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?
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.
Itβs a little confusing. Nextion makes βHMI displaysβ. Itβs an integrated module that runs its own software, draws the UI, processes events, etc. Itβs a black box that just reports back to the processor βbutton 3 on page 1 has been pressedβ. You design the interface with that ugly Windows app and upload it to the display, but there is no direct access to the screen.
To make use of the Nextion display, you need something connected to it, and thatβs where the ESP32 comes in. It receives those βbutton 3 pressedβ events and handles them, but crucially, it does not have raw access to the screen, so you canβt just draw your own widgets on it like youβd be able to do on an ordinary display.
There are other projects to build your own controller with a touch screen and a microcontroller; the appeal of the NSPanel is that itβs basically an ESP32 and a Nextion display conveniently prebuilt, has decent hardware and aesthetics, and it isnβt hard to reflash it with ESPHome. Replacing the Sonoff firmware on the ESP32 doesnβt change the limitations of the Nextion display.
Yeah, thereβs obviously a learning curve here in store for me. Thank you for explaining it - that makes sense.
It means, though, that Iβm stuck trying to get this thing running under Wine, which I read is possible. The post I found says you can even forward the serial port for flashing.
Theyβre such attractive devices, with nice form factors, it may be worth the effort. Funnily, the flashing doesnβt throw me off as much as running that editor.
Anyhoo, thanks again.
