I’m excited to share a project I’ve been working on: Home Assistant Desktop.
While browsers are great, I wanted a dedicated, premium experience for your PC/Mac that feels like a native app, not just a web wrapper.
Key Features
Stunning Glassmorphism UI: A custom, futuristic window frame that blends perfectly with modern desktops.
Multi-Platform: Native apps for Windows (.exe), macOS (.dmg), and Linux (.deb/.rpm).
System Tray & JumpList:
Minimizes to tray for instant access.
Right-click taskbar actions (Quit, Reload).
Global Shortcut: Toggle the dashboard instantly with Ctrl + Alt + H (customizable).
PC Sensors Integration: Automatically reports your computer’s Memory Usage, Uptime, and Status back to Home Assistant! (Requires Long-Lived Access Token).
Auto-Updates: You’ll always be on the latest version automatically.
Secure: Context Isolation and Permission handling (Mic/Camera support for Assist).
Great question! While a PWA (Install as App) is essentially a borderless browser tab, Home Assistant Desktop offers deeper OS integration that browsers can’t reach:
System Sensors: It reports your PC’s live data (RAM usage, Uptime, CPU status) back to Home Assistant for automation (e.g., turn off office lights when the PC goes to sleep).
Global Hotkeys: You can toggle your dashboard with a shortcut (Ctrl+Alt+H) even while using other apps or gaming.
System Tray & JumpList: It lives in your taskbar/tray for instant access, even when the window is closed.
Performance: It’s a dedicated environment that doesn’t share resources or “tab sleeping” logic with your main browser.
Basically, a PWA is a viewer , but this app makes your PC a participant in your smart home!
Huge thanks for the feedback! I’ve just pushed a significant update to address your concerns:
Notifications & Popups (Cameras)
Notifications: Fully supported! The app natively handles Home Assistant notification requests and displays them using your OS’s notification system.
Popups & Cameras: I’ve improved window handling. Internal Home Assistant links (like camera feeds or sub-dashboards) now open in native standalone windows instead of your default browser. This makes multitasking and security monitoring much easier.
Control over Updates
Auto-Updates: I’ve added a toggle in the Preferences menu (Right-click Tray Icon > Preferences) to disable Auto-Updates. You now have full control over when you want to update.
The README has been completely overhauled with a new FAQ section and an interactive feature explorer. Check it out for more details!
Support the Project
If you find this tool useful, feel free to support its development: Buy Me A Coffee
Key Features
Stunning Glassmorphism UI: A custom, futuristic window frame that blends perfectly with modern desktops.
Multi-Platform: Native apps for Windows (.exe), macOS (.dmg), and Linux (.deb/.rpm).
System Tray & JumpList:
Global Shortcut: Toggle the dashboard instantly with 
PC Sensors Integration: Automatically reports your computer’s Memory Usage, Uptime, and Status back to Home Assistant! (Requires Long-Lived Access Token).
Auto-Updates: You’ll always be on the latest version automatically.
Secure: Context Isolation and Permission handling (Mic/Camera support for Assist).
Download
Download Latest Version
Setup
Open Source
Notifications & Popups (Cameras)
Support the Project