We are sometimes requested if we prioritize “Large Tech” corporations within the Works with program, however we’ve all the time been clear that newer corporations are simply as essential to our certification as family names. Begin-ups are innovators, and have their fingers on the heart beat of neighborhood wants way more than manufacturers which might be solely on the mercy of their buyers.
That’s only one motive 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 – very best when you hire your house, or don’t fancy working with wiring. We’re all the time looking out for units that make organising your sensible house 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 methods – together with senior engineering roles at Leviton and Philips. Harish designed the Slate Change to chop the complexity typically present in sensible houses, by bringing again easy, tactile management with none set up complications. And since it builds on prime of your present switches slightly than changing them, it means much less waste and extra worth from the belongings you already personal.
“At zunzunbee, we consider sensible house management ought to really feel pure, dependable, and keep below the person’s management. The House 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 houses, and we’re excited to convey it to a neighborhood that values considerate automation and really understands how houses ought to work.”
– Harish Raman, Founder
Not only for newbies
The Slate Change isn’t only a low-barrier entry level for rookies. It additionally tackles a problem that may crop up in additional advanced sensible house setups: somebody flipping a wall change that controls your sensible bulbs so all of your rigorously configured automations cease working 😩. Slate Change retains these bulbs completely powered, whereas giving everybody within the family a well-recognized, bodily button proper the place they count on it. In case you choose, you may also make use of the snap-on snap-off magnetic operate to select up the change and take it with you. You need to use it as a distant, and every of the zones can help each a faucet or long-press motion, making it an ideal accomplice to have in a pocket.
An economical gadget can be a low-risk technique 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 best buzz
Two bs and numerous zs: it’s no coincidence that zunzunbee makes use of Zigbee for the Slate Change. In case you’ve not heard of Zigbee earlier than, it’s an open wi-fi normal constructed for low-power sensible house 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 solely domestically with no dependency on the cloud, so your sensible house stays in your palms and the Slate Change retains working even when you lose web connection. If you need that very same safety and management once you’re away, House Assistant Cloud presents totally encrypted distant entry – and as an added bonus 😉 subscribing straight funds the Open House Basis’s struggle for privateness, selection and sustainability for sensible houses (and this very program too!).
By selecting Zigbee, zunzunbee help that struggle… they usually’ve been proactive contributors to our neighborhood as properly. They’ve printed official House Assistant blueprints to make setup as easy as attainable, and contributed code to Zigbee2MQTT (one other well-liked community-maintained open supply venture) 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 gadget within the Works with House Assistant program, the Slate Change has been by 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 might be only one small gadget, however it provides you mighty selection! 💪The Slate Change arrives as a clean canvas, with two sheets of stickers so you possibly can label and prepare 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 ideal hands-on walkthrough if you wish to see all of it in motion.
Able to make the change?
We find it irresistible when a contemporary thought from a brand new face lands in our orbit (and passes muster!) – and we’ve got a sense the House Assistant neighborhood goes to have numerous enjoyable with this one. Whether or not you’re simply dipping your toe into sensible house management, or in search of new methods to push your present setup additional, the Slate Change has you coated. Take a look at our licensed gadget listing to see what else is on the market!
FAQs
Q: If I’ve a tool that’s not listed below “Works with House Assistant” does this imply it’s not supported?
A: No! It simply implies that it hasn’t gone by a testing schedule with our group or doesn’t match the necessities of this system. It’d operate completely properly however be added to the testing schedule later down the highway, or it would work below a unique connectivity sort that we don’t at present check below this system.
Q: OK, so what’s the purpose of the Works with program?
A: It highlights the units we all know work properly with House Assistant and the manufacturers that make a long-term dedication to preserving help for these units going. The certification settlement specifies that the units should have the performance you’ll count on inside House Assistant, function domestically with out the necessity for cloud, and that they’ll proceed to take action long-term.
Q: How had been these units examined?
A: All units on this listing had been examined utilizing a regular House Assistant Inexperienced as a hub with the House Assistant Join ZBT-2, and with ZHA, our Zigbee integration. You probably 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 group to certify inside our ecosystem.
Q: Will you be including extra zunzunbee units to this system?
A: Why not! We’re thrilled to foster an in depth relationship with the group at zunzunbee and we’re excited to see how they develop their product line sooner or later. We’re trying ahead to working collectively on any upcoming releases or including in additional merchandise that aren’t but listed right here.
