LocalDeck - Quick Questions Megathread

AAllport

jane_t No problem at all!

Yes, we do support Bluetooth proxy.
No, there isn't currently a way to add a mic-speaker for assist (we're using all the pins for the keypad at the moment)

I hope this helps!

bushbrother

Can you supply a printable template for the button labels? It looks amazing, looking forward to it.

AAllport

bushbrother Another fantastic question!

Currently, our focus is on using the configurator (we'll be linking that later today) for the labels.
This will generate a printable version of your configuration!

Sean

Will you ship to Australia? I don't see it listed on your shipping page

Also, could you clarify the power plug type options? I presume the LocalDeck is USB powered and those options are for the wallwart PSUs.

AAllport

Sean Hi Sean,

We now ship worldwide from our UK warehouse, we'll get the shipping page updated shortly

Regarding the power plug, you're correct.
The deck itself is USB-C powered!

Sean

AAllport
In that case will you offer a no PSU option for those of us in regions that are incompatible with your existing PSU options ?

saj42

Hi this looks brilliant.
Can some "buttons" be used as notification instead by dynamically changing the background colour?

Eg price of electricity.
Green = go for it
Amber = if you must
Red = under pain of death...

AAllport

saj42 Thanks for the kind words!
We've been calling these "Passive notifications"

We also expose each pixel as a light entity, so you can do "passive notifications", as I call them.
For example, I have a light for my 3D Printer that flashes green when a print finishes and red on a fail!
AAllport

saj42

AAllport
Superb..... 👍

saj42

Another question. I've got some of your tasmota smart plugs and I love the simplicity of them; especially that they work on the local LAN.

Does this unit have a similar API/interface - a pointer to the documentation (or similar if it's not written yet for the deck)?

I see you've got a Home Assistant integration but I'm in the process of moving away from it.

AAllport

saj42 We love Tasmota too!

The issue is that Tasmota doesn't currently have (to my knowledge) a matrix keypad driver.
It can probably be done with Berry, but it's not something we're actively working on at the moment.

If someone in the community did get things working, we'd absolutely link to it (or accept a PR to include it).

If you're moving away from HomeAssistant to a different platform, it would be possible to use MQTT!

localash

Any chance of sharing the ESPHome yaml? Keen to see how this is implemented to know what flexibility to configure things that I'll have.

AAllport

localash Absolutely, we love open-sourcing things where possible!
You can find a link to the configurator and the stock YAML in the updates thread

Configurator:

Web: https://blog.mylocalbytes.com/tools/localdeck-configurator

Addon: coming soon

Source: https://github.com/LocalBytes/localdeck-config/tree/main/packages/localdeck-configurator

https://forum.mylocalbytes.com/d/10-localdeck-updates-thread

saj42

AAllport ahh ok thanks. I didn't mean tasmota specifically but that I like the local only approach rather than having to connect to the big bad world.
So local MQTT broker say on NodeJs then the deck as a client. 2 way connection et voila...?

I'm new to MQTT so I'm just getting my head around it.

AAllport

saj42 How're you currently interacting with the Tasmota plugs?
But yeah, MQTT broker on some host, and then you're golden
NB: Interacting with the deck over MQTT is something we're yet to play with, but, there is ESPHome support!

saj42

AAllport predominantly http, occasionally via the UI and I've got 1 NodeRed schedule in HA.

I'm not a fan of core HA, I find it a bit bloaty and too much for my needs but I totally get why people rave about it or delve right in. I spent a few years working with a server/client side JavaScript product so it's easy. Too old to learn yaml or more reasonable not finding the motivation 😉

AAllport

saj42 Ahh, fair enough,
We'll take a look at how easily they interact with such systems then!

AAllport

Sean Absolutely!
The bundle is ultimately just a discount for ordering everything together:

You can get a deck here - https://www.mylocalbytes.com/products/localdeck
And a faceplate here - https://www.mylocalbytes.com/products/localdeck-faceplate

Slychocobo

Neat device, Since its going to be wireless any thoughts/options for battery power? Having a rechargable battery so the device is totally wireless would be very useful indeed.

AAllport

Slychocobo It's certainly crossed our mind!

The power draw on the ESP32 makes a battery-based unit a bit difficult (especially with RGB). However, we have had thoughts for a "LocalDeck Go" with a built-in battery and a powered dock to recharge it.
But that's mere speculation at this point.