For those toss ESPhome on it and check for a config for your specific device or make your own. A good tinkering weekend of poking should be able to get you there for most devices
I have an automatic cat food dispenser just like that, but now has ESPhome flashed to it and hooked into HA
You can but it requires some fancy soldering usually and some makers bury the needed pins so thoroughly you can’t get access without ruining the device.
And you often need external circuitry to get serial communication going. And if your soldering is not clean the line can be too noisy to get the firmware flashed.
So yes you can and it’s a fun challenge. But if your time is worth anything, it may not be economical.
Exactly. The best reason to do it is as a skill challenge, not a cost savings. It is empowering to be able to subvert a smart device. But once is enough
I suggest we reward the makers who let us hack their hardware as a general practice, instead.
For those toss ESPhome on it and check for a config for your specific device or make your own. A good tinkering weekend of poking should be able to get you there for most devices
I have an automatic cat food dispenser just like that, but now has ESPhome flashed to it and hooked into HA
Can you flash it on any cheap amazon cat food dispenser or did you have to find a specific type?
It’s a crap shoot, some do some don’t. I find the SOLOs (the brand I have) to typically use a flashable ESP32
Wait. So you can crack open some branded smart devices and if you find a ESP32 you can flash the OEM crap off?
I need to up my game.
You can but it requires some fancy soldering usually and some makers bury the needed pins so thoroughly you can’t get access without ruining the device.
And you often need external circuitry to get serial communication going. And if your soldering is not clean the line can be too noisy to get the firmware flashed.
So yes you can and it’s a fun challenge. But if your time is worth anything, it may not be economical.
Yeah this sounds like way too much of a PITA to me. I do see brands made for which is better to aim at.
Exactly. The best reason to do it is as a skill challenge, not a cost savings. It is empowering to be able to subvert a smart device. But once is enough
I suggest we reward the makers who let us hack their hardware as a general practice, instead.
Agreed. Either that or you hack a device you own or got for free.
If anything replacing the ESP32 might be better for some devices but idk