esphome News - CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

April 14, 2026 by Debashis Das - No Comments

DeskUp Pro smart standing desk controller integrates with Home Assistant and Homey Pro Smart Home hubs

Designed by SmartHomeGuys in the UK, the DeskUp Pro is an ESP32-based standing desk controller compatible with Home Assistant, Homey Pro, and other Smart Home hubs, using the desk’s standard RJ11/RJ12 connection. Many modern standing desks come with a controller from Jiecang or another company featuring an RJ12 port. The DeskUp Pro plugs directly into this port, draws power without an external USB supply, and bridges the desk’s controls to your 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi network. This allows you to automate your desk height, set health-focused standing reminders, or use voice assistants like Google Home and Alexa, all while keeping the desk’s original physical keypad fully functional. DeskUp Pro specifications: MCU – Espressif Systems ESP32-C6 or ESP32-S3 microcontroller with 2.4GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth LE Desk connectivity – Built-in RJ11/RJ12 cable for data and power USB – USB Type-C port for initial setup and firmware flashing Misc Supported Jiecang control boxes JCB36NE2 (used […]

April 7, 2026 by Debashis Das - 6 Comments

SN1 Solar Node – An ESP32-C3-based board with IP67 enclosure, solar charging, ESPHome firmware

Designed by Granz Scientific LLC, the SN1 Solar Node is an ESP32-C3-based IoT node/development board designed specifically for off-grid IoT projects. Development boards like Seeed Studio Wio Tracker, or industrial controllers like DFRobot LoRaWAN Control Terminal, allow you to handle your own battery management and weatherproofing, or on the other end, you have products like SenseCAP Solar Node P1 that come with everything integrated but do not allow adding custom hardware. This is where the SN1 Solar Node is different; it features an IP67-rated enclosure with an integrated solar panel on the lid, 18650 battery support, and prototyping strip-board areas for custom circuitry. It also includes a smart power switch that allows the battery to continue charging from the solar panel even when the board is powered off. Additionally, it provides battery voltage monitoring, breaks out most GPIOs for easy access, and includes optional jumpers for an onboard LED and […]

February 24, 2026February 24, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Inkplate 13SPECTRA 13.3-inch E-ink Spectra smart color display supports Arduino, MicroPython, ESPHome (Crowdfunding)

Soldered Electronics has made ESP32-based e-paper displays for years, starting with the launch of the Inkplate 6 in 2019. The Inkplate 13SPECTRA is their latest model based on an ESP32-S3 WiFi and Bluetooth SoC and a 13.3-inch E-Ink Spectra color display with 1600 x 1200 resolution. More specifically, it’s powered by an ESP32-S3-WROOM-2-N32R16V module with 32MB SPI flash and 16MB PSRAM, features a microSD card slot for data storage, a USB-C port for data and power, a JST connector for an optional 3,000 mAh LiPo battery, and expansion capabilities through three Qwiic connectors and GPIO expander pins. Inkplate 13SPECTRA specifications: Wireless module – ESP32-S3-WROOM-2-N32R16V SoC – ESP32-S3 dual-core Xtensa LX7 processor (up to 240 MHz) with wireless connectivity System Memory – 16 MB PSRAM Storage – 32 MB flash Wireless – Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n (2.4 GHz), Bluetooth 5 (LE), Storage – MicroSD card slot Display 13.3-inch E-Ink SPECTRA color e-paper […]

February 6, 2026February 7, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Olimex HoT aims to be lightweight, easier-to-use alternative to Home Assistant

Olimex HoT (Home of Things) is a lightweight Smart Home solution designed to run on low-end hardware (128MB RAM, 128MB flash) and interface with nodes running ESPHome. It can serve as an easier-to-use alternative for people who don’t need all the bells and whistles provided by powerful home automation frameworks such as Home Assistant or OpenHAB. Home Assistant open-source home automation software is great, but it requires a system with at least 2GB of RAM, and 4GB of RAM is often recommended for most users. There’s also a steep learning curve. This is what Tsvetan Usunov, Olimex CEO, realized last year when he tried Home Assistant, and he decided to start working on a low-cost, easy-to-use solution for IoT and Smart Home applications. That’s why the Olimex HoT project was created. Tsvetan gave a talk about the project entitled “Designing EUR 20 Open Source Hardware running Free/Libre Open Source Software […]

January 24, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

FOSDEM 2026 schedule – Embedded, RISC-V, Robotics, Rust, Open Hardware, and more

FOSDEM 2026 will take place on January 31-February 1, with thousands of developers meeting in Brussels to discuss open-source software & hardware projects. The free-to-attend “Free and Open Source Software Developers’ European Meeting” gets more traction every year, and in 2026, there will be at least 1,113 speakers, 1,016 events, 70 tracks, and potentially close to 10,000 attendees. As usual, I’ll create a virtual schedule with sessions most relevant to the topics covered on CNX Software from the “Embedded, Mobile and Automotive” and “Open Hardware and CAD/CAM” devrooms, but also other devrooms, including “RISC-V”, “Robotics and simulation”, and “FOSS on Mobile”, among others. I’m aware some of the talks overlap by a couple of minutes or so… FOSDEM 2026 Day 1 – Saturday, January 31 10:40 – 11:15 – RISC-V Vector optimisations in FFmpeg by Rémi Denis-Courmont FFmpeg is the most versatile multimedia codec and format support library, and was […]

January 21, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

ESPHome 2026.1.0 optimizes memory usage on ESP32/ESP8266, adds Zigbee support on nRF52, WiFi roaming, and more

ESPHome 2026.1.0 open-source firmware has just been released with new features like automatic WiFi roaming and Zigbee support for Nordic Semi nRF52 targets, as well as memory optimization for ESP32/ESP8266 hardware, among many other changes. Other notable changes include security updates with the project replacing API password authentication with API encryption and requiring SHA256 authentication for OTA updates, better support for non-ASCII configuration, and updates to LibreTiny platforms (BK72xx, RTL87xx, LN882x), which received thread-safe WiFi, atomics, and deep sleep support. ESPHome developers used to advise users not to use ESP8266, not because it was not suitable for the task, but because the runtime heap on ESP8266 routinely dropped below 10k, and devices were unreliable. Since millions of ESP8266 devices were already deployed in homes, they decided to do something about it. The project was greatly helped thanks to increased support from the Open Home Foundation, which allows the project to […]

January 16, 2026January 15, 2026 by Debashis Das - 7 Comments

ESP32-S3 multi-radio Smart Home gateway features Ethernet, Zigbee, Thread, Z-Wave, Wi-Fi, BLE, and optional 4G LTE connectivity

SLZB Ultima multi radio smart home gateway with ESP32 S3 Zigbee Z Wave, Matter or Thread

SMLIGHT SLZB-Ultima is an ESP32-S3-based, multi-radio smart-home gateway with dual Zigbee/Thread radios, optional Z-Wave 800, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth LE, Ethernet with PoE, USB host expansion, and optional 4G LTE connectivity designed for advanced Home Assistant and DIY applications. The device also integrates an IR receiver and transmitter for controlling legacy appliances, GPIO and I²C for hardware expansion, a buzzer, physical buttons, service LEDs, and 12 on-board WS2812B RGB LEDs on the front for status indication. These features make it suitable for an all-in-one smart-home and IoT gateway rather than a simple coordinator. SMLIGHT SLZB-Ultima specifications: Main SoC – ESP32-S3 CPU – Dual-core LX7 microprocessor @ up to 240 MHz with Vector extension for machine learning Wireless – WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5 with LE/Mesh Audio – Built-in buzzer and optional microphone for ESPHome Voice Assist Networking Wireless Dual Zigbee / Thread radios (Texas Instruments CC2674P10 + Silicon Labs EFR32MG24) Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n […]

January 9, 2026 by Debashis Das - 8 Comments

Home Assistant-compatible Makerfabs ESP32-S3-based energy meter features BL0942 energy metering IC

The Energy Meter for Home Assistant is an ESP32-S3-based single-phase energy monitoring and control module designed to work with Home Assistant via ESPHome. It measures real-time power and energy consumption and also has a remote on/off control. The device is built around the BL0942 calibration-free energy metering IC, which supports voltage, current, power, and energy measurements with less than 1% error. It operates directly from AC 100–240V, includes an onboard 15A relay for switching loads, and provides electrical isolation for safety. Connectivity is done through USB and Wi-Fi using ESPHome for easy firmware flashing, API encryption, and automatic discovery in Home Assistant. These features make it suitable for smart homes, DIY energy monitoring, smart sockets, home energy dashboards, and automation projects. Energy Meter for Home Assistant specifications: Core module – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3-WROOM-1 SoC – ESP32-S3 CPU – Dual-core Tensilica LX7 up to 240 MHz with vector extension for AI/ML workloads […]