sonoff News - Page 10 of 11 - CNX Software

September 12, 2017September 25, 2017 by Karl Johnson - No Comments

Review of Sonoff RF Bridge, Sonoff 4ch Pro, and Sonoff POW with Sonoff-Tasmota Firmware

Karl here. Today we are going to look at 2 new and one older Sonoff devices. Sonoff RF Bridge – $9.90 433MHz RF to WiFi Bridge Sonoff 4ch Pro – 4 Gang WiFi RF Smart Switch Sonoff POW – Wireless switch with power metering capabilities I spent very little time with the stock firmware on the device. I don’t like the fact that an Internet connection is needed, and I am not in control. As of the time of this writing I found the Ewelink was not configurable enough to meet my needs. There is one feature that is really nice that I could easily see keeping stock firmware. It is the Alexa Skill. It worked. I am also currently reviewing Vobot Smart Alarm Clock with Alexa integration and had no trouble controlling the Sonoff devices with Alexa. But unfortunately I am lazy and want everything automatic so I can’t […]

August 8, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Sonoff Wireless Switches & Light Bulbs Now Work With Google Home

ITEAD Studio Sonoff wireless switches can be controlled by voice commands using Amazon Alexa or Google Home, but so far, the latter was only possible by emulating Belkin Wemo switch in alternative open source firmwares such as ESPurna or Sonoff-Tasmota. For people who don’t want to update the firmware themselves, and instead prefer to use the stock firmware with eWelink mobile app, the manufacturer has now announced support for Google Home, on top of the already supported Amazon Alexa service. The instructions are explained in details in ITEAD’s blog post, but basically, you need to start Google Home app in your mobile, select your Google Home device, go to Home Control to add Devices, select Smart We Link, login to eWelink with your username/phone number and password, name the devices you want to control and you’re done. You should now be able to control devices or rooms with voice commands […]

July 22, 2017July 22, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Sonoff G1 AC Powered Smart Power Switch Works Over 2G GSM/GPRS

Today, I’ve searched for AC powered wireless switched similar to Sonoff devices, but with ESP32 instead in order to get WiFi and Bluetooth, since the latter is better to use with a battery powered buttons. I did find a DC powered board, but no AC powered ones yet. However, as I visited ITEAD website to check if they had anything of the sort, I discovered they had a new model called Sonoff G1, similar to Sonoff TH16, but instead of using WiFi, you can use 2G GSM/GPRS to control the switch remotely. Sonoff G1 specifications: Wireless Module – ST86 quad band GSM/GPRS module GSM/GPRS connectivity GSM850, EGSM900, DCS1800 and PCS1900 MHz support GPRS multi-slot class 10, GPRS mobile station class B 1.8V, 3V SIM card slot Transmit power: Class 4 (2W): GSM850, EGSM900; Class 1 (1W): DCS1800, PCS1900 Relay – Up to 16A (3000 Watts max) Terminals – 6 terminals […]

July 4, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments

Sonoff B1 is an $18 Hackable WiFi RGB LED E27 Light Bulb based on ESP8285 WiSoC

Earlier this year, I wrote about an ESP8266 based RGB LED “AI Light” lightbulb that was hacked to run ESPurna open source firmware. That’s all good, except some people tried to get one, and ended with a different hardware. So if you’d like something that’s more of a “sure thing”, ITEAD Studio has designed Sonoff B1 dimmable RGB LED E27 light bulb based on ESP8285 processor, and with a “4 pads” to allow for custom firmware flashing. Sonoff B1 hardware specifications: Typical Lumen Output – 600lm Beam Angle – 120 degrees typ. Color Temperature – 2800K-6500K & RGB full color Connectivity – WiFi 802.11 b/g/n @ 2.4GHz Power Supply – 90-260V AC 50/60Hz via E27 base Power Consumption – Light off: 0.5W Max; rated power: 6W Temperature Range – Operating: 0ºC~ 40ºC; storage: -20ºC~ 80ºC Operating Humidity – 5%-90% RH Sonoff B1 with stock firmware can be controlled using the […]

June 14, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments

$23 Sonoff 4CH Pro 4-Channels WiFi & RF Switch Ships in a DIN Rail Enclosure

ITEAD Studio’s Sonoff family is a collection of really useful and inexpensive home automation devices which have been featured multiple times on CNX Software with either to stock firmware and eWelink app, or open source firmware developed by the community. I’m using a Sonoff TH16 to control a water pump, a Sonoff Pow to monitor my office’s power consumption, and Karl used some Sonoff switches to control his lights at home. The company has now launched Sonoff 4CH Pro with 4 relays that can be controlled with buttons on the unit, WiFi, or RF remote controls, and comes in a DIN Rail enclosure. Sonoff 4CH Pro switch specifications: Connectivity – ESP8266 WiFi module and 433 MHz receiver Relays – 4x HUIKE 230V/10A relays (max 2200W per relays) with NC and NO connection Configuration – K5 & S6 switch for mode selection; K6 switch for time selection (0.5 to 4s) Misc […]

March 1, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 28 Comments

Some Sonoff TH16 and Sonoff POW Manufactured in December 2016 / January 2017 Are Being Recalled

Sonoff TH16 and Sonoff POW are inexpensive and useful wireless switches based on ESP8266 WiSoC. I’m using Sonoff TH16 to control a water pump, and Sonoff POW to monitor my office power consumption. I received mine in early November 2016, so they were probably manufactured sometimes in October. Does manufacturing month matter? Yes, it does, as ITEAD Studio has just issued a recall notice for both devices for a batch manufactured between December 2016 and January 2017. The problem is that while the switches come with a 16A relay, the trace were not thick enough, and if you connect a device that draws enough power, they would heat enough to make the case slowly melt. The problem is that ITEAD Studio asked the factory to add “sufficient tin to the wires to ensure low enough impedances”, but they did not quantify it clearly, and that’s why the product is not […]

February 27, 2017April 22, 2017 by Karl Johnson - 30 Comments

Karl’s Home Automation Project – Part 1: Home Assistant & YAML, MQTT, Sonoff, and Xmas Lights

Karl here. I am here to write about my home automation project. First thing I want to say is that I am very cost conscious and I don’t mind putting in extra effort into the setup of things to keep costs down. I did invest a lot of time and had to do a lot of reading to get my project going. It took while and I received a lot of groans from my wife while testing. I am still in the process of tweaking things. I started watching a series of videos on YouTube from Bruh Automation. He introduced me to Home Assistant. It got me really excited. He uses a Raspberry Pi as a server but I already had a Wintel Pro CX-W8 Smart TV Box which I use as a server. I run 3 Minecraft Servers, Emby Server, iSpyConnect DVR (2 IP Cameras), Unifi wifi controller, and […]

January 21, 2017January 21, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 13 Comments

How to use Sonoff POW with ESPurna Firmware and Domoticz Home Automation System

Sonoff POW is an ESP8266 based wireless switch with a power meter that comes pre-loaded with a closed-source firmware that works with eWelink app for Android or iOS by default. But we’ve also seen Sonoff POW, and other Sonoff wireless switches from the same family, can be flash with open source firmware supporting MQTT (Message Queuing Telemetry Transport) lightweight messaging protocol such as ESPurna, and I initially sent data from Sonoff POW to ThingSpeak via an MQTT broker (mosquitto) to draw some pretty charts. I did that with the switch connected to a lightbulb, but I’ve since installed Sonoff POW in my office to measure the room’s power consumption minus the ceiling light and aircon as shown below. Sonoff cable mechanism is really a pain for hard copper wires, as they are hard to push inside the mechanism, and something come out. I finally managed by it took longer than […]