We are sometimes requested if we prioritize “Massive Tech” corporations within the Works with program, however we’ve at all times been clear that newer firms are simply as necessary to our certification as family names. Begin-ups are innovators, and have their fingers on the heartbeat of neighborhood wants far more than manufacturers which can be solely on the mercy of their buyers.
That’s only one purpose we’re thrilled to welcome zunzunbee to this system! They actually stood out from the gang at CES 2026 this January with their new product, the Slate Change. This battery-powered sensible scene controller merely snaps over present switches – superb for those who lease your house, or don’t fancy working with wiring. We’re at all times looking out for units that make organising your sensible dwelling simpler, so we’re delighted to have zunzunbee on board!
A clear slate for switches
Whereas zunzunbee are newcomers to the market, founder Harish Raman has greater than 18 years’ expertise in lighting and related programs – together with senior engineering roles at Leviton and Philips. Harish designed the Slate Change to chop the complexity generally present in sensible properties, by bringing again easy, tactile management with none set up complications. And since it builds on prime of your present switches moderately than changing them, it means much less waste and extra worth from the stuff you already personal.
“At zunzunbee, we consider sensible dwelling management ought to really feel pure, dependable, and keep underneath the consumer’s management. The Residence Assistant neighborhood shares that very same philosophy, with a give attention to native management, flexibility, and deep customization.
Slate Change was designed to unravel on a regular basis friction in sensible properties, and we’re excited to deliver it to a neighborhood that values considerate automation and really understands how properties ought to work.”
– Harish Raman, Founder
Not only for newbies
The Slate Change isn’t only a low-barrier entry level for inexperienced persons. It additionally tackles a difficulty that may crop up in additional complicated sensible dwelling setups: somebody flipping a wall change that controls your sensible bulbs so all of your fastidiously configured automations cease working 😩. Slate Change retains these bulbs completely powered, whereas giving everybody within the family a well-known, bodily button proper the place they count on it. If you happen to desire, you too can make use of the snap-on snap-off magnetic operate to select up the change and take it with you. You should use it as a distant, and every of the zones can help each a faucet or long-press motion, making it an ideal associate to have in a pocket.
An economical machine can also be a low-risk strategy to experiment, with loads of potentialities to discover with out a massive outlay. And when you’re hooked, multipacks of two or 4 can be found so you possibly can roll them out throughout your house.
The precise buzz
Two bs and a number of zs: it’s no coincidence that zunzunbee makes use of Zigbee for the Slate Change. If you happen to’ve not heard of Zigbee earlier than, it’s an open wi-fi commonplace constructed for low-power sensible dwelling units – which describes the Slate Change to a tee, because it runs on a single CR2450 coin cell with as much as two years of battery life.
Zigbee works completely regionally with no dependency on the cloud, so your sensible dwelling stays in your fingers and the Slate Change retains working even for those who lose web connection. If you would like that very same safety and management if you’re away, Residence Assistant Cloud provides absolutely encrypted distant entry – and as an added bonus 😉 subscribing straight funds the Open Residence Basis’s struggle for privateness, selection and sustainability for sensible properties (and this very program too!).
By selecting Zigbee, zunzunbee help that struggle… they usually’ve been proactive contributors to our neighborhood as effectively. They’ve revealed official Residence Assistant blueprints to make setup as clean as potential, and contributed code to Zigbee2MQTT (one other widespread community-maintained open supply undertaking) on GitHub. It’s precisely what we like to see from our companions!
The Slate Change merely snaps over your present wall switches.
Units
As with each machine within the Works with Residence Assistant program, the Slate Change has been via our full certification course of: examined for efficiency, reliability, and compatibility with our ideas. By becoming a member of this system, zunzunbee additionally commits to offering long-term help and firmware updates, so you should buy with confidence.
It could be only one small machine, nevertheless it offers you mighty selection! 💪The Slate Change arrives as a clean canvas, with two sheets of stickers so you possibly can label and organize as much as eight tappable zones precisely the way you need them, and reconfigure simply as simply in case your wants change. And it’s not solely about switching scenes or triggers: there’s a built-in ambient temperature sensor within the change too, opening up much more automation potentialities straight out of the field.
Jimmy over on the Automated Home YouTube channel has an amazing hands-on walkthrough if you wish to see all of it in motion.
Able to make the change?
We like it when a contemporary thought from a brand new face lands in our orbit (and passes muster!) – and we have now a sense the Residence Assistant neighborhood goes to have a number of enjoyable with this one. Whether or not you’re simply dipping your toe into sensible dwelling management, or in search of new methods to push your present setup additional, the Slate Change has you lined. Take a look at our licensed machine checklist to see what else is on the market!
FAQs
Q: If I’ve a tool that isn’t listed underneath “Works with Residence Assistant” does this imply it’s not supported?
A: No! It simply implies that it hasn’t gone via a testing schedule with our crew or doesn’t match the necessities of this system. It would operate completely effectively however be added to the testing schedule later down the street, or it’d work underneath a unique connectivity sort that we don’t at the moment check underneath this system.
Q: OK, so what’s the purpose of the Works with program?
A: It highlights the units we all know work effectively with Residence Assistant and the manufacturers that make a long-term dedication to retaining help for these units going. The certification settlement specifies that the units should have the performance you’ll count on inside Residence Assistant, function regionally with out the necessity for cloud, and that they’ll proceed to take action long-term.
Q: How have been these units examined?
A: All units on this checklist have been examined utilizing an ordinary Residence Assistant Inexperienced as a hub with the Residence Assistant Join ZBT-2, and with ZHA, our Zigbee integration. When you have one other hub/adapter set-up/integration that’s not an issue, however we check towards these as they’re the simplest method for our crew to certify inside our ecosystem.
Q: Will you be including extra zunzunbee units to this system?
A: Why not! We’re thrilled to foster a detailed relationship with the crew at zunzunbee and we’re excited to see how they develop their product line sooner or later. We’re wanting ahead to working collectively on any upcoming releases or including in additional merchandise that aren’t but listed right here.
