ITEAD has sent us a Sonoff iHost Smart Home Hub for review, and this device seems to be what many SONOFF fans have been waiting for, especially in terms of local control. meaning it can work without an Internet connection. SONOFF is known for its durable devices and good interoperability, but they are still catching up with other companies in terms of local control. Finally, the iHost Smart Home Hub fills the gap. In addition to local control, it also comes with privacy features as data stay local. SONOFF plans to expand its ecosystem by including devices from other brands compliant with standards such as Zigbee 3.0. Furthermore, the iHost Smart Home Hub is more like a platform than just a product, as it has add-ons to add more capability over time. In the future, it can be expanded to support the new “Matter” standard, similar to Home Assistant. The […]
SONOFF TX Ultimate “T5” smart touch wall switch support gestures, custom covers
SONOFF TX Ultimate smart touch wall switch, also known as the SONOFF T5, is another wireless switch from the company with up to 3 gangs, RGB color edge lights around the 86x86mm switch, as well as support for gestures and custom covers. Gestures like swipe left or right are possible because the full area of the SONOFF T5 switch acts as a touch sensor, and the RGB LEDs around the device enable ambient lights in the room at night. The switch can also provide haptic feedback to the user during use with a built-in speaker and vibration motor. SONOFF TX Ultimate specifications: Model numbers – T5-1C-86, T5-2C-86, T5-3C-86 depending on the number of buttons Wireless – 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi Input and Output power 1-gang: 100-240V~50/60 Hz up to 5A 2-gang: 100-240V~50/60Hz up to 10A (5A per gang max) 3-gang: 100-240V-50/60 Hz up to 15A (5A per gang max) Dimensions – […]
SONOFF MINIR4 review – A Tiny WiFi Smart Switch tested with eWelink app/web, and R5 controller
In this post, we’ll review the SONOFF Mini Extreme, also known as MINIR4, WiFi smart switch based on ESP32 wireless MCU by installing it into a wall-mounted light switch box and controlling it with both the eWelink mobile app for Android and the SONOFF R5 scene controller. SONOFF MINIR4 Installation We’ve already gone through the specifications, unboxing, and teardown in the announcement, so I’ll get straight to the installation part. Note this review was done with a light switch “box” (about 11x6cm) in Thailand, so your mileage may vary. The first challenge is that contrary to the similarly-sized SONOFF ZBMINI Extreme Zigbee switch, the MINIR4 WiFi switch requires a neutral cable, and most lights in Thailand are wired without a neutral wire, so I had to get the neutral wire from the outlet switch box underneath. When I call those “boxes” there are really holes in the wall here… Wiring […]
Review of SONOFF ZBCurtain Zigbee Smart Curtain Motor
Recently, Sonoff has released a new Zigbee product – called ZBCurtain – that turns your ordinary curtains into smart curtains. With this product, you can experience new benefits when using your curtains, such as automatic opening/closing, remote control through your mobile device, or setting up advanced automation to control your curtains based on factors such as temperature, humidity, or even using input from the other sensors. These smart capabilities provide benefits for your home or workplace, such as increased safety, energy savings, and convenience. The Sonoff Zigbee Curtain Motor (or ZBCurtain for shorts) can be integrated with your existing ordinary curtains, transforming them into smart curtains that can be controlled remotely via your smartphone, your voice commands, or even from a traditional remote controller. ZBCurtain Unboxing Within the package, we can find a wireless remote control, main motor units with a 3.5-meter long cable, and mounting brackets to attach the […]
SONOFF iHost Smart Home Hub enables local control of SONOFF, Tasmota, Matter home automation devices
SONOFF iHost is a Smart Home Hub that enables local control of SONOFF smart switches, lightbulbs, Zigbee sensors, and so on without having to require a connection to the cloud (e.g. eWelink). Future software upgrades will also add more devices such as the ones flashed with Tasmota firmware and any device compatible with the Matter IoT protocol. The gateway is based on either a Rockchip RV1109 SoC with 2GB RAM or a Rockchip RV1126 with 4GB RAM and offers 10/100M Ethernet, WiFi, Bluetooth LE, and Zigbee 3.0 connectivity, as well as a USB 2.0 port to allow for more connectivity. SONFF iHost Smart Home Hub specifications: SoC and Memory Rockchip RV1109 dual-core Arm Cortex-A7 @ 1.5 GHz with RISC-V MCU @ 400 MHz, 2D graphics engine, 1.2 TOPS NPU, 5MP H.264 and H.265 hardware video decoder and encoder, and 2GB DDR4 Rockchip RV1126 quad-core Arm Cortex-A7 @ 1.5 GHz with […]
ZBMINI Extreme Zigbee smart switch review with Home Assistant
SONOFF has rolled out smart switches in the market for years, and for each iteration, they make their devices smaller and more capable. The latest ZBMINI Extreme Zigbee Smart Switch or ZBMINIL2 or ZBMINI Extreme for shorts is what we will review today. Take note that there are both Zigbee and Wifi versions that come with the same form factor, we will walk through the Zigbee version first and we will review the WiFi version – SONOFF MINI Extreme (MINIR4) – later on. The ZBMINI Extreme is designed to work without a Neutral (N) line. Those who have difficulty wiring the N line to the switch will definitely love this. In many locations, the Neutral (N) line is not wired and would require a lot of work and expenses for cabling. SONOFF ZBMINI Extreme eases that challenge since there’s no need for the Neutral wire at all. This review will […]
SONOFF MINI Extreme (MINIR4) ESP32 WiFi smart switch can fit into most gang boxes
SONOFF MINI Extreme (aka MINIR4) is a ridiculously small WiFi smart switch based on ESP32 wireless microcontroller and designed to be connected to a load such as a light bulb and a wall switch that can be a momentary switch, a door exit switch, an SPDT switch, a latching switch, or even dry contact sensors. The tiny form factor (39.5×33 x16.8mm) enables the WiFi smart switch to fit into various boxes, even the smaller European gang boxes. Just like other SONOFF home automation devices, the MINIR4 works with eWelink mobile app, but it also implements some new interesting features such as the ‘Detach Relay’ mode. SONOFF MINI Extreme (MINIR4) specifications: MCU – Espressif Systems ESP32 dual-core wireless microcontroller Connectivity 2.4 GHz WiFi 4 Bluetooth LE used for pairing Input – 100-240V ~ 50/60Hz 10A Max Output – 100-240V ~ 50/60Hz 10A Max (resistive load) Dimensions – 39.5 x 33 x […]
SONOFF ZBMINI Extreme tiny Zigbee smart switch does not require a neutral wire
SONOFF ZBMINI Extreme (aka ZBMINI-L2) is an ultra-compact Zigbee smart switch that can control home appliances and lights without a neutral wire and can fit into almost any mounting box. The tiny wireless switch can fit into the smallest EU-type/86-type/120-type mounting box, and works with gateways supporting the Zigbee 3.0 protocol such as ZBBridge Pro, NSPanel Pro, SmartThings Hub, Amazon Alexa Echo speaker, and so on. It also supports external switches, voice control,eWelink app control, and other features. SONOFF ZBMINI Extreme (ZBMINI-L2) specifications: MCU – Silicon Labs EFR32MG22 Arm Cortex-M33 @ 76.8 MHz Zigbee microcontroller with up to 512 kB flash, up to 32 kB RAM Connectivity – Zigbee 3.0 Input – 100-240V ~ 50/60Hz 6A Max Output – 100-240V ~ 50/60Hz 6A Max Dimensions – 39.5 x 32 x 18.4mm Casing material – PC V0 As mentioned in the introduction, the SONOFF ZBMINI-L2 does not need a neutral wire […]