![]() you can add a software sensor that shows the uptime of the node also easily you can add a text sensor that shows the IP address of the node easily you can click the "logger" button in esphome plugin to see what the node says without having it setup in Lovelace You can push to a git repo easily your setup, minus the secrets.yaml esphome plugin centralises the config files for all your nodes in home assistant. OTA flashing in an easy way, from my home assistant. I'd highly recommend it, if you're unsure I'd recommend starting with Tasmota, as it's much more user friendly. I'm sure there are others I haven't thought of. With something like ESPHome, you can always go and fix it yourself if you know how to code, and if you don't? Well make a bug report, there's going to be a much higher chance someone will fix it for you (and if they don't, you can offer a bug bounty if you like). ![]() If you encounter a bug with a proprietary version, you're probably screwed, either you find a workaround, deal with it, or message the company and hope they fix it for you. If it doesn't run locally, you don't really own it. All of the previous things I mentioned have repeatedly happened over and over again in the home automation world. They might also segregate off some features to a subscription model only. Or even worse, pay them $5/month to continue using it. Maybe your device does run locally, but who knows, maybe the company needs cash one day so they remove that feature and suddenly require that you keep it connected to the internet for it to work. ![]() well pretty much for however long you have the device. If the device doesn't run entirely locally, then you need to hope they keep on paying for their server upkeep for. This not only has the privacy issue, but it also means the company can brick your device whenever they want (and this has happened countless times, and continues to happen). Many devices are in some way linked to the cloud. Or you could add a light sensor, or a thermistor/thermocouple so you can get better per-room readings, or an IR sensor, or a water sensor, or all sorts of things. Then I can create an automation like above, and the light will still turn on/off when the door is opened even if our Zigbee network is down, or even if the HA server is completely down. I plan on replacing the Zigbee sensor with a reed switch connected to the Sonoff. For example we have a Sonoff controlling the attic lights, and then there's a Zigbee sensor on the trap door to the attic, so it comes on/off automatically. Some flash-friendly devices like Sonoff even physically expose these pins in a nice way for you. You can use the extra GPIO pins on the device for whatever you like. The ability to easily add things to the device. This can be great for reliability as well, because these automations will run even if your WiFi is completely down and the device is connected to nothing. That could be as simple as making it so the on/off button on the device cycles through colours when held (obv not here as there's no button), or making it so that when it losses connection to the WiFi it turns the light on red, or you could make it so that it gradually changed colour temperature throughout the day, etc etc. ESPHome lets you create some basic YAML configuration to run whatever you want. The ability to setup automations on the device. by only allowing the minimum brightness to be 10% when there's no reason it can't be dropped to 2% or something. Or similarly some lights might inadvertently block you from the full range of colours/brightness, e.g. I've heard of some smart plugs having energy measuring built in, but for whatever reason the original firmware doesn't expose it in any usable way. But it's not uncommon to be able to end up gaining features that were hidden on the original product. I have also found that ESPHome is very good at connecting or reconnecting back to our WiFi. The software is likely much simpler, there's a large number of people working on it, and it's also likely more mature. your WiFi password, which is potentially super dangerous if you use the same password anywhere online, or if you use the same password for your router's login and your router). ![]() There's no risk of it secretly sending data to some random server (e.g. Once you have flashed it you know exactly what it does, when it does it, etc.
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