HackSpace – September 2019

REVIEW FIELD TEST

Sonoff Mini

n issue four we reviewed the Sonoff Basic,

a cheap option for people who wanted to

make their dumb devices smart by providing

power switching via apps and voice control

• provided they’re prepared to get their
  hands dirty with a little DIY. Today we’re
  looking at its younger sibling, the Sonoff Mini, and
  discussing the differences between the two devices.
  Much like the Basic, the Mini provides the ability
  to add smart switching features to dumb devices.
  What’s different is the Mini has the optional ability
  to attach an on/off switch to it, providing two-way
  switching control, letting a regular switch work
  alongside smart control.
  The classic use case for this would be adding
  smart control to the pre-existing lights in each room of
  your home, while keeping the ability to use your
  regular light switch, allowing both to provide
  independent control. It won’t matter which state
  the switch is in, when you flip it, the lights will
  toggle on or off accordingly, with the same being
  true of the smart control.

I

At less than half the size of the Basic,

it lives up to its Mini name, which

according to Sonoff’s marketing materials

means it will fit inside a standard EU switch box –

but unfortunately, when testing the device we found it

didn’t fit behind any of our test switches, so if you’re

planning on using it to upgrade the lighting in your

home, you will need to measure the available space

inside the switch box first. This is important, not only for

aesthetics, but because it needs to sit inside an

enclosure due to the live screw terminals which are

exposed on the unit.

Much like the Basic, the smart control via the

eWeLink app works really well, and we had no issues

getting it connected to our WiFi network, or added

as a device to our Amazon Echo. Among the features

of the app are the ability to set a regular schedule,

timers, and interaction with the IFTTT service, letting

you do things like, automatically trigger the switch

when the ISS is overhead, for example.

One new feature is that of LAN access, meaning

smart control can continue to work independently of

a cloud service, which solves the previously reported

issue of the cloud service occasionally going down,

and bypassing potential issues with an unstable

internet connection.

Also new is a DIY mode, aimed at developers, which

provides a REST API for direct control of the device,

which is enabled by opening the casing and attaching

the included jumper. The documentation and tools for

this exist on a GitHub repo, but still appear in their

infancy. Provided you have a suitable enclosure, the

Sonoff Mini provides an easy-to-use way of adding IoT

control to existing appliances.

By Daniel Hollands maker.rip

VERDICT

Adds smart

control to

room lighting

in an elegant

way, provided

it fits behind

your switch.

/ 10

Create your own Internet of Things

SONOFF £6.40 itead.cc

Above

A small and

compact unit,

living up to

its name

Left

Diagram showing

the two wiring

options available

8

At less than half the size of the Basic,

it lives up to its Mini name, which

according to Sonoff’s marketing materials

means it will fit inside a standard EU switch box –

Sonoff Mini

two-way smart switch