On Amzn, there are nicely framed, wall-mounted control panels for proprietary home automation systems. What are people using for HA? Iβm leaning toward trying to wall mount tablets, but Iβd need 3, and cost starts to factor in. Mounts are a problem; I want it to look as built in as possible, but most mounts arenβt picture-frame style. The ones that Iβve found that are, are designed for specific tablets, and not the low end cheap ones. I donβt have a 3D printer, so Iβm limited to mounts I can buy.
I like some projects here Iβve seen using eInk - thatβs the ideal solution! Is there a source for pre-fab Android eInk wall mounted control panels, or are what Iβve seen bespoke projects?
Iβm not opposed to gross wiring, and am not afraid of cutting holes in dry-wallβ¦ itβs really the mounting that Iβm stuck at. Android 7-10" tablets sufficient to run the UI would probably work, and I can probably even figure out wiring the charger, if I could just get some nice picture-frame style mounts.
What are your solutions that you think is pretty neat? Or products that I may have missed?
The way I use them is to reflash the firmware with ESPHome, at which point they have nothing to do with Sonoff. I got really into these things when they came out and made a video about the process: https://youtu.be/Kdf6W_Ied4o?si=4nh7kP28IglwVHBx. There are a bunch of different ways to use them including retaining the original software, but I kind of stopped paying attention when I got mine working.
Itβs worth noting that they have two different products. The βNSPanel Proβ is completely different, I think it runs Android. I havenβt played with that at all.
What a great video! Iβm going to try it.
In your video, you mention the horrible Nextion Editor. That was a year and a half ago - have you tried GUIslice? Iβm utterly unfamiliar with every component of this, but it seems to write the same TFT display driver needed by that hardware.
What I loved the most: when checking out the product on Amazon after watching your video (on NewPiped and over VPN, so low chance of tracking), was this beautiful recommendation:
I guess a lot of people are using it with non-SONOFF software. It absolutely restores my faith in humanity.
I havenβt seen that software, but it doesnβt look like it can be used with Nextion screens, which are totally proprietary.
Isnβt the Nextion an ESP32 display? The list of devices in the readme doesnβt mention Nextion.
Well, Iβll let you know how it goes. I donβt have access to a Windows computer, and I havenβt had a need to install Wine in over a decade, but thatβs what Iβll have to resort to if Nextion is mandatory. I came across a post where Nextion outright said theyβd given up on a cross-platform solution.