Thanks! I’ll check it out and read through the instructions. I’m still fairly green and a bit intimidated by the complexity of some of these integrations. But I’ll get there!
1 Like
I restarted HA and the problem was still there. So I followed the instructions to just link the integration back with the smart life account (scanning the QR code, etc).
Everything is back to normal! At least for now.
2 Likes
I got the M5 stack Atom Lite! I was a bit confused on the install cause there are multiple ways to get ESPHome installed, but then I found this ESP BLE Proxy Video.
I followed the install around the 20:00 mark, and it was SUPER easy!
Then….voila, all 40+ SwitchBot curtain, sensors, and remotes just appeared in the integrations page!!! I set up all the names, areas, etc, and now I have all I need to star my automations!
I got four more arriving today! This little thing is amazing, and works perfect! If anyone is looking for a proxy, this little M5 Stack worked great and super easy for beginners! I know the little ESP32 thingies are cheaper but they look very intimidating to me. I don’t think I’m ready for that. This comes with its little case and can be hidden or exposed without messing with the look of my house.
Then I bought these little angled adapters, and is my little set up!
Thank you for the suggest @Didgeridrew!!
3 Likes
1 Like
Awesome. Training wheels are off at this point.
They grow up so fast. <Sobs>. I’m proud.
Just so you know, the cheapest thing that’s similar to what’s under the hood of your M5Stack could be the “ ESP32-C3 Super Mini” - if you search that on AliExpress, you should find some options that are $2-3 per unit. Maybe get a handful of those ordered, they’ll arrive in a few weeks, and you’ll have them on hand if you need even more units?
But I understand your desire for the known quantity in a case.
The video you linked - digiBlur is a great resource.
1 Like
Thanks, Ray — I seriously couldn’t have done it without your help! 
Hopefully I can pay it forward soon and help out another hopeless soul on their HA journey 
I’m finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel — and all the possibilities! Home Assistant is incredible (even if a bit intimidating at first). But hey, I’m nothing if not stubborn, and this little green giant wasn’t going to get the best of me! 
2 Likes
Hello everyone!
Just wanted to share a progress update and a big thank you to everyone who’s helped me along the way! A couple of weeks ago, I was feeling lost and overwhelmed, but this group made me feel welcome and understood.
Special thanks to @raykholo, this man had the patience of Job, guiding me one step at a time. I truly couldn’t have made this much progress in just a couple of weeks without his help!
Progress so far:
• Narrowed my focus to the integrations that really matter to me.
• Completed 17 out of 20 integrations.
• Connected 141 out of 159 devices. 
I’ve also built this sections dashboard with Mushroom cards—and I LOVE it! I can’t take all the credit, though… it took about 20 hours of back-and-forth with ChatGPT, but we nailed it (I think!).
By the way, ChatGPT has been an amazing resource for non-techy folks like me—we’re basically best buds. If you’re reading this and feel how I did at the start, lean on ChatGPT: tell it what you want to do and it’ll walk you through step by step. And to quote @raykholo: take small bites, one step at a time, and celebrate each win!
This is my one-month update: two weeks of chaos, huge help from the community, and two weeks of steady progress!
4 Likes
@Jellys looks great! I was wondering recently how things were going for you, so please do keep the updates coming!
Have you considered something like a cheap tablet (Amazon Fire 7" Like New is $50 now, and I bought things like this on sale around BF/ Winter Holidays for around that price). Or if you have some old tablets laying around that your family is no longer using, you can start playing with one of those.
Then you can put these on your walls, perhaps near your entrance door(s) showing your main status as in “Main Commands” and have an “I’m leaving” button that will do various things (lights off? AC change temp? arm home in 5 min?).
If you are to do this (meaning if you purchase a Fire tablet), I suggest the following pointers:
-
Get one now to play, wait until the winter holiday sales to get more. The 7" I link above is more than sufficient to render a button dashboard like you have shown.
-
Uncheck this box:
Link device to your Amazon account to simplify setup.It’s important.
-
It’s ok to get the cheaper version that comes with ads.
-
Expect to use fire toolbox to add certain capabilities to the tablet and set it up for the job ahead.
-
Then, side load the WallPanel android app onto the Fire tablet, and this will be your “permanent web browser” that shows a specific page of your HA Dashboard that you make for just that tablet. Or it can just show your regular dashboard page if you prefer. “Fully Kiosk Browser” is another popular option but that involves a cost per each device, while WallPanel is free, works well for me, and I use it on multiple devices.
-
Lastly (this is more advanced but not necessary), you can use MQTT and or HTTP commands to have HA keep an eye on the WallPanel instance and provide sensors/ controls for the tablet: things like whether the screen is on/off, what the battery charge level is… You might want to automate turning the screen off during the hours when everyone is asleep. Not necessary. Just something that WallPanel permits.
In other news, and perhaps this crosses into me being a bad influence and giving you ideas for things you “totally don’t need to do”
I’ve got an ESP32 in most rooms of my house now, acting as a Bluetooth (BLE) tracker / proxy, and am using Bermuda to track my phone and watch to get a pretty darn good idea of where I am around the house. I might later be able to make cool automations based around my position in the house. I haven’t even tuned Bermuda yet or mounted the ESP32 devices in their optimal places, and it already works quite well.
Lastly, I am glad Mushroom cards are working well for you. I gave it a quick shot by having it make me a dashboard automatically, and the results are certainly cool, and have some nice elements, but also took up too much space for my taste.
I’ve started building a dashboard using bubble cards, to put a lot of information and controls into a very small amount of space. Nowhere near done yet, but imagine being able to put the major aspects of your home on a single phone screen worth of space with no scrolling. (Like what HA’s “Areas” Dashboard currently looks like and tries to do, but with way more info/ controls available on each row that represents a room - not just a lights on/ off toggle.)
My work in progress example:
My goal is that each room will have one “row” like that with its lights, temp/ humidity, and other basics. The Bedroom and Office (the next row in solid blue) are unique as they have additional things like dedicated AC with mini split units or extra lights hence the “too tight and not everything fits” but all the other regular rooms should be just right.
I think this is amazing for a mobile user interface (read: quick glance on your phone), it’s possible that for things like a larger computer screen or the wall panels, other interfaces may be better.
Anyways, keep up the good work, please continue to keep us updated, and let us know if we can be of more assistance.
1 Like