Gone are the times when all sensible units have been required an web uplink. The WiFi-enabled IoT fad, whereas nonetheless upon us (no, my espresso scale doesn’t have to be on the community, dammit!) has begun to present approach to low-power protocols really designed for this type of communication, similar to ZigBee, and extra just lately, Thread. The draw back of those new programs, nevertheless, is that they could be a bit harder during which to dabble. If you wish to see simply why your WiFi-enabled toaster uploads 100 MB of information per day to some server, you may seize some community site visitors in your laptop computer with none specialised {hardware}. These low-power protocols can really feel a bit extra opaque, however that’s simply remedied with a dev board. For a few {dollars}, you should purchase Thread radio that, with some further hacking, acts as a portal between this previously-arcane protocol and your laptop computer — or, as [András Tevesz] has proven us, your Flipper Zero.
He’s printed a beautiful three-part information detailing easy methods to mod one such $10 radio to speak with the Flipper by way of its GPIO pins, arrange a toolchain, construct the firmware, and begin experimenting. The information even will get into the nitty-gritty of how information is dealt with transmitted and investigates potential assault vectors (much less worrying in your Thread-enabled gentle bulb, very worrying in your sensible door lock). This mission is a incredible approach to prototype new sensors, construct sophisticated programs utilizing the Flipper as a bridge, and even simply acquire some perception into how the units in your sensible house function.
In 2025, it’s simpler than ever to get began with house automation — whether or not you cook dinner up an answer your self, or go for a secure, off-the-shelf (however nonetheless hackable) resolution like HomeAssistant (and even Minecraft?). Whatever the path you select, you’ll seemingly wind up with units on the Thread community that you simply now have the instruments to hack.
