HA Dave, your post was pretty interesting. Noam, yours even more so. A quick search found a brief DIY article on how to use these to do your own bidding:
https://medium.com/@edwardbenson/how-i-hacked-amazon-s-5-wifi-button-to-track-baby-data-794214b0bdd8And then the eureka moment: These can be used as a FREE alternative to the X10 KR15A (Big Red Button)!
(Warning: Whether you can really assign the button to a product on Amazon, use it to order something and get your $4.99 refund, and then unassign the button from the product, I haven't confirmed!) If not free, they're 1/4 of the cost. And since all devices can see an ARP probe on the same LAN segment, you don't even need to add RF repeaters (as with the KR15A) if you already have WiFi coverage. If you have a large house but already have multiple WiFi access points patched to one switch, it already works anywhere in your house!
Now, if you start thinking about what you can do by taking that little thing apart and connecting a differently-purposed switch across the pins of the existing pushbutton switch, the possibilities really start to open up. And since this is effectively open source since the author of that article gives away the (very simple) Python code, you can replace the code that logs a row to a spreadsheet with code that runs another program or ties into your automation software of choice. Then it becomes a question of what you
can't do!
- Put one next to your door and add code to play a sound and flash the lights when it's pushed? Sweet, a doorbell!
- Add a tilt switch to your mailbox and use one to send you a text message when your mailbox is opened? Why not?
- Connect a relay to the buzzer on your dryer and connect the relay contacts to one of these, and send a text message when your clothes are done? Sure!
- Detect when a plant's soil is dry and add an item to your to-do list to water it? Maybe. You may actually need to add a transistor for that one!
The first step is to get a bunch of these and start experimenting. The great thing is that if you fry one, you're not out any money!
