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I was providing a smart home alternative to your example of having to use an app to turn something on and off. I don't think you're going to find a smart switch
by jaywalk 5y ago
I was providing a smart home alternative to your example of having to use an app to turn something on and off. I don't think you're going to find a smart switch, Z-wave or not, for £1.99
- rwmj 5y agoSure. I'm not opposed to people spending large amounts of money on smart devices, I just don't choose to do it myself because in all honesty I don't understand what the point is.
- HeyLaughingBoy 5y agoNeither do I. At my first job, I worked for a company that built (among other things) X-10 powerline-control interfaces that would let your PC do the same thing: switch on lights/fans, etc. As far as I could tell, the only people buying that stuff were hobbyists with a lot of disposable income. Part of my duties was customer support and I can't recall a single instance of anyone doing it for any reason that didn't boil down to "it's cool." Not making judgements, but I really don't see what the big deal is with getting up to turn on a light, and I live in a pretty big house.
- mavhc 5y agoConnect a switch to a £1 esp32, now it's smart
- zrail 5y agoMaking that arrangement safe probably costs more than £1.
- mavhc 5y agoThe fact we're sending 240V AC around inside the walls for no reason is a whole other question. But an optocoupler relay is also about £1, so there's that.
- Chris2048 5y agostill need to power the esp so you'd maybe need mains AC-DC PSU.
- mavhc 5y agoI put ethernet everywhere to use PoE, 48V DC is much better suited for most things in your house these days
- Chris2048 5y agoI agree, and power negotiation is great. But things that can use it seem to be expensive. I checked, the chips are fairly cheap; but all the PoE stuff I might use aren't "one per light socket" prices. Plus I'd still like a decent mains relay board that is appropriate to put in a wall - the Shellys' are a good form for this, but I cannot see a similar wired solution (although some Sonos devices get close).
- mavhc 5y agohttps://www.olimex.com/Products/IoT/ESP32/ESP32-POE/open-source-hardware https://www.olimex.com/Products/IoT/ESP32/ESP32-POE/open-sou... is probably the best option
- mavhc 5y agoAlthough I ended up buying Lilygo ESP32 POE from China because Olimex and Brexit don't mix
- Chris2048 5y agoHmm, I'm in the EU and still get hit with customs charges from Chinese items e.g. AliExpress stuff. Not sure if there would be British-made equivalent. But I'd sooner order from a company that is liable e.g. if the IoT device burns down my house.