Verizon Vtext Alternative to send notification alerts to phone

Configuration
1

Now that Verizon is eliminating their [email protected] ability (they are replacing it with RCS), I can no longer easily send an alert to my phone (via SMS) when some event occurs (like a water leak, low battery, etc.). Is there another “easy” way that I can send a text (or some easy notification) to my phone from Home Assistant?

Thanks.

2

If you install the HA app on your phone and login to your HA instance while you are at home, you can have automations send notifications to the device. The notifications will work even if you don’t have a subscription to the HA cloud service. I use it all the time. I’m sure there’s a better way to do this, but here’s how I do it.

I have this in my configurations.yaml file:

notify: !include notify.yaml

and then in notify.yaml:

- platform: group
  name: kyle
  services:
    - service: mobile_app_kyles_ipad
    - service: mobile_app_kyles_iphone_2

I use a group so both my devices get notifications, and if I get a new device I can just change it there rather than in all the automations.

Then I have an automation that listens for persistent notifications to be created:

alias: System Notify Forward
description: ""
mode: queued
triggers:
  - event_type: call_service
    event_data:
      domain: persistent_notification
      service: create
    trigger: event
conditions: []
actions:
  - target:
      entity_id:
        - input_number.notification_count
      device_id: []
      area_id: []
    data: {}
    action: input_number.increment
  - data:
      message: "{{trigger.event.data.service_data.message}}"
      title: "{{trigger.event.data.service_data.title}}"
      data:
        push:
          badge: "{{states('input_number.notification_count')}}"
    action: notify.kyle

And here’s an automation that will create a notification when my remote goes offline:

alias: System Notify on Remote Unavailable
description: ""
mode: single
triggers:
  - entity_id:
      - sensor.remote_lr_uptime
    to: unavailable
    trigger: state
conditions: []
actions:
  - data:
      title: Remote Offline
      message: The remote base station is offline
    action: persistent_notification.create

And then the last thing is to reset the notification counter and send a zero notification so the badge number gets purged if you clear the persistent notifications.

alias: System Notify Delete
description: ""
mode: queued
triggers:
  - event_type: call_service
    event_data:
      domain: persistent_notification
      service: dismiss
    id: dismiss_one
    trigger: event
  - event_type: call_service
    event_data:
      domain: persistent_notification
      service: dismiss_all
    id: dismiss_all
    trigger: event
conditions:
  - condition: numeric_state
    entity_id: input_number.notification_count
    above: "0"
actions:
  - if:
      - condition: trigger
        id:
          - dismiss_one
    then:
      - target:
          entity_id:
            - input_number.notification_count
          device_id: []
          area_id: []
        data: {}
        action: input_number.decrement
    else:
      - target:
          entity_id:
            - input_number.notification_count
          device_id: []
          area_id: []
        data:
          value: 0
        action: input_number.set_value
  - data:
      message: delete_alert
      data:
        push:
          badge: "{{states('input_number.notification_count')}}"
    action: notify.kyle
3

I send SMS messages using the Llamalab Automate integration.

I use it to send a notification to one of my Android wall tablets, which has a SIM card. The Llamalab Automate app on the tablet converts the notification into a SMS message and sends it.

If you don’t mind paying for it, there are services like ClickSend, which also has an integration.

4

I switched over to Telegram from SMS a while back when the telco started enforcing registration rules for sending SMS messages (to reduce spam).

Telegram has been solid and problem free. The telegram integration also allows you to send commands back to HA (I haven’t implemented that yet), but essentially allows you to run an automation in response to a specific command (like “turn the heat up”)