Introducing the HGI80 alternative - the latest DIY kid on the block
A few of us in the background have produced and tested a new DIY hardware platform that acts exactly like an HGI80. Think of it as an advanced version of the NanoCUL.
The idea was to create a platform that was cheaper and easily available. One that could be put together using off the shelf parts. There is just one custom PCB that basically "glues" all the other parts together. Ofcourse there is no real need to purchase the custom PCB, you can even put this together on a breadboard or vero board.
I've attached a few pictures to show you what it looks like in parts as well as a fully assembled unit.
If you are interested in a board, put your name down in a list below and one of us will get in touch with purchase details. At this point, you need to be able to / be comfortable soldering 2mm pitch components.
If and when a fully assembled unit is available to purchase, I will update this thread accordingly. For now, I am just looking for interest. So mark, if you want just a PCB or if you are interested in a fully assembled unit.
I will list out all the parts needed to put a complete unit together.
When plugged it, it will work just like the HGI80 and so is directly interfaced with Domoticz, Home Assistant, OpenHAB etc. You can also use the brilliant evohome_rf transport that basically decodes most of the Evohome radio messages.
In addition to the custom PCB, you will need the following parts.
1. SS Micro (a small USB Arduino board)
2. CC1101 868MHz module (Red or Green)
3. SMA socket, if you want to use a proper antenna
4. 868Mhz antenna
The Green CC1101 modules come with a pig tail antenna that is acceptable.
That's how it looks plugged into a laptop, just to give you an idea of size. Here I am testing a long full wave length antenna, but you can use a 1/2th or ever 1/4th wave length antenna. The Green CC1101 modules tend to come bundled with a 1/4th wavelength pigtail antenna. They work too.
Pictures show the various antennas being tested.
The assembled ones will be plug and play. The folks who opt for the DIY version will simply need to upload the firmware on to the SS Micro using the Arduino IDE.
If we get atleast 10 people interested in the fully assembled kit, then I estimate the price to be about the £35-40 mark each. But it's going to be a little wait. To offer this low price for this device, we will need to buy parts from China and that takes about 4-6 weeks to arrive to the UK. So I will see what demand is like before I order the parts needed.
This is still considerably cheaper than buying an HGI80 and provides basically the same functionality.
If anyone just wants the boards, then those are £10 each and includes UK shipping. You then need to buy the SS Micro, a CC1101 module and antennas as required. Solder the parts together and upload the firmware.