Is there any Sailfish app existent that can be used to control a simple smart plug or wireless power socket?
Maybe Quartermaster?
What smart plug manufacturers can you recommend for such purposes?
Hi there,
you can use Quartermaster (I am the developer) to do this. But you need a running Homeassistant server on e.g. an Raspberry PI. Quartermaster can control all smartplugs and others that are controled by Homeassistant. There are lot of smart home devices supported. Just check the homeassistant homepage.
One of the cheapest solution (I use myself) are Tuya based products with Tasmota firmware flashed to get rid of the china cloud thing.
I also have an other app Kasa, which can control TP-Link smart plugs (HS100/HS110) directly. These plugs are not that cheap. Control is only possibel inside your own network. So no cloud. But you can use a vpn to get access when not at home.
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There is also Tint and Scintillon for Philips Hue and compatible things like Innr.
Beware with any smart switch or plug that uses the TUYA system, many are not able to flash TASMOTA without resorting to hacks and tricks, which rarely work.
I have 8 Sonoff branded switches/plugs all flashed with TASMOTA. I also wanted a way to control these from my phone, so I wrote my own app, but I havenāt released it for public use. I also wrote a few apps to run on my PC using QtCreator Community build, this allows me to also control all 8 Sonoffās from my desktop.
I have no experience with any brands other than Sonoff, which personally, I think are great value for money and extremely flexible when it comes to not using cloud services, which is what initially attracted me to the Sonoff brand.
TASMOTA is regularly updating its firmware, all of which can be applied using OTA, this of course is possible after the initial flash via cable.
If anyone reading this is interested in the software I have created, Iām happy to share what Iāve created so far.
First page for all lights and power control.
Second page for my Denon Amplifier (essential controls)
Covers for both pages, yes!, you are seeing correctly!, 4 buttons on a cover!
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Going a bit off topic here, maybe this needs to be moved to a separate topic: Iām extremely interested in what you have created for Denon! I have been thinking about writing a Denon app myselfā¦
Hi @vige, okay, sounds reasonable, certainly if users/sailors express an interest.
I will add that my Denon amp is quite dated, it does not have internet/wifi access and is controlled using a homemade IR relay board built using a NodeMCU dev board and a ā¬0.30c IR led to send IR codes, all controlled via a prebuilt IR module from TASMOTA. The reason for this?, a new replacement remote is best part of ā¬80, my project cost me ā¬3.50 and many hours learning to code it. I got my Denon amp second-hand for only ā¬30 but there was never a remote supplied.
I will post something here in applications soonā¢.
We are on fire watch here, our local garden waste recycling plant has been burning for days, I can see it from where I am sitting!.
How do I do that?
Iāve just bought myself a few Sonoff Mini R2 and they seem to be working out of the box with the stock firmware and some Python code, no flashing or Android apps required for setup either.
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Just add 4 buttons to CoverPage.qml and then for labels (which doesnāt scale very well) I just added a row of letters, spaced by eye. The ālettersā are in a separate file and referenced by id.
Does Tasmota work the same way as the factory DIY mode certain Sonoff devices come with?
I just wrote a Python library which supports the later, without the need to flash anything.
It would be interesting to know how compatible these are, though.
Confirmed to work with the following Sonoff products:
Switch MINIR2
Dimmer D1
LED Bulb B02 and B05
Sorry for late reply, Iām not familiar with DIY mode, it rings bells, but Iām pretty sure only my Sonoff Mini R2ās have DIY mode.
Hereās a very short list from Sonoff giving those with DIY mode. Most of mine are original first version switches. My first one was the Basic, then RF Basic, 4 x Mini R2 and 2 x S26. Most of these models have been revised.
Thank you. I know how DIY mode works and wrote a library which makes the mentioned switches and lights usable on Sailfish. What Iām lacking is any experience with Tasmota flashed devices you mentioned. It would be interesting to know how compatible both ways to control the devices are to possibly include support for both.
Best way to communicate with Tasmota Devices is via mqtt.
For that way you need a mqtt server like mosquitto.
Direct communication ist described here: Commands - Tasmota
mqtt is a bit overkill for the switches, though. I just have BASICR3 switches (in DIY mode) and python (or curl for that matter) works well enough. I would guess mqtt for querying devices with more state than 0/1?
mqtt is what ties everything together in my home anyway, from various sensors over energy monitors, status displays to Sonoff devices (DIY mode plus a daemon written in Python). Thatās what I initially wrote the Sonoff library for. Iāve been toying with the idea of creating a Sailfish app for controlling Sonoff DIY devices, but it may be such a niche application, Iām not entirely sure itās worth the effort.
I have a message broker based app (flask/werkzeug) that was made for own-built (my friend herb, actually) āphrobsā. We didnāt make it to market ;-( I had thought of re-purposing the app, but, since most of what I need to control is about reducing my energy footprint, I decided against yet another server in the home. Just switching everything to run on the clock (ie, eltakos on the rails) did the job. But, I did waste a bunch of energy and money before reducing the complexity. At the moment, water is a focus. This requires of me that I dig deep holes. No wires needed.
On the other hand, I think the Sonoff devices, with the DIY mode, although niche, are really popular since there arenāt so many minimal effort DIY devices on the market. It sounds like your doing both basic json at the Sonoffs AND mqtt anyway, so youāre probably 1/2 way to an app already?
Yes, JSON over HTTP to switch the devices on and off plus multicast DNS for discovery and status. All implemented from basic Python sockets to minimize external library requirements.
Iāve cobbled something together to quickly test if itās a viable concept:
https://openrepos.net/sites/default/files/packages/16395/harbour-eolux-0.1-2.noarch.rpm
Immediately found my switches, after I connected 'em. It proliferates duplicates nicely 
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Should now update existing entries when the switch status changes instead of creating new ones:
https://openrepos.net/sites/default/files/packages/16395/harbour-eolux-0.2-1.noarch.rpm
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This should be enough to do some initial testing:
https://openrepos.net/sites/default/files/packages/16395/harbour-eolux-0.3-2.noarch.rpm
Sonoff LED bulbs seem not to use the mDNS discovery method the switch modules are using, means they will have to be added manually (once this is implemented).
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