Looking at this, it only works on IR. I think my fan/light uses the 433MHz frequency or some other radio as it is definitely not IR.
Would this Broadlink RM4 Pro or this BOND Bridge WiFi RF Controller work for what I need and do they integrate with Home Assistant?
There is also a bond bridge I have not used either myself, have only been looking into it a little
I was just editing my post with that same question.
Rm4 pro does ir and Rf. You could potentially have it near your TV for visual IR range and still be in Rf range for your fans…
It has a HA integration. Although it used to be abit messy to add it. You had to partially add it via the app, then add it to HA. Not sure if that is still true.
Edit: also make sure you get the 433 version, should be able to get it with Aus plug too.
I’ve used the brilliants pruchased from Officeworks, that were then flashed to tasmota. They were probably my go to smart plugs until they could no longer be flashed OTA. I have had about a 50% failure rate after 12 months though - the others have now been going for two years without issues.
I’ve also been using the TP-Link KASA KP115’s, which are controlled locally (although does need cloud setup these days), but no longer appear to be available at Bunnings.
For the Christmas lights, I just bought a coupld of TP-Link Tapo P110’s which have power monitoring. They need a separate app to the KASA’s to setup (seriously TP-Link?) and there is a custom integration for local control which is handy. They seem to be pretty good build quality, a decent price (I paid $21 for them, but they’re now $24) and you can get two side by side in the same outlet.
The Broadlink RM pro4 can learn and send RF but not continuously listen (say you had some RF buttons or door sensors etc). I’ve found them able to learn a wide range of codes though.
Sonoff RF Bridge can learn/send/listen but I found it could not learn the codes I needed (I used the ESPHome hardware hack. Things may have changed.
I actually have and used both for a while.
But I recently moved from the Sonoff as a listener and on to a DIY approach (ESPHome, ESP32, RF transceiver. I’m very happy with that. Haven’t had to learn codes with it yet though…
I have lots of these little diy RF remotes scattered around the place. Sometimes nothing beats a nearby pushbutton for convenience I reckon.
I was tempted by the KASAs as they seem to be getting good feedback.
But I decided I really wanted ESPHome running on them so went with the uncertified Athoms.
I’m not sure what flexibility you get with the KASA, but being able to implement “auto off after x minutes” locally on the device (if network fails etc) has become an important feature for me, which ESPHOME can do. Any clue if KASA has some local device options like that?
Just getting started into home automation, I was wondering what Australian online site is certified in selling WIFI Power switches & Light switches? I’d like to add the following pretty soon to my house to control switches via WIFI such as my roller blind shutters and lights.
Shelly 2.5 for my roller shutters and for my lights Shelly D2 Wi-Fi Dimmer. Is the Shelly brand certified to be sold/installed in Australia?
I’m also searching for a smart plug that can monitor my appliance energy usage by the hour (if possible) I’ve only come across daily ones and weekly… Any particular brand/smart plug that can offer this info (prefer if it’s certified for use in Australia)
Thanks in advance
Welcome @Argonauts.
I know this is a massive thread and it can be hard to locate info, but if you search the thread with a few keywords you will find lots of info on your topics.
Then I’m sure people will be happy to help with specifics…
Yes most Shelly items are certified for Aus (go to this site https://equipment.erac.gov.au/Public/ and in the “Applicant” field, type “Allterco” Shelly’s parent company), you’ll get this unhelpful list, you need to click on each link to discover the model name
e.g.the 4th one in the list is the Shelly Plus 2PM
The “Plus 2PM” recently (June-2022) became certified. It’s the ESP32 version of the 2.5 with bluetooth and a much better web UI. Have a look at:
SHELLY Wi-Fi Australia - SmartHome and
WIFI Home Automation Solutions Australia - Smart Wireless Home Products – tagged "Shelly"
Both the 2.5PM and the new Plus 2PM do energy monitoring.
For energy monitoring plugs, I’ve had success with the TP-Link “Kasa” type, scroll up a few posts to see my recent comments on this.
Good luck.
Using HA KASA SMART integration, my KP115 plugs do not have this feature.
But my Arlec PC191HA ones from Bunnings running Tuya have dp_id 9 “countdown_1” which toggles the switch after 0-86400 seconds.
Both fit nicely side by side and have easily accessible manual switches … but I’m planning to try an Athom Zigbee next time I need to buy a switch
I pulled apart 3 dead Brilliant Smart plugs to see if I could see anything exciting. But couldn’t. Not that I’d know what to look for other than something obvious.
Interestingly the one in the left is an earlier model but external labelling is identical. I think I recall people mentioning that at an earlier point.
What can we learn from this? Probably nothing;)
They popped apart easy enough with a pry-tool.
They all had TYWE2S chips and were Tasmotized then ESPHomed…
The one I popped open had a dead ESP module. It was getting a stable 3.3v but doing nothing. I could have replaced it but have had enough. Moving on.
Do you know if increased flash write cycles could be the cause of that kind of thing?
I seem to recall some mention of it a while back.
Still getting my head around what triggers a write and how it applies to esp8266 & esp32
Any Athom Smartplug users feel free to drop your lifetimes over here as they come in…
There’s some early indications of potential issues.
I’ll leave this thread clean for certified topics;)
That is mighty disappointing as Mercator isn’t the cheapest of the lot either!
I think i’ll be looking for a new dimmer mech , now the search for a no neutral dimmer is gonna be fun 
Not sure about the dimmer mech, but I know Shelly make a no-neutral dimmer relay Shelly Dimmer2 - All Products - Products - Shelly
Curious if anyone has looked into smart (major) appliances that can be integrated with HA?? When i’ve looked previously, a lot of the smart(er) models have not been released in australia.
While I have traditonally been against smart appliances (couldnt see the point), I have been working on optimising my energy use in the house (primarily by hunting down phantom power). But doing so has got me thinking my other appliances like the dishawasher, washing machine, and tuble dryer; where it would be nice if I could control when they start their respective cycles. That way we could load it up, mark it as ready to run, and when there was spare solar power available start the cycle going.
My current dishwasher could probably be rigged with a couple of switchbots for the cheap solution, but my washing machine requires a dial to be turned to set the correct cycle.
what would work with mine is I could turn the dial ready to go but use a smart switch to isolate power and then turn it on when I wanted….
Didn’t go with smart white goods. Have had to replace the fridge, dryer and washer this year though.
Fridge… It’s gonna fridge anyway. Did manage to drop abit of consumption there for a larger fridge compared to the old one. Went from 1.6kwh to closer to 1.2kwh per day. (it’s actually a touch louder than the old one… Quiet, but we never heard the old one.)
Dryer, (not smart) went from an old vented resistance style to a heatpump, little bigger. Don’t actually track the individual power on that, overall usage seems about the same, but the dryer gets used more. (also takes like 3.5hrs…) it does delay start by 1hr increment and also sense dry for early stopping. (keeps the laundry(room) dry unlike the vented one)
Washer, replaced a smaller older front loader, the carbon contactors on the motor had worn right out, it was going to be 1/3rd of the price of a new washer to replace the rods without labour $$s. So new inverter washer. Quick wash is 16mins, normal wash is 1hour, eco wash is 5 hours. I have no idea how that makes sense. Can’t tell you if the 5hr cycle actually saves any power. The 16 min or 1hr cycles are fine. Also has delayed start by 1hr increments.
We have solar, our peak is 3pm to 9pm. Mostly just try not to run stuff at peak.
