Most of what I write about is Apple Home, and that isn’t changing. But I’ve been using Home Assistant for the last 7 or 8 months, and when something is this useful and this easy to set up, I want to share it. This is the exact setup I used last winter and I’ll be running it again as the weather turns.

You’ll only need a small amount of YAML, and I’ve put all of it in the written guide on my GitHub so you can copy and paste as you go.

What this Home Assistant heating setup does

By the end of this guide you’ll have:

• An individual heating schedule for every room, with each TRV and the main thermostat following its own timetable
• Geofencing, so the house isn’t being heated when nobody is home
• Automatic summer and winter switching based on the outdoor temperature, so you never have to remember to turn the heating off in May
• More accurate room temperatures, because your TRVs read from a proper sensor instead of the one sitting next to a hot radiator
• An optional boiler control automation if you use a relay like the Aqara T2 Relay, or your TRVs can’t call for heat on their own

And it costs nothing extra, assuming you already have the hardware.

The smart heating kit I’m using

You don’t need exactly the same devices as me. Here’s what I’ve got so you can see how it fits together.

Boiler

My boiler is a Viessmann with built in WiFi, which means it connects straight to Home Assistant. If yours doesn’t have WiFi, an Aqara T2 Relay can do the same job. I made a separate video on that, Can Aqara run your smart heating?, if you want to see it in action.

Thermostat and radiator valves

My main thermostat is part of the Habi Smart Heating System. It has a receiver box wired to the boiler and a wireless thermostat that sits in the living room. Upstairs I have three Habi Smart TRV valves on the radiators.

These are all set up in the Habi app first, which is what lets the TRVs call for heat from the boiler. They’re then exposed to Home Assistant over Matter. If your TRVs can’t call for heat, don’t worry, I cover a workaround at the end.

Temperature sensors

For room temperatures I use an Aqara temperature sensor, plus the built in sensors in my HomePod mini speakers, which sync across to Home Assistant. If you want to do the same, I’ve got a video on getting HomePod temperature readings into Home Assistant. Outside, I’ve got a SwitchBot Outdoor Meter.

Step 1: Create a heating schedule for each room

Home Assistant has a Schedule helper that’s perfect for this. To create one:

1. Go to Settings
2. Open Devices & Services
3. Click the Helpers tab
4. Click Create Helper and choose Schedule
5. Draw your heating times onto the weekly grid
6. Click each time slot and add additional data in the format temp: 20, using whatever temperature you want for that slot

Do this for every day and every time slot, then create another schedule for each room you want to control. I’ve got five: bathroom, bedroom, spare room, office and downstairs.

It’s a bit fiddly the first time. Once it’s done, though, you rarely touch it again.

Step 2: Use Better Thermostat for accurate TRV readings

Here’s the thing about TRVs. Their temperature sensor sits right next to the radiator, so they almost always think the room is warmer than it really is. The fix is to make them use an external temperature sensor instead.

I’d only bother doing this for your TRVs. A wall thermostat is usually placed somewhere sensible and reads fine on its own.

The integration that does all the clever offsetting for you is called Better Thermostat. It’s installed through HACS (the Home Assistant Community Store), so you’ll need that set up first.

Once Better Thermostat is installed:

1. Go back to Devices & Services
2. Click Add Integration and search for Better Thermostat
3. Give it a name, for example “Bedroom Thermostat”
4. Select the real thermostat, which is your TRV
5. Select the temperature sensor you want it to use, which is your external room sensor
6. If you have an outdoor sensor, select it here too. You can also add a weather entity
7. Set the outdoor temperature at which the thermostat should switch off
8. Set a tolerance. This stops the valve constantly flicking on and off around the target temperature
9. Save, then repeat for each TRV

You now have your room schedules and a set of better, more accurate thermostats. Time to tie it all together.

Two things to set up before the automations

1. A “should we be heating?” check

In my automations I check what mode my boiler is in. That tells Home Assistant whether heating season is on or off. If your boiler isn’t connected, create a Toggle (input boolean) helper instead, under Devices & Services, Helpers, Create Helper. Call it something like “Heating Season”. This is the thing we’ll automate later, so you never have to switch the heating off in summer and back on in winter yourself.

2. A “is anyone home?” check

The automations also check whether someone is in. If everyone in your house has the Home Assistant app, you can use their presence directly. In my house not everyone does, so I use a virtual switch that turns off when the last person leaves and on when the first person gets back. That way family members can stick with Apple Home and it all still works.

Step 3: Create an automation for each room schedule

Head to Settings, then Automations & Scenes, and click Create Automation. You’ll make one of these for each schedule. I name mine “Set [room] temperature”, so “Set bedroom temperature” and so on.

When

Use a State trigger and pick your room’s schedule. This means the automation runs whenever a new time slot starts.

And if

Add two conditions:

• We should be heating. For me that’s checking the boiler mode. For you it might be checking that your Heating Season helper is on
• Someone is home

Then do

Add a Climate: Set temperature action, target the room’s thermostat (the Better Thermostat version for TRVs), and toggle on Target temperature. Switch the field to YAML or template mode and use this, swapping in your own schedule name:

{{ state_attr('schedule.bedroom_climate_schedule', 'temp') | float(0) }}

That pulls the temperature from the current schedule slot and makes sure it’s formatted as a number. Also set the HVAC mode to Heat.

Because my TRVs can call for heat, that’s all I need. Changing the target temperature is enough to fire up the boiler. If yours can’t, keep reading, it’s covered further down.

Repeat this for each of your room schedules.

Step 4: Geofencing automations

Everyone has left

Create a new automation. The trigger is the last person leaving home (or, in my case, my virtual switch turning off). For the action, set each thermostat’s target temperature to your frost protection temperature. I use somewhere around 10 to 12°C, but pick what suits your home.

Because the room schedule automations already check that someone is home, they won’t override this while the house is empty. Nothing to worry about there.

Someone arrives home

Create another automation that triggers when the first person gets home (or when my virtual switch turns on). Under the actions, add a Climate: Set temperature action for each thermostat. For each one, set the HVAC mode to Heat and use the same template as before, pointing at that room’s schedule.

Now, when you walk through the door, every room jumps straight to whatever temperature it should be at for that time of day.

If you want to be extra careful, add a condition under And if to check that you should be heating at all. Otherwise you could come home on a warm June afternoon and have the radiators kick in.

Step 5: Automatic summer and winter switching

This is my favourite bit. No more remembering to turn the heating off when it gets warm, or scrambling to turn it back on during the first cold snap.

Cold outside: heating on

Create an automation called “Cold Outside”. Use a Numeric state trigger on your outdoor sensor, set to below 10°C for 12 hours. If it’s been under 10 degrees for half a day, it’s probably time for the heating.

For the action I change my boiler mode to auto. If you went down the helper route, turn on your Heating Season helper instead. (I also change one other thermostat here, but that’s my electric underfloor heating in the bathroom, so you can ignore it.)

Warm outside: heating off

Create the summer version and call it “Warm Outside – Boiler Off”. The trigger is your outdoor sensor being above 18°C for 8 hours. The action switches the boiler mode to off, or turns your Heating Season helper off.

Feel free to tweak those numbers. They’re what work for my house in the UK, but a draughty old terrace might want the heating on a bit sooner.

And that’s the full setup. Room by room schedules, geofencing, accurate TRV readings and automatic seasonal switching, all running in Home Assistant for free.

Optional: Boiler control for relays and TRVs that can’t call for heat

If your boiler is switched by an Aqara T2 Relay or similar, or your TRVs can’t tell the boiler to fire up on their own, you need one more automation. I call mine “Boiler Control”.

This is also the approach to use if you’d rather go all in on Aqara. Pair the T2 Relay with Aqara Radiator Valves and this automation turns the boiler on whenever any of the valves want heat.

When

Trigger it when the current action (the hvac_action attribute) changes on any of your thermostats. Remember, our other automations are changing the thermostats’ modes and targets, so this will catch every change.

And if

Leave this empty.

Then do

Add a Choose action with one option and a default.

Option 1 uses a Template condition. Paste in the code below and replace the entity names with your own thermostats:

{{ expand('climate.bedroom_thermostat',
          'climate.office_thermostat',
          'climate.spare_room_thermostat',
          'climate.downstairs_thermostat')
   | selectattr('attributes.hvac_action', 'eq', 'heating')
   | list | count > 0 }}

In plain English, it checks whether anything in the house is currently calling for heat. If it is, the action for Option 1 turns your relay switch on.

For the Default action (nothing is calling for heat), turn your relay switch off.

Save it, and you’re done.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a WiFi boiler for this Home Assistant heating setup?

No. If your boiler isn’t connected, use an Aqara T2 Relay to switch it and a toggle helper in place of the boiler mode checks. The boiler control automation above handles the rest.

Why use external temperature sensors with TRVs?

TRVs measure the temperature right next to the radiator, which is the warmest spot in the room. An external sensor on the other side of the room gives a much more realistic reading, and Better Thermostat adjusts the TRV to match.

Does everyone in the house need Home Assistant for geofencing?

Not necessarily. I use a virtual switch that follows presence in Apple Home, so family members don’t need Home Assistant installed at all.

Can I use a different outdoor sensor?

Yes. Any outdoor temperature sensor that shows up in Home Assistant will do. You could even use a weather integration, although a physical sensor like the SwitchBot Outdoor Meter tends to be more accurate for your actual garden.

Links and downloads

All the YAML from this guide is in the smart heating setup guide on GitHub. Here’s everything else I mentioned in one place.

Products

• Habi Smart Heating System
• Habi Smart TRV
• Aqara T2 Relay
• Aqara Radiator Valves

Related videos

• HomePod temperature to Home Assistant
• Can Aqara run your smart heating?

Some of the product links above are affiliate links. If you buy through them I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Got a question, or found a tweak that works better for your house? Leave a comment below, I read them all. And if this saved you a few quid on your heating bill, you can always buy me a beer.

The post Home Assistant Heating Setup: Room Schedules, Geofencing and Smart TRVs appeared first on Mark's Tech Blogs.

What is the Sensereo MS-1 Interlink?

The Sensereo MS-1 Interlink is a Matter over Thread smart smoke alarm that costs around $50. Its main selling point is in the name. If you have several of them on the same Thread network, they link up with each other automatically. When one goes off, they all go off. That applies to testing too, so pressing the test button on one alarm sets off every alarm in the house.

That matters because a smoke alarm in the kitchen isn’t much use if you’re asleep upstairs with the door shut. With interlinked alarms, everyone hears it wherever the fire starts.

Sensereo MS-1 Interlink Specifications

Matter over Thread compatibility

Because it uses Matter over Thread, you don’t need an extra hub from Sensereo. It works with whatever you already use as your smart home hub. That includes:

• Apple Home
• Home Assistant
• Homey
• SmartThings

Google Home and Alexa aren’t listed on Sensereo’s website. However, both platforms support Matter, and Sensereo has confirmed to me that they do work with it.

You also don’t have to use the smart features at all. If you never pair them with an app, they still work as normal interlinked smoke alarms, which is a nice option to have.

Battery and lifespan

Inside there are two batteries. There’s a replaceable CR123A battery that powers the connectivity, and a sealed 7-year battery that powers the alarm itself.

That sealed battery means you’ll need to replace the whole alarm after 7 years. Sensereo recommends doing that even if it still seems to be working at that point, and I’d follow that advice. Smoke sensors degrade over time.

Alarm volume and certification

When it detects smoke you’ll get a notification through your smart home app, but it also has a proper siren that’s over 85dB at a distance of 3 metres. It’s also certified to EN 14604, the European standard for smoke alarms, so it meets the safety requirements you’d expect.

Photoelectric smoke sensor

The Sensereo MS-1 Interlink uses an advanced photoelectric sensor designed to pick up smoke particles at an early stage. In practice, that means it should raise the alarm before a fire has properly caught and flames are visible.

Design and What’s in the Box

It’s fairly small compared to a lot of smoke alarms, with a rounded square shape, a status light and a single button on the front. It looks like a smoke alarm, which is probably what most people want. It isn’t trying to be a design piece on your ceiling.

In the box you get:

• The Sensereo MS-1 Interlink alarm
• A mounting bracket for walls or ceilings
• Screws and wall plugs

Setting Up the Sensereo MS-1 Interlink

Setup is really easy. You pull out the battery tab and then pair the alarm with your Matter app of choice. I used Apple Home first and it paired without any problems. After that you give it a name and assign it to a room.

To get them into Home Assistant as well, I put the alarms into pairing mode from Apple Home and then added them through the Matter integration in Home Assistant. During pairing, Home Assistant looked like it had timed out. It was only when I went back into the Matter section that I saw they had actually been added. I got exactly the same thing with another manufacturer’s device, so this looks like a Home Assistant quirk rather than a Sensereo issue.

Once they’re paired, the last step is to mount them wherever you want them.

Using It in Apple Home and Home Assistant

Apple Home

Apple Home keeps things simple. You can see whether smoke has been detected, the battery level and whether the alarm is active.

Home Assistant

Home Assistant gives you a lot more to work with. The two features I found most useful are:

• A test button entity. You can use this in automations to test your alarms on a schedule, so you never forget to do it.
• Sensitivity adjustment. This is handy if you have an alarm near the kitchen and a habit of burning the toast.

Testing the interlink

Thankfully I haven’t had a fire, but you can check the interlink works by running a test. Press the button on one alarm and both of mine sounded. You can do this manually or automate it in Home Assistant, which is what I do now.

The light on the front also changes colour if something needs attention, such as a low battery.

Does It Actually Detect Smoke?

The alarm is loud, but the real question is whether it works. Because of the sensors Sensereo uses, these alarms are hard to test properly without making a lot of smoke, and I didn’t want to fill my house with it. So I bought a smoke alarm tester aerosol, which is designed for exactly this.

It worked. One alarm detected the test spray and both alarms sounded straight away, which is exactly what you want if people are asleep in different rooms.

Smoke alarm automations

Because they’re smart devices, you can build automations around them. I’ve set one up that turns on every light in the house when a smoke alarm goes off. If there’s a fire and the power is still on, that helps you see a way out, and it makes sure everyone is properly awake.

Sensereo MS-1 Interlink: Pros and Cons

Pros

• Interlinks automatically with other alarms on the same Thread network
• Works with Apple Home, Home Assistant, Homey, SmartThings, Google Home and Alexa
• No extra hub needed
• Still works as a normal interlinked alarm if you don’t pair it
• EN 14604 certified with an alarm over 85dB
• Test button and sensitivity controls in Home Assistant
• Easy to set up

Cons

• More expensive than standard interlinked smoke alarms
• 7-year lifespan, where some alarms last 10 years
• No carbon monoxide detection, unlike the Sensereo MSC-1

Verdict: Is the Sensereo MS-1 Interlink Worth It?

The Sensereo MS-1 Interlink costs more than a basic set of interlinked smoke alarms, but I think the smart features are worth paying for. It works, it has the right safety certification and it has stayed connected to both Apple Home and Home Assistant without any drama.

The downsides are the 7-year lifespan, which is shorter than some alarms that last 10 years, and the lack of carbon monoxide detection. If you want both in one device, the Sensereo MSC-1 is still the one to look at.

If you’re after a Matter over Thread smart smoke alarm, though, the Sensereo MS-1 Interlink is the best one I’ve used.

Got any questions about it? Leave them in the comments below and I’ll do my best to answer.

The post Sensereo MS-1 Interlink Review: The Best Matter over Thread Smoke Alarm appeared first on Mark's Tech Blogs.

Quick bit of housekeeping first. SwitchBot sent me this unit as a beta tester, so I haven’t paid for it. They also have no idea I’m writing this, so as with everything else on the channel, you’re getting my honest take. There are affiliate links below, which cost you nothing extra.

Price

RRP is £130. In practice it drops regularly, and I’ve seen it as low as £90. That’s not cheap for something that moves air around a room, and I won’t pretend otherwise. Once you account for the battery, the Matter support and the app control, the maths starts to look better. A dumb fan at half the price does one job. This one does several.

Design and build

The review unit I was sent is the white and brown version, and I like it a lot more than I expected to. The whole thing is mostly rounded, with an accent colour across the front, and it looks modern without shouting about it. Whichever colour you go for, it doesn’t look like a gadget.

The fan sits low on the front, with a light strip underneath it and a row of touch controls below that: light, modes, power, speed, vertical oscillation and horizontal oscillation. Round the back there’s a port that takes either a USB-C cable or the supplied mains cable. Both charge it, and you can leave it plugged in and run it off the mains permanently if you’d rather.

One detail I appreciate more than I probably should: the base has a circular section that stays put while the body rotates above it. Plug it in, set the horizontal oscillation going, and the cable doesn’t wind itself into a knot. Someone actually thought about that.

There’s a small remote in the box too, for anyone who prefers a physical click to a touch panel.

Specifications

Matter and smart home support

Wi-Fi and Matter are built in. No hub, no bridge, no extra purchase. It drops straight into Apple Home, Home Assistant and anything else that speaks Matter.

What sold me is how much it exposes. You don’t just get on and off. You get the fan, the battery level and the onboard light, all as separate controls. That’s more than a lot of Matter devices manage.

It also works with Alexa, Google Home and SmartThings. I haven’t tested those, since this channel lives in Apple Home and Home Assistant, so I can’t tell you how well they behave.

Speeds, modes and noise

There are nine preset speeds you can cycle through using the buttons on the fan itself. In the SwitchBot app, or through a third party app, you get proper granular control from 1 to 100%.

There are four modes built in:

• Normal, which is what it sounds like
• Baby, which keeps the airflow quiet and gentle
• Natural, which alternates between stronger and weaker gusts
• Sleep, which gradually eases the speed down over time

At its lowest setting it measures 24dB. That is quiet enough to sleep next to, and quiet enough that nobody on a video call has commented on it.

Oscillation

Ninety degrees horizontally and ninety degrees vertically, and you can set the range of both in the app rather than being stuck with the full sweep.

Battery

The 3600mAh battery is rated for up to 12 hours of continuous use on a full charge. SwitchBot don’t say which speed that figure assumes, which is a bit annoying, so I tested it. You’ll hit roughly that on a middling speed. You will not get anywhere near it flat out.

In practice that means charging it during the day and running it overnight on something quiet, which is exactly how I’ve been using it.

Filter

There’s a filter in the box that fits into the rear of the unit if you want it.

Setting it up

The box contains the fan, a mains cable and the filter. Setup runs like this:

1. If you want the filter fitted, unscrew the back panel and slot it in. It’s fiddly for about a minute and then it’s done.
2. Charge the fan up.
3. Open the SwitchBot app, hit the plus button and let it find the device. The app walks you through pairing.
4. To get it into Apple Home or Home Assistant, put it into Matter pairing mode by holding the power button for 15 seconds.
5. Copy the Matter code out of the SwitchBot app and paste it into whichever platform you’re using.

The Matter instructions live in the device settings in the app if you get stuck. The whole process took me a few minutes and nothing went wrong, which is not something I get to say about every Matter device.

Living with it

Worth stating the obvious: this is a fan, not an air conditioner. It moves air, it doesn’t chill it. Within that limit it’s very good.

Control is easy however you want to do it, whether that’s the touch panel, the remote, the app, a third party app or a voice assistant. Being able to fine tune the speed and the oscillation range makes a real difference.

The oscillation is genuinely fun to watch, which is a strange thing to write about a fan. The full vertical sweep is too much for my room, though, so I went into the app and pulled the range in. Ten seconds of work and it was much better.

The night light has quietly become my favourite feature. It turns this into something you’d keep on a bedside table all year rather than dragging out of a cupboard every July. If you do put it in a bedroom, you can switch off the indicator lights in the app so it isn’t glowing at you.

The SwitchBot app has some useful quick actions, timers included. Beyond that you can drop it into automations, so it’ll kick in when a presence sensor spots you and the room temperature is above whatever you decide.

The reason I ended up reviewing this at all is that I’ve been quietly impressed. It’s very quiet, it takes the edge off a hot day, and it’s the only thing I’ve found that keeps me comfortable during work calls when a portable air conditioner would be far too loud. The battery life surprised me. And because it’s portable I can carry it from room to room, or wedge it in a window and run the reverse fan trick to pull cooler air in at night.

What I don’t like

Two things. The price is high next to a basic fan, though I think the smart features earn it. And the touch buttons on the front want you to hold your finger in place before they respond. It’s a small thing that I notice every time.

Verdict

It’s expensive, and I’m not going to talk you out of noticing that. What you get for the money is a good looking fan with proper Matter support, a sensible set of modes, adjustable oscillation and a battery that makes it genuinely portable.

I like it, and it’s still on my desk in September, which tells you most of what you need to know. If you want a smart fan that works with Apple Home or Home Assistant without another hub in the cupboard, the SwitchBot Battery Circulator Fan 2 Pro is an easy recommendation.

Frequently asked questions

Does the SwitchBot Battery Circulator Fan 2 Pro need a hub?

No. Wi-Fi and Matter are built into the fan, so it connects directly to Apple Home, Home Assistant and other Matter platforms with nothing else in between.

Does it work with Apple Home?

Yes, over Matter. You get the fan, the light and the battery level as separate controls rather than a single on and off switch.

How long does the battery last?

Up to 12 hours from the 3600mAh battery. In my testing that holds up at a mid speed. At full power you’ll get far less.

How loud is it?

As low as 24dB on the quietest setting, which is fine for sleeping or for work calls.

Can you use it while it’s plugged in?

Yes. Run it off the mains cable or over USB-C and ignore the battery entirely if you want to.

Does it come with a filter?

Yes, there’s one in the box. You unscrew the back panel to fit it, and you can buy a replacement fan filter when it needs changing.

Does it work with Alexa and Google Home?

SwitchBot list support for Alexa, Google Home and SmartThings. I test on Apple Home and Home Assistant, so I can’t speak to how well those integrations hold up day to day.

The post SwitchBot Battery Circulator Fan 2 Pro review: the smart fan I didn’t expect to like appeared first on Mark's Tech Blogs.

Is the SofaBaton X2 review worth your time? Find out if this universal remote control justifies its premium price tag or is overkill.

Purchase here: https://geni.us/ADzU1BG

This video examines the SofaBaton X2 to help you decide if it fits your specific smart home setup. While many seek a simple universal remote control for basic TV tasks, this device offers much more. We explore why the cost might be prohibitive for casual users but potentially perfect for those needing advanced configuration options.

We specifically demonstrate the Home Assistant integration process, showing exactly how to connect the remote to your existing automation ecosystem. If you are looking for a universal remote control that bridges the gap between legacy devices and modern smart home tech, this walkthrough provides the necessary technical context to make an informed purchase decision.

Subscribe for weekly smart home tech breakdowns and comment below if you want to see a full tutorial on advanced Home Assistant integration next.

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The post New Video – Control Everything: Sofabaton X2 Deep Dive appeared first on Mark's Tech Blogs.

Straight away, I’ll say this: if you just want a simple, affordable universal remote, the Sofabaton X2 probably isn’t it. It’s stacked with features, which also means it comes with a price tag to match. If simple and cheap is what you’re after, it’s worth looking at Sofabaton’s other, more basic remotes, or the Switchbot Universal Remote, which I’ve been using myself for over a year.

How Much Does the Sofabaton X2 Cost?

The Sofabaton X2 will set you back around £300, and that covers the hub, the remote itself, and the charging dock. If you want to extend its reach with an IR repeater, that’s an extra £30 or so on top.

The repeater lets you control your IR devices from further away, or even from another room entirely. Think turning your air conditioning on before you’ve walked into the room.

Sofabaton X2 Specs and Features

This thing can control a genuinely huge number of devices. On paper, the Sofabaton X2 supports up to 49 IR, Bluetooth and WiFi devices, and adding the Sofabaton IR Repeater extends that coverage into bigger spaces or additional rooms.

There’s a massive built-in device library, so setup is usually painless, but you can also create fully custom remotes if your gear isn’t listed. During testing I got my Apple TV working over Bluetooth straight out of the box, added my Samsung TV without any fuss, and built a custom remote for my speakers from scratch.

It’s not just TVs either. The X2 will happily work with:

• Roku and other WiFi streaming boxes
• Xbox and PS5 consoles
• Android TV boxes
• Philips Hue and Sonos systems

Sofabaton claims support for over 500,000 devices in total, and from my experience the IR coverage is genuinely strong even without the extenders or the separate repeater plugged in.

On the hardware side, you get a 2.4 inch HD touchscreen, and both the remote and the hub have their own IR transmitters. The hub also ships with two plug-in IR extenders to squeeze the most range out of it.

One of the nicer touches is one-touch activities. Set one up once and you can have the remote turn on your TV, switch the input, and dim your lights with a single tap. There’s also an app for controlling devices from your phone or building out custom remotes, plus an API for activities that plays nicely with Siri Shortcuts or Home Assistant if you want to build your own automations.

Sofabaton X2 and Home Assistant

This is where the Sofabaton X2 gets genuinely interesting, and also where things get a bit more technical. There are two main routes into Home Assistant, and which one you pick depends on what you’re trying to achieve.

The official route is the yomonpet/ha-sofabaton-hub integration, built specifically for the X2. You’ll need this alongside an MQTT broker add-on such as Mosquitto to trigger Home Assistant automations from the remote. This integration also exposes the hub’s power controls to Home Assistant.

The alternative is an unofficial integration called Sofabaton X, which exposes all the on-device buttons to Home Assistant rather than just the hub controls. I’ve tried both, and worth flagging that this second integration is still being made fully compatible with the X2 at the time of writing.

Battery life on the remote itself is rated at up to 30 days depending on how much you use it, though realistically you’ll probably just dock it between uses since it comes with a charging dock anyway. One thing I did notice missing is a ‘find my remote’ feature, something the cheaper Switchbot Universal Remote actually includes. Oddly enough, if you expose the X2 to Home Assistant through the third-party integration, you do gain a find button that makes the remote beep, so there’s a workaround if you’re willing to set it up.

Sofabaton X2 Design

The hub itself is plain, flat, and black, which honestly works in its favour since the IR extenders mean you can tuck it out of sight behind your TV unit. The Sofabaton IR Repeater, on the other hand, has a more distinctive dome shape, a bit like a smaller version of the Europa Park dome, and since you’re more likely to place this one somewhere visible for better coverage, it’s a nice-looking bit of kit rather than just another black box.

Then there’s the remote and its dock, which is really the main event here. The dock is silver, has a small light on the front, and charging contacts that make it easy to just drop the remote back in place without losing it.

The remote itself is noticeably weighty, which sounds like a small thing but actually makes it feel properly premium in the hand. The base has both the charging contacts and a USB-C port for topping up manually. The physical buttons all protrude nicely and have a satisfying click to them, while the touchscreen up top is responsive and colourful. Silver trim runs around the edges, broken up at intervals, and the rear is a black, slightly grippy material. It’s not a reinvention of the wheel, but it’s a genuinely good-looking remote.

Setting Up the Sofabaton X2

Setup is straightforward for the basics and gets progressively more involved the deeper you go. You start by plugging in the hub and remote and downloading the Sofabaton app, then follow the in-app steps to add your devices.

There will likely be a firmware update to work through first. Like a few other reviewers, I found the hub temporarily vanished from the app after updating. Closing and reopening the app fixed it straight away.

For IR devices, you can either search the built-in library or manually teach the remote a command. My TV was found instantly through the library. For my speaker remote, I had to use the learning feature instead, which just meant selecting the command in the app and pointing my old remote at the hub. That process takes longer if you’re teaching it a remote with a lot of buttons.

My Apple TV was a slightly different process again, set up in the app first and then paired as a Bluetooth remote through the Apple TV’s own Bluetooth settings.

The trickiest part by far was the Home Assistant setup. I won’t walk through every step here, but if you want the remote to control devices inside Home Assistant, you’ll need an MQTT broker running alongside the Sofabaton integration, then configure commands in the app that trigger automations when the API is called with the right payload. It’s doable, but it’s not a five-minute job.

Using the Sofabaton X2 Day to Day

Day to day, using the remote is simple. You tap the device you want on the touchscreen, and the screen wakes automatically when you pick it up, while the physical buttons stay active the rest of the time so you can grab the volume without waking the screen at all.

The touchscreen itself responds quickly. One tap selects a device, a second tap takes you into its sub-menu of buttons, and the physical buttons underneath make it easy to back out again. There’s an off button at the top, though I’d have liked the option to program it as a proper power button for other functions too.

You can also control everything through the Sofabaton app on your phone, but the interface feels a little clunky, so I doubt you’ll use it much once the physical remote is set up.

The real value here isn’t just combining your remotes into one device, it’s the advanced features layered on top. Using the app alongside MQTT, I’ve set up toggles for my blinds, my vacuum, and my living room lights, all running through Home Assistant from the remote itself. It works reliably once it’s configured, even if getting there took some patience.

Activities are where this really shines. You can combine controls from multiple devices into a single button, so a “movie night” activity might turn on the TV, switch input, close the blinds, and dim the lights all at once. These can be fired straight from the remote’s home screen or assigned to a key, which is a feature not every universal remote bothers to include.

The third-party Sofabaton X integration for Home Assistant is arguably the better of the two options, since it exposes the physical buttons for genuine two-way control, including your saved activities. In practice, I’ve found running both integrations together works best. This one installs through HACS and comes with its own dashboard cards, including an admin panel for configuring WiFi and event commands, backup options, and hub settings, plus a dedicated remote card.

There’s also a neat trick with the API. Activities can be triggered via a web URL, so I’ve set up quick volume up and down shortcuts that press the button four times in one go. I’ve hooked these into Siri Shortcuts for quick access from my phone’s home screen. One thing worth knowing: when you copy a URL from the Sofabaton app, it doesn’t automatically encode spaces, so you’ll need to manually swap any space for %20 to get it working.

What’s in the Box

• Sofabaton X2 remote
• Charging dock
• Hub
• Power bricks and USB-C to USB-A cables
• Two plug-in IR extender cables for the hub

If you buy the Sofabaton IR Repeater separately, that comes with its own power brick and USB-C to A cable.

Sofabaton X2 Downsides

Two things hold this remote back a little. First, while it’s marketed heavily on its Home Assistant integration, actually getting that set up is not a simple task, and this is really a product aimed at people comfortable with a bit of technical fiddling. The documentation for the Home Assistant and MQTT setup isn’t great, and you’ll need patience to get through it.

Second, the Sofabaton app itself lets the side down. It’s functional, but it feels a bit clunky and not especially well designed in places.

Verdict: Should You Buy the Sofabaton X2?

The Sofabaton X2 is a high-quality remote packed with features that can genuinely control almost everything in your living room. But its biggest strength is also its biggest weakness: all that flexibility makes it more complicated to set up than most people will want to deal with. If you just need to bring a handful of remotes into one place, the Switchbot Universal Remote is simpler and more affordable.

Whether the Sofabaton X2 is right for you really comes down to what you want it to do and how comfortable you are getting technical. There are decent tutorials out there to help, but don’t go in expecting a plug-and-play experience if you want to unlock the Home Assistant side of things.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does the Sofabaton X2 cost?
The Sofabaton X2 costs around £300 for the remote, hub and charging dock. The optional Sofabaton IR Repeater costs roughly £30 extra.

Does the Sofabaton X2 work with Home Assistant?
Yes. You can connect it via the official ha-sofabaton-hub integration with an MQTT broker, or through the unofficial Sofabaton X integration installed via HACS, which exposes more of the remote’s buttons for two-way control.

How long does the battery last?
Sofabaton rates the X2 remote at up to 30 days per charge depending on usage, though most people will simply keep it on the included charging dock between uses.

Is the Sofabaton X2 easy to set up?
Basic setup, adding TVs, streaming boxes and consoles, is straightforward. Setting up the Home Assistant integration is considerably more involved and best suited to more technical users.

The post Sofabaton X2 Universal Remote Review: Is It Worth £300? appeared first on Mark's Tech Blogs.

Is the SofaBaton X2 review worth your time? Find out if this universal remote control justifies its premium price tag or is overkill.

Purchase here: https://geni.us/ADzU1BG

This video examines the SofaBaton X2 to help you decide if it fits your specific smart home setup. While many seek a simple universal remote control for basic TV tasks, this device offers much more.

I explore why the cost might be prohibitive for casual users but potentially perfect for those needing advanced configuration options.

I specifically demonstrate the Home Assistant integration process, showing exactly how to connect the remote to your existing automation ecosystem.

If you are looking for a universal remote control that bridges the gap between legacy devices and modern smart home tech, this walkthrough provides the necessary technical context to make an informed purchase decision.

Subscribe for weekly smart home tech breakdowns and comment below if you want to see a full tutorial on advanced Home Assistant integration next.

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Chapters
00:00 Introduction
00:40 Price
01:00 Full Specification
04:15 Design
05:36 Set Up
06:50 Setting Up in Home Assistant
07:26 Using the Remote
11:31 Downsides
12:19 My Verdict

The post New Video – Don’t Buy the Sofabaton X2 Until You Watch This! appeared first on Mark's Tech Blogs.

Learn how to enable the SwitchBot API and generate your SwitchBot API key to integrate custom screens into your home setup. This step-by-step guide walks you through the process of accessing developer options directly within the app.

Full video on my channel!

If you are looking to build custom controls for your smart home, this tutorial covers exactly how to navigate the settings menu. By tapping the app version repeatedly, you can activate the necessary developer tools to begin your integration project. This is designed for users who want to move beyond the standard app interface and explore custom automation possibilities.

We focus on the specific path through the SwitchBot app preferences required to configure your device access. Once you complete these steps, you will have the credentials needed to connect your hardware to third-party platforms or custom dashboards. This guide ensures you have the correct permissions and key setup to get started immediately.

Subscribe for weekly smart home integration breakdowns, and comment below with which device you are planning to connect to your custom dashboard next.

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The post New Video – SwitchBot Smart Home Setup | Custom Display Integration appeared first on Mark's Tech Blogs.

This video shows you how to set up an automation in Apple Home to send your HomePod mini data. We’ll use a switch as a trigger, which activates every five minutes, to streamline your Apple automations. The actions include selecting ‘Convert’ and then choosing ‘Temperature’ for seamless data transmission within your smart home setup.

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The post New Video – This HomeKit Trick Saves Hours #smarthome #homekit #automation appeared first on Mark's Tech Blogs.

See if the SwitchBot E-Ink Home Dashboard is worth adding to your smart home setup after its latest firmware update.

Purchase Links:
Amazon: https://geni.us/2mI2kV
Switchbot: https://bit.ly/4aEbUtI (Save 10% with code: 10UPC1YC74OTNK)
Switchbot Hub: https://geni.us/zzvBBF

This video provides a practical look at the SwitchBot E-Ink Home Dashboard, a device that started as a simple weather station and has gained new functionality. If you are looking for a dedicated display to monitor your home environment or show custom messages, this overview covers exactly what the hardware can do and how the interface behaves.

We walk through the current capabilities of the SwitchBot E-Ink Home Dashboard, demonstrating how it displays weather data and custom text. You will get a clear look at the accompanying mobile app, which is essential for configuring the device. By the end of this SwitchBot review, you will understand if this smart home display fits your specific needs or if you should look for alternatives.

Whether you are already invested in the ecosystem or just browsing for a new smart home display, this breakdown highlights the real-world performance of the hardware. We examine the display clarity and the ease of use within the SwitchBot app setup process to help you make an informed decision.

Chapters
0:00 Introduction
0:28 Price
0:40 Design
01:27 Specification
03:30 Setup
04:23 Configuration, Screens and Custom Dashboards
08:24 What’s it like to use
10:26 Downsides
10:59 Verdict

Subscribe for weekly smart home gadget breakdowns, and leave a comment letting me know which device you want to see reviewed next.

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The post New Video – SwitchBot E Ink Display – The Missing Piece of Smart Home appeared first on Mark's Tech Blogs.

After testing the Dreo TurboCool 516S Smart Misting Fan, I’m impressed by its versatility and smart features. Here’s a breakdown of my experience:

Fan Performance

The fan excels in turbo mode, providing powerful airflow, but it’s also quiet enough for light sleepers in standard mode.

App Features

• Temperature and Humidity Monitoring: Keep track of room conditions effortlessly.
• Scheduling: Set automatic on/off times for convenience.
• Automatic Cleaning Reminders: Never forget to maintain your fan again.
• Customizable Fan and Misting Levels: Tailor airflow and humidity to your preferences.

The app offers ample customization, making the Dreo TurboCool 516S an excellent choice for smart home enthusiasts seeking precise control over their environment.

The post New Video – More Control Than Physical Buttons This Fan App Shows How #smartHome #tech appeared first on Mark's Tech Blogs.