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I got Sonoff wall switches wall switches a while back. But apparently someone thought it was a good idea to put Blue LEDs in them which glows all the time, even

I got Sonoff wall switches wall switches a while back. But apparently someone thought it was a good idea to put Blue LEDs in them which glows all the time, even when the lights are off (albeit more dimly), with no way to disable it. Plus a blue Wi-Fi status LED, which you can turn off, but it will blink all the time anyway if it can't access the internet (which I've blocked it from, since a light switch has no damn business doing that). I ended up covering it in electrical tape (had to cover the whole thing, since the white plastic would spread the light. In hindsight, it would have been better to put a Shelly puck behind the normal switch. Would have let me keep physical buttons too, instead of the annoying touch buttons.

lionkor 3y ago
Do these really provide any value to you? I've found normal switches, with no light, no internet, no microcontroller, and no touch, to just work fine
- LinAGKar 3y ago
  I can turn them on/off remotely, plus I've got some lights automatically tied to sunrise/sunset. And I've got a whole bunch of lights which I can turn off all together when going to bed.
  - Sohcahtoa82 3y ago
    > I can turn them on/off remotely I'm 41 years old and I've never in my life wished for the ability to turn a light on/off remotely. When do you use this? > plus I've got some lights automatically tied to sunrise/sunset Other than a porch light, what lights would you want to turn on/off at sunrise/sunset? > And I've got a whole bunch of lights which I can turn off all together when going to bed. Every room in my house has a light switch located at the entrance. I just flip the switch off as I'm passing it. Do you just live in a house with bizarre locations for the light switches?
    - Gud 3y ago
      I have IKEA Trådfri lights and they’re great. They’re regular bulbs except you can control them from your phone/home assistant. They use the zigbee protocol (iirc). It’s nice when you forget a light in bed, but the real killer feature is the dimming and change of color.
      - Sohcahtoa82 3y ago
        Do you live in a massive house with 10 rooms or something? Do you commonly leave lights on in rooms you're not in and won't pass by on your way to bed? Dimming and coloring might be cool, I guess. Any light that I'd want a dimmer on already has a dimmer, though. I dunno. In the classic "Tech Enthusiast vs Engineer" meme [0], I lean towards the Engineer with a hint of Security tech. The only "smart" appliance I have is my thermostat, and even that's a rather basic Honeywell, not a fancy Nest. Technically, my clothes washer and TV are "smart", but I have never, and will never, connect them to my WiFi. [0] https://michaelblume.tumblr.com/post/169525456166/tech-enthusiasts-everything-in-my-house-is-wired https://michaelblume.tumblr.com/post/169525456166/tech-enthu...
        Gud 3y ago
        Nope I don't. I have tiny one bedroom apartment. Still, it's nice to be able to dim the light, watch a movie and later on right before sleep, turn them off without the need to get up. It's very convenient and works well. They're smart enough, but dumb enough to not be annoying. I often find that the act of getting out of bed and turning the lights of makes it harder to fall asleep. I am also skeptical to so called smart appliances and lean towards the paranoid.

lionkor 3y ago

Do these really provide any value to you? I've found normal switches, with no light, no internet, no microcontroller, and no touch, to just work fine

LinAGKar 3y ago
I can turn them on/off remotely, plus I've got some lights automatically tied to sunrise/sunset. And I've got a whole bunch of lights which I can turn off all together when going to bed.
- Sohcahtoa82 3y ago
  > I can turn them on/off remotely I'm 41 years old and I've never in my life wished for the ability to turn a light on/off remotely. When do you use this? > plus I've got some lights automatically tied to sunrise/sunset Other than a porch light, what lights would you want to turn on/off at sunrise/sunset? > And I've got a whole bunch of lights which I can turn off all together when going to bed. Every room in my house has a light switch located at the entrance. I just flip the switch off as I'm passing it. Do you just live in a house with bizarre locations for the light switches?
  - Gud 3y ago
    I have IKEA Trådfri lights and they’re great. They’re regular bulbs except you can control them from your phone/home assistant. They use the zigbee protocol (iirc). It’s nice when you forget a light in bed, but the real killer feature is the dimming and change of color.
    - Sohcahtoa82 3y ago
      Do you live in a massive house with 10 rooms or something? Do you commonly leave lights on in rooms you're not in and won't pass by on your way to bed? Dimming and coloring might be cool, I guess. Any light that I'd want a dimmer on already has a dimmer, though. I dunno. In the classic "Tech Enthusiast vs Engineer" meme [0], I lean towards the Engineer with a hint of Security tech. The only "smart" appliance I have is my thermostat, and even that's a rather basic Honeywell, not a fancy Nest. Technically, my clothes washer and TV are "smart", but I have never, and will never, connect them to my WiFi. [0] https://michaelblume.tumblr.com/post/169525456166/tech-enthusiasts-everything-in-my-house-is-wired https://michaelblume.tumblr.com/post/169525456166/tech-enthu...
      - Gud 3y ago
        Nope I don't. I have tiny one bedroom apartment. Still, it's nice to be able to dim the light, watch a movie and later on right before sleep, turn them off without the need to get up. It's very convenient and works well. They're smart enough, but dumb enough to not be annoying. I often find that the act of getting out of bed and turning the lights of makes it harder to fall asleep. I am also skeptical to so called smart appliances and lean towards the paranoid.