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Smart devices and their hubs (lemmy.zip)

submitted 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) by confuser@lemmy.zip to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

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I keep noticing that if I want a smart device, they often require you to have a hub for them.

But is there any ways in which we don't need to get the hub if we can set up something on a esp32?

Or maybe I guess I need to know the actual purpose of what the hubs are for, for instance we have a house lock with a hub, I am about to receive some automated blinds with a hub, my bedroom lights do not have a hub (one light is a wled light and the other is a store ought ceiling light), my humidifier does not have a hub.

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[–] Bldck@beehaw.org 8 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Typically for devices that require a hub, it’s because they do not have WiFi chips. Often manufacturers leave off WiFi chips because the power draw is too high for the batteries, but there are other reasons too.

The hub act as a bridge between whatever local networking protocol is used (zigbee, z-wave, BLE) and the LAN. For example, a lightbulb may use z wave to talk to a hub, the hub uses Ethernet/wifi to connect to the LAN, the LAN connects to the WAN.

In some cases, you can setup a system that controls everything locally without needing an internet connection at all. This is often preferred in the home automation space by users who want to ensure reliable access to devices.

Some centralized hubs can talk directly to many brands of devices without needing many proprietary hubs, but they tend to be expensive or require a licensed dealer to install.

For a DIY option, look into Home Assistant running on a raspberry pi

[–] bob_lemon@feddit.org 5 points 1 week ago (1 children)

+1 for Home Assistant

I have it running on a Pi 5 (although a Pi 4 is more then enough), with a 15€ USB ZigBee antenna from AliExpress (to connect IKEA devices).

The best thing about it is that it seamlessly integrates all devices with each other, so you can use cheap ZigBee buttons to control your Philipps Hue lightbulbs, for example.

[–] BCsven@lemmy.ca 3 points 1 week ago

My HA runs on a Pi2. It said it wasn't supported but it works great