity sensors (SNZB-02P) that we reviewed last year. Today, we will review another new sensor, that is the Zigbee 3.0 motion sensor (SNZB-03P) and we’ll need a Zigbee Hub/Bridge/Dongle to receive Zigbee signals to make it work. The technology of this sensor remains PIR, which uses infrared waves similar to before. This is different from the Human Presence sensors that are gaining popularity, which use mmWave (millimeter wave, frequency 3-30GHz). Both types have their pros and cons. SONOFF has also recently released a Human Presence sensor, namely the SNZB-06P which we will review soon. The SONOFF SNZB-03P is suitable for applications where motion needs to be detected (staying standstill won’t work) and places where it is not feasible or practical to run power cables. The latter is advantageous compared to Human Presence sensors because […]

January 26, 2024March 7, 2025 by Debashis Das - No Comments

Quectel FGH100M Wi-Fi HaLow module based on Morse Micro MM6108 receives CE and FCC Certifications

Quectel and Morse Micro's FGH100M Wi Fi HaLow Module

In a collaboration, Quectel Wireless Solutions and Morse Micro have developed the FGH100M a Wi-Fi HaLow module, powered by Morse Micro’s MM6108 SoC. This module has achieved CE certification in Europe and FCC approval in the US, meeting high safety and environmental standards. After reading through the press release, I initially thought the 802.11.ah WiFi, known as WiFi HaLow, would be similar to other LPWAN standards like LoRaWAN or Sigfox. However, further research showed that Wi-Fi HaLow, operating in the 900 MHz band, was first announced in 2014 and got its name in 2016. However, in the following years, there wasn’t much interest in this wireless standard. But starting from 2021, it’s becoming more popular, and we’ve seen many HaLow-based products like a mini PCIe card, a WiFi HaLow development board, and a gateway kit to extend the range of IP cameras, and also ALFA Network’s AHPI7292S Raspberry Pi HAT […]

January 23, 2024January 2, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

LILYGO T-Panel – A 4-inch HMI display and WiFi, BLE, and 802.15.4 gateway based on ESP32-S3 and ESP32-H2

T-Panel 4-inch ESP32-S3 and ESP32-H2 gateway

LILYGO T-Panel is both a 4-inch HMI display and IoT gateway based on ESP32-S3 WiFi 4 and Bluetooth LE 5 microcontroller and an ESP32-H2 module with Bluetooth LE 5 and an 802.15.4 radio for Zigbee, Thread, and Matter connectivity. Last year, Espressif introduced the ESP-Thread Board Router/Zigbee gateway board with ESP32-S3 and ESP32-H2 to show how both chips could be combined to create IoT gateways. But I don’t think I had seen a company design a product based on both ESP32-S3 and ESP32-H2 until I saw the T-Panel which also includes an RS485 interface and Qwiic expansion connectors for good measure. T-Panel specifications: Wireless chips/modules Wireless SoC – ESP32-S3R8 dual-core Tensilica LX7 microcontroller @ 240 MHz 2.4 GHz 802.11n WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 LE connectivity Memory – 8MB PSRAM Wireless module – ESP32-H2-MINI-1 module MCU – Espressif Systems ESP32-H2 32-bit RISC-V microcontroller at up to 96 MHz with 320 […]

January 19, 2024January 19, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

8 Euros ESP32-H2-DevKit-LiPo is an open-source hardware Bluetooth 5 LE and 802.15.4 (Zigbee/Thread/Matter) board

Olimex ESP32-H2-DevKit-LiPo is an open-source hardware board based on ESP32-H2-MINI-1-N4 wireless module with Bluetooth 5 Low Energy (LE) and an 802.15.4 radio for Zigbee, Thread, and Matter connectivity, and that can be powered by a LiPo battery. The ESP32-H2 RISC-V microcontroller is coupled with 4MB flash in the wireless module, and the board comes with two rows of 15 pins for up to 19 GPIOs with alternate functions such as ADC, SPI, UART, I2C, etc… plus pUEXT and Qwiic/Stemma connectors for expansion modules. The board also features two USB-C ports, one for connected directly to the ESP32-H2 and the other for USB to UART programming/debugging. ESP32-H2-DevKit-LiPo specifications: Wireless module – ESP32-H2-MINI-1-N4 MCU – Espressif Systems ESP32-H2 32-bit RISC-V microcontroller at up to 96 MHz with 320 KB SRAM, 128 KB ROM, 4 KB LP memory, Bluetooth 5.2 LE/Mesh and 802.15.4 (Zigbee/Thread/Matter) radios. Storage – 4MB flash storage PCB antenna Dimensions […]

January 10, 2024January 10, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Emporia Vue Gen 2 energy monitor ships with 16 CT clamps, supports single and three-phase power

We’ve just written about the “Smart Powermeter” measuring the power consumption of AC appliances through six CT clamps and running either ESPHome or Arduino firmware on ESP32-S3 WiFi and Bluetooth microcontroller. Some people asked about tri-phase and having more CT clamps. One of the commenters then recommended readers to look at the Emporia Vue energy monitor that ships with 16 CT clamps for individual devices/rooms, two 200A CT clamps for whole house monitoring, and supports single-phase up to 240VAC line-neutral, single, split-phase 120/240VAC, and three-phase up to 415Y/240VAC (no Delta). So let’s do that now. Emporia Vue Gen 2 specifications: Connectivity – 2.4 GHz WiFi 4 Probes 2x 200A current sensors for service mains; 3.5mm plug; dimensions: 65 x 44 x 41mm 16x 50A current sensors to individually monitor air conditioner, furnace, water heater, washer, dryer, range, etc; 2.5mm plug, dimensions: 41 x 23 x 26; accurate from ±2% […]

January 9, 2024February 9, 2025 by Tomisin Olujinmi - 8 Comments

The EQSP32 is a no-code, no-solder Industrial Internet of Things Controller powered by a generative AI assistant (Crowdfunding)

The EQSP32 controller is a complete, end-to-end solution for IoT applications that recently launched on Kickstarter. It is a compact, wireless Industrial IoT controller based on the ESP32-S3 wireless SoC with a 250MHz dual-core processor, 512KB of RAM, and 8MB of flash memory. The product leverages artificial intelligence and code for automation projects can be generated automatically by the bundled generative AI programming assistant. The EQSP32 controller features 16 terminals that can be configured as analog or digital inputs, or as digital outputs. Switches, pushbuttons, keypads, LED strips, sensors, servos, potentiometers, etc., can be connected to these terminals. It is similar to the EdgeBox-Edge-100 we covered a while back but lacks an Ethernet port and uses less power overall. EQSP32 specifications: SoC: Espressif Systems ESP32-S3 dual-core Tensilica LX7 microcontroller @ 240 MHz, 512KB RAM Memory – 8MB flash Network Connectivity: Bluetooth, WiFi USB – USB-C programming port I/O: 16 multipurpose […]