Following on from my last article on new Meross devices (MS120 and MS700) here are the other two devices that arrived for me this week. Meross MS220 Smart Multi-function Door Sensor The MS220 is a neat if large door sensor but not like any door sensor I’ve seen to date.…
MS120 Thermometer and MS700 Multi-Function Button
Several new Meross devices landed on my desk today – here are two of them – firstly the Meross MS120 Smart Multi-Function Hygrometer and Thermometer. Before you start thinking… no I don’t take commission and I’m not in any scheme – people just send me stuff to play with –…
WiFi + BLE + BT Scanner using a CYD
By now you should maybe be aware of the CYD – or actually CYDs as there are several variations. Cheap Yellow Display. They range in size and capability… I only have one and it is down at the lower end… You can see the device in the image above…. yes,…
Oukitel P2001E + the Rubbish WONDERFREE – A Solution
This article is generally about the Horrendous Oukitel P2001E and it’s DIRE app WONDERFREE. But Note the HA image above and read the updates and comments at the end… read about a Home Assistant solution, Grid Tie Invertors and more… I’m using the Oukitel P2001E Lithium 2KW battery system and…
Aqara Thread/matter/Zigbee Multi-State Sensor
After a less than exciting start in which I took the new P100 out of the box and remove the protective strip that saved the battery during shipping, I started looking at the instructions for this new device, which mentions “Aqara hub required” or “built on Thread requires a router.”…
The Tiny New Sonoff Mini One Matter-enabled Smart Switch
Not that much I can say about this one at first glance – in reality the new Mini-1GS unit works locally with Sonoff’s OpenEdge – it LOOKS very similar to other current-generation Sonoff switches. This is a gen 5 device with one output and an input switch. It operates via…
A “Simple” Terminal with ESP32 and ST7789v Display
This is something of an experiment with sentimental value. Late last century I worked in a business partnership and my first one-man-developed project started off as a text terminal more for interest than anything else initially. At the time all I had to work with was the Z80 processor and…
Guition 4-inch ESP32-S3 screen + Tessera for HA
I’ve been experimenting with the Guition ESP32-S3-4848S040, a 4-inch 480 × 480 capacitive touchscreen based on the ESP32-S3, with 16 MB flash and 8 MB PSRAM with a view to using it as a display for Home Assistant (HA). I bought the board from AliExpress. It can become a surprisingly…
Seeed Mini-Display XIAO-nRF52840-Plus Boards
I’m going to touch VERY briefly on two boards I just picked up from Seeed Studio. Very briefly because I thought they’d be running on ESP32 chips – but they aren’t – I guess the giveaway is in the name (nRF52840) Here they are, the demos are very pretty indeed…
Seeed Studio XIAO ESP32-C5 – first look
A small package of Seeed XIAO ESP32 boards has arrived here in sunny Galera for me, and the first thing that caught my eye was the provision for a battery and an external RF antenna. In case anyone is wondering, XIAO is pronounced “SHYOW” or near enough. This is a…
New goodies from Wrap-it-Solutions
Ok, Before anyone says anything, I received a package in the post this morning that I’ve been waiting for for quite some time from Wrap-it-Solutions. No, they’re not sponsoring this – they just sent me the kit – no conditions. DHL Gripe Jump straight to “The gear…” if you don’t…
The All-New Sonoff E-Ink Zigbee Temperature Humidity Sensor
A quick blog to go along with the video I’ve made on the new Sonoff SNZB-02UL sensor – released September 24, 2026. As I’ll be on the road, here it is a few hours early (depending where you live of course). Please watch the video which gives you an overview…
Radxa Q8B “Flagship Edge AI SBC”
In mid-August this year I took an interest in the Radxa Linkr KVM – and all I have to say on that is that it works perfectly over WiFi, offering KVM features in a slim stick. HDMI in, USBC out to the target machine – USB power. It’s just as…
Lora “Letterbox” Project – PART 2
No, Pete’s not regressing to a bygone age. I happen to have a bunch of LOLIN Mini D1 ESP8266 boards lying around, abandoned when I discovered the all-singing ESP32 – and I HATE to see waste – so I’ve had an idea forming for the LoRa Letterbox Alert for the…
Sonoff Zigbee Smart Thermostat
I’ve been writing about thermostat designs since 2016, at which point I was making my own because I found the thermostats on the market somewhat lacking, especially if you wanted to provide remote access including guest and holiday rental access. Then along came Google Nest, all very nice, but it…
LoRa Letterbox Alert – At LAST
Way back in February 2025, I was sent a pair of Reyax LoRa modules to try out and review. They duly went into the increasingly dangerous pile of interesting hardware waiting for attention and frankly, I never got around to using them. Having no idea how to use LoRa and…
MORE Router Resurrection !!
Xiaomi Mi AC2100 – back from the almost-dead This formerly rather tired-looking old Xiaomi Mi AC2100 router has just had a bit of a resurrection. After a good clean-up and an upgrade to the very latest OpenWrt, it’s now been pressed back into service as a handy network extender. Initially…
There are Routers and Routers – Take Care
If, like me, you have a home with more than one router, this may interest you. I can’t get broadband as such here, there is only one company in our village that provides fibre and they won’t provide it to our house because they’re useless. Accordingly, I have two choices:…
M5Stack M5Stick CPlus and ESPHome
Without really realizing it, over the last couple of months I’ve become pretty much addicted to ESPHome. Having tried every different method of programming IOT devices over the years, I still love Tasmota for certain things and use it on many devices, but for ease of use (if not memory…
Two M5Stack Displays, One ESPHome Project
Years ago (2021) I ended up with a pair of rather different little M5Stack units — an M5 Tough and an M5Stack Core2/M2 — and yesterday decided they deserved something more interesting to do than sit around running demonstration software. The answer was ESPHome. The idea was simple enough: turn…