Looks-wise, the RLC-1224A is plain white and nothing to write home about but I was determined to have at least one ultra-hi-res exterior camera in my repertoire and I’m not disappointed. The hardwired (Ethernet) RLC-1224A is really hi-res – 12Mpx and has a large aperture F1.6 lense. The full description…
The Sonoff Mini-D (MINI-Dry) WiFi Smart Switch
Erm, what? This is a new Sonoff product in the MINI series – this time simply with DRY contacts instead of having one connection commoned to the incoming power. Back in the early days there was a 4-channel Sonoff controller (rather big) with isolated outputs but that has largely been…
The New Wonder? DeepSeek AI
Unless you’ve been under a rock in the last few weeks – you’ll be at least vaguelly aware of China’s DeepSeek AI -by all accounts – SERIOUS competition for OpenAi’s ChatGPT and other current AIs. I’ve spent quite some time playing with DeepSeek now and I have some good news…
Tenda Model RX9 Pro AX3000 Dual-Band WiFi 6 Router
And I’m writing about a discontinued router for what reason? I have an outside workshop which is beyond the range of my home WiFi and I’ve just fitted an Ethernet cable to get a signal out there…. but of course the cable needs something on the end of it and…
Reolink WiFi Video Doorbell – It’s a winner!
This article was written in June 2023 when I received the doorbell, now permanently in use in my UK home. See last para for updates. On opening the box for my new Reolink WiFi Video Doorbell (they have POE and WIFI versions – mine is WiFi but it seems to…
Fibre vs Copper vs 4G/5G vs Starlink – a European View
Elsewhere I’ve written about my extensive experiences with rural broadband in Northumberland, UK and Galera, Southern Spain – and today I just watched an interesting video by another Brit – Joshua De Lisle – who finally gave up with copper in his area and moved to Starlink. In his video…
UGREEN USB3.0 to Giganet Ethernet Adaptor and GL-iNET
This is absolutely not a push for any product – I’ve been using my GL-iNET FLINT router for ages and written all about it in here. I have pretty poor broadband here in the UK attached to an OPENREACH master socket using a broadband modem/router I bought second hand for…
DS101JL triple Smart Wall Touch Switch
Don’t ask the brand, these came with a box from a friend – but it turns out the box was the wrong one, including stating the wall switch (UK size) was MOES brand, Zigbee – it’s not the latter – it’s WIFI + BT for setup. The DS101JL device hooks…
Smartphone Lavalier USB-C (or IOS) Wireless Microphones
As you’ll see elsewhere, for some time I’ve taken to creating short videos on my Smartphone and more recently with my DJI drone – especially as we travel – the “Lavalier mic” set was initially purchased because one of my then new AI phone Gimbals seemed to be intermittently affecting…
Candle with LED lights – no Battery
This one kept me going for 24 hours.. We were at a friend’s for dinner and she lit the candle at which point the LEDS lit up and stayed lit up all the time the candle was on (several hours). I was convinced there had to be a trick like…
EARU EAMPDW-TY-63 WiFi Smart Energy Protector Device
If, like me, you’re up for replacing your home breakers (power breakers and earth leakage) you may have come across the EARU Electric EAMPDW-TY-63 on AliExpress. I just came across a couple of these with no manual or box. I just HAPPEN to know they are (not uncommonly) Tuya-compatible –…
1NCE SIMS – SOMETHING NEW
December 2024 update Do you have an IOT setup and maybe no WiFi – do you want a SIM card so you can attach it to a cheap 3G/4G modem (or an old or new phone for that matter) to do nothing but send a small amount of data (and…
Sonoff Zigbee Smart Water Valve (SWV)
Just as I was pondering starting this Sonoff BSP review early July 2024, I saw Matt’s video (NotEnoughTech). Matt had a slightly different take on the SWV to what I’m about to share. He noted that the Zigbee2MQTT is not quite ready for the SWV (or vice-versa) (but see the…
PAJ 4G GPS Tracker
This morning a package arrived in the post from PAJ UG (Halftungsbeschrankt) of Windeck in Germany. It’s the PAJ 4G GPS Tracker. I also noticed the device is designed in Germany and assembled in China. Do I have a clue how this is going to work? No. Thankfully I have…
Home Assistant Editing, Styling, Colouring and Charts
It’s not that long since I wrote this article about the use of colours in Home Assistant (HA). Essentially since first learning how to make use of HA to replace my ageing Node-Red home automation setup (including lighting and air-conditioning, presense monitoring etc). I’ve recently become fascinated with the job…
Apollo PLT-1 Garden Moisture Sensor
Apollo Automation have 2 versions of this new PLT-1 sensor for use with Home Assistant, a small USB-powered version and a larger battery-powered version. I knew about this sensor before it arrived thanks to one of several videos out there. I think videos are popular because you don’t get a…
Aqara Dual Relay Module T2 – Wet and Dry
I LOVE getting new stuff from Aqara. About the only thing I’ve had from them that was slightly disappointing was the G4 Video Doorbell. Don’t get me wrong, it works well, but I can’t get it integrated into Home Assistant. Other than that, it’s great – I’d check the battery…
Home Assistant Progress – Colours
As a died-in-the-wool Node-Red fan of several years for my home automation, earlier this summer, my Italian friend Antonio began trying to convince me that Home Assistant was the way forward. When I first looked at HA it was pretty basic but a lot has changed in the last year…
Reolink Atlas PT Ultra, Solar Panel and More
NEW! Officially launched October 1 October 1 but available from late September when I originally published this blog entry. If you read this blog regularly you will know that I’ve reviewed several ReoLink cameras and loved every one of them – in the end however the only one I’ve kept…
Motion Sensors – and Human Memory
You’ll not see too many blog entries like this I would imagine as they end up binned for fear of embarassment – as I don’t work for anyone else – I could care less about making a fool of myself. In my home office I have a motion sensor attached…