Thanks to Ekster wallets for sponsoring this video: shop.ekster.com/smarthomesolver Get 25% off until 9/21/22 with the summer sale + promo code SMARTHOMESOLVER My favorite NFC tags linked in the description! A few other links you may want to check out: How to set up NFC tags video: th-cam.com/video/o9WHrX9cvXA/w-d-xo.html More details on these automations in this article smarthomesolver.com/reviews/nfc-tag-automation-ideas-how-to-setup/
Can you please let me know the steps to set up a simple NFC tag process .. like switching on or off a light bulb ..or something simple .. which tools are you using and how are u setting it up ... are u using amazon Alexa routines also ...
Wow, really surprised you didn’t mention one of the greatest uses of NFC ever: Guest Wifi information! Android supports the ability to auto-connect to wifi via NFC tags, and with an iPhone you can still send them a webpage with the guest wifi information included. Incredibly helpful when having many guests over at once! There’s a product called WiFi Porter that I love for this functionality, but can also be done with NFC tags like in your video.
We have a framed paper with the wifi information on it with an nfc sticker underneath so people can just tap and connect instead of typing in the long and complicated password I devised
@@joe-skeen I avoid writing my down for security purposes. It’s why I really like NFC for this purpose though, as it helps keep it secure so folks need “physical access”, which is a high bar.
Thanks for sharing all those ideas. I love your creativity. When I design my systems, I really drill down on the WHY and HOW of smart home magic, and NFC hasn't gripped me strongly yet... often you see people designing just a new, and often less convenient, "switch". For example, the bedside NFC tag is less convenient than a button (because you don't need your phone in hand and powered on); the tag on the washing machine is good only if you have your phone with you while you're moving laundry loads; same for the recycling bin, i could imagine me moving that out in the middle of the night wearing only skivvies, i.e. no phone ;). The benefit of NFC is that the physical device must be in physical proximity... so it works well for cases like a Security Guards making their rounds (physically checking in at the various locations on their route. I'm still not sold, but I keep hoping to find more valid uses. Either way, your video is a great overview for helping make those decisions. Fantastic job from your whole family, they're great sports! Keep it up!
This! While I did learn a few things from the video I find myself asking "what if I don't have my phone on me?". I also tend to forget where I put things so hiding them would create an issue as well.
For the storage bins, you can show a picture of the inside of the bin when scanning the tag. Also you can configure a counter in some type of tags so you know how often it is used.
Although it’s not an exact replacement, the Home Assistant mobile app supports generated QR codes for automation. Print them out with a label maker and Home Assistant will run an automation or scene when you scan them. Best of all, compared to NFC tags, QR codes are virtually free.
But the small extra amount or time used to start camera to scan those QR codes makes a huge difference when it comes to easy and fast activation where NFC is faster to use. Another problem with QR codes is that they can sometimes be time-consuming of sunlight or reflections come in the way. Also, it would look ridiculous with 20 QR codes on display all over your house.
@@EmilMToft There are pros and cons to both. QR codes aren’t as secure and can’t be hidden. NFC tags aren’t always compatible between Apple and Android. QR codes are virtually free and unlimited. NFC tags cost money. I use a mix of both.
QR code requires turning on camera, while-as NFC tag reader can be a chip in a smart watch. I don't even have to reach my pocket for the phone. With reader in a watch, I can do all these when my hands are occupied.
I like the storage idea, I think I'd find a way to have a picture of each item, to make it easier to know what's in there. Maybe using some kind of inventory software. Maybe just have a prompt when you scan the tag, to add or remove something from the container. And if you're adding something, you can take a photo to add it to inventory or pick from a list of things already in the system. Have a container tag for each room, and one for outside stuff. That way when you are putting winter stuff in storage and pulling out summer stuff, you can reassign things to the place they're going to be. Basically a wet dream for anyone obsessed with organizing things. Lol Plus I think having a photo log of all of your belongings could be a good thing in case you need to make an insurance claim or something.
Some of these are good ideas, but others I think could have better triggers. For instance on the laundry I prefer to use a current sensor and an automation that detects when power draw on the washer or dryer drops to zero. For setting the house to away mode I prefer to use the alarm panel to set the alarm when leaving, and that sets everything else to away mode.
Reed, you have some of the best automations idea on the Tube. But I have some improvements for your laundry. I use a smart plug on the clothes washer to monitor the power draw to tell me when the load is done. Then I have a temp probe wrapped into a fold of the dryer exhaust hose. When the temp starts dropping fast, the load is done. I actually did these before I started using NFC tags. They work well and have high WAF because she doesn't carry her phone with her everywhere like some folks do. Thanks as aways and keep coming with the awesome ideas!
NFC tags are the best!!!, I have it all over my home too. In my living room I hide the tags in the back of the controls to start TV, Movie or Game mode routines depending of the control I scan, I love it!
I love the hand off feature with HomePods, so I placed a nfc tag on my echo dot. It uses Siri shortcuts to turn on Bluetooth and set the playback destination to the echo dot.
I've actually never heard of NFC tags before. I made it 6 minutes in to this video (the first video and anything I've ever seen about these) and I ordered some. Holly cow I'm excited to play with these!
We have them all over our house (under coasters too..lol) and in our cars. We love them for home automation! Now since I've watched your video, I need to add an "unlock door" one to each car.
Finally, some actually practical applications for smart home tech! A lot of things online are a bit gimmicky or look cool in video but aren't practical for real life. Some of these examples are a bit boring and seem lazy for a quick video, but the more I think about it the better these sound for some daily or weekly tasks. Also this is the first sponsor I'll actually look into. Seems exactly like what I need!
Another great video, thank you 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 One thing I would love to see is a series of videos showing how you actually build these automations in Apple’s Shortcuts app - it’s really fun coming up with and seeing cool home automation ideas but the biggest hurdle (for me at least) is actually building them. There are very few videos on TH-cam showing how to do this. Seeing how you Pro’s do it would really be so helpful. Keep up the good work!
I once saw an interesting video as to the use of NFC Tag in a car to disable the annoying start-stop system. We put the NFC tag in the phone holder. After starting the car, we put the phone in it, which triggers the Switchbot button, which physically disables the start-stop system :) Simple and you don't have to remember to turn it off every time you start the engine. Of course, this works in case you can't turn it off permanently.
You can use your NFC tag as an automatic mobile charger like when you place your phone on a wireless charging pad the tag there will be scanned it will send a signal to a smart plug to turn the plug of your phone's charger
1:55 Anyone who breaks into your car can use the clicker but with NFC tag, you have to have a phone that is unlocked. 9:18 iOS does not need you to unlock your phone.. I love your videos btw thank you for the tips and sorry for nitpicking :)
I knew someone was going to bring this up and I was going to explain it more in the video but I decided to cut it out because it takes a while to explain. Basically with iPhone you have two options when using the NFC tags and Home Assistant. You can create a Shortcut with the iOS Shortcut app that makes an Event call to Home Assistant. Doing it this way it can trigger an automation without needing to unlock the phone. BUT... You can also add the NFC tag in Home Assistant and scan it that way. Doing that requires the phone to be unlocked and an extra step of pressing the notification banner to run the automation after scanning the NFC tag. So it's not ideal for every day automations but you could use it for the garage door to be more secure.
Thank for another great video showing how to put technology to work for us. I have purchased these NFC tags and enabled a few shortcuts and I do love it. As my smart home grows I plan to keep using these to make actions even easier for all to use.
The NFC garage door opener is cool, but you should look into getting a Tailwind iQ3 garage controller. It automatically opens and closes your door when you approach or leave your home, as long as your phone is connected to your car's Bluetooth. It's inexpensive and it's worked flawlessly for me over the years. Edit: My Google Pixel 6 running Android 13 has an option in settings called "Require device unlock for NFC". You can toggle it off.
Great Video, some fantastic ideas! 👏 Didnt hear you mention it and haven't seen it in the comments, but another great use for these is setting them up like a contact switch... Watching a movie, putting your phone on the tag, turns phone onto silent, turns lights off and disable light sensor, etc; then when you remove your phone from a tag (to say grab a drink), it pauses the movie, reactivate light sensor, and sets floor lights/lamp to dim... Or when heading home in the car, place on tag to set aircon/heating on, then remove from tag when home to open garage door and unlock the front door (assuming smart lock of course)... ...or last one, place you tag on your nightstand (or on a wireless charger), then when you place your phone on the tag at night it set the house to mute, turns off lights and sensors, actives security camera and PIR sensors, etc, etc. Then when you pick it up in the morning it deactivates the "home overnight security mode". Haven't used NFC tags in a while but I used to do some stuff like this with them and tasker so cant see why the 'in contact with tag trigger' would have vanished
LOVE the idea of putting the tags under the switch plate. Never occurred to me to put them there before. One correction, you can with Home Assistant tell who used the NFC tag on Android. To do this you will need to change the Trigger Type to Event in the automation with event type of "tag_scanned." Within the event you will find both the tag_id (the one that was scanned) and the device_id (which scanned the tag). You can get these values from the event listener in developer tools.
I appreciate you sharing how to know who scanned it in Android. I looked for a while and I couldn't figure it out using the trigger type Tag. That's why in the video I said it was "difficult to do in Android". I still stand by that being extra difficult because I would have never know to use an Event with type tag_scanned. Very useful though and thank you!
Love your videos, but NFC tags are weak solutions for most of these usecases. Definitely a few great ideas in there. Tags on books = awesome. Tags for documentation like on storage bins great. But most of the others? You have better tools. For example, the washer dryer. Why not a zigbee button? Same behavior, but you don’t need to get your phone out. Another example, the lights in the garage. Motion detector? Seems silly to have to remember and manually set a light switch to on via a tag. Can be completely automated. Big one you missed is the front door. Putting one as you enter is both secure and a lot easier than having to open an app to unlock an August Lock. Definitely love your push to NFC tags.
So this video is not there to show you better solutions vs buttons/motion sensors. They are alternate options in most cases because they are inexpensive or they help solve random corner cases like marking the trash being taken out because I can't put a button on the outdoor trash can. In the garage I can't have a motion sensor because I could be inside the car vacuuming it out or something. For the front door I showed that in my NFC video from 2 years ago and I wasn't trying to repeat that many ideas from it.
I would love to see a video on creating a chore system for the kids using nfc cards or something similar. Collect it up to some strip lights to add up the chores each week and resets at the end of the week.
Thanks for nice guide to NFC, I am hocked now :-). Intresting is saw this video like 6 month ago, orded tag and forgot them. A quick scan an youtube how to use NFC, and al others only describe how to write tags, no one say anything about how tp use them, like you. The big trick Unlock you phone, Thanks again for a COMPLETE guide.
On my different tools and kitchen gadgets I put nfc tags on. If I am using it and want to figure out a setting or configuration I simply scan the tag and up pops the manual
Seriously great video. But it calls for some humour, screams for some fun. And yes, I've attached a tag to my GF while she was asleep. Now I can scan her to ( insert humour here ).
I have certain spots I set my phone down out of habit, like the mount in my car, and a couple of spots for charging when I'm working or sleeping. I was thinking of putting NFC tags in those spots. To me, the point of automations is to be automatic. I try to incorporate automations seamlessly into my existing routines whenever possible.
What would be amazing is if we could use the NFC tags with the companion app in a wearable device. No more digging your phone out your pocket. Raised as a request to the HA "Month of WTH", but due to restrictions in Android and Apple this isn't available right now :(
A lot of these actions can be done through automations without as much human interaction. Also, this requires that you have your phone on you at all times. Sounds tiring.
I don't think you'd necessarily need your phone, if you are going this far into home automation, you're likely going to have a smart watch too, and some have NFC capabilities, just have to make it work with the watch too. Then you can wave your wrist or your phone over the tag. My only critique for any of the automated notification resets, like the dirty water, or dog food could be accomplished with some small light sensors placed where light will hit them when he moves the container and auto reset the timer without having to remember the scan the tag. Oh and also the tags in the car, could have been labeled and most of them placed in the visor. That way you're less distracted than you would be fumbling around to get to some of those tag locations he had in the vehicle.
For iOS, you can share the automations with other individuals. I have an NFC sticker at phone-in-pocket level by my front door to unlock it when my hands are full. I was able to share this with people I trust and there has been zero issues doing so.
Thank's for interesting ideas, however I prefer to not need to wander my phone with me while at home - therefore I solved most of the needs by adding special pushes to standard light switch (no extra cost needed, always powered on, you don't need anything to control it) or sometimes a battery-powered button. I can however imagine this for rare situations like putting house in "guests aboard" mode, which disables some of the automations tailored to the case where nobody else is at home.
One day ill not only be watching these videos but also USING them. I cant afford any of this stuff you show off but one day... And hopefully ill actually understand how to use it because right now this is all gibberish to me. And I don't consider myself "tech-illiterate" in the slightest, but I guess there's always room to learn. Thanks for sharing!
Creating a smart home and doing automations definitely can come across as intimidating and daunting to approach, let alone seem expensive. However, there are so many smart home products that are extremely affordable right now. Android and iOS both offer automation, features built into the devices. Watching a couple of TH-cam videos of how to create an automation should help. NFC tags as shown in this video are extremely affordable and easily pair to automations. The simplest way to starting a smart home is taking the first step and buying your first smart home product. Think about what smart home feature you would like the most and start with that. 😁
Hey there, I'm in a similar boat and wanted to share what I'm using them for! I can only afford the $6 tags, and not the whole smart home thing, but I'm using notion (which is free) to have a habit tracker connected to these tags so when I take my meds, I just scan the nfc tag and it checks off taking my meds in my habit tracker. this is especially helpful for my as-needed meds because I don't usually track how much I take, but if I had a tracker that I could look at at the end of the month I would have a better idea of how much I needed those meds or how high my anxiety was at the time and then analyze the cause. I also like giving myself persistent notifications for brushing my teeth that can't be turned off without the physical proximity so if I forget to do it before I get in bed I physically have to get up to stop the notifications. I'm also trying to figure out how long it takes me to go through items that last a long time, such as cat food, toothpaste, and skincare so I can reorder them at accurate times and these stickers help me remember which items I'm monitoring. These are only a few of the things I'm doing, but especially paired with notion databases, you don't need smarthome stuff to use nfc tags! I wish you all the best!!
I did crazy stuff like this in 2017... connected my undies drawer to the coffee machine, my wife's cycle tracker to the house lights, alexa to a leaf blower in the shower to not have to bother with toweling off. Hilarity ensued. Here's a challenge for you - a toothbrush sensor that recognises that the toothbrush has been used, connecting to alexa to remind the kids that they need to brush their teeth at the right time... and for the right amount of time! Must be 2 minutes of brushing or it's not long enough. Challenge laid.
Also re: unlocking android. You should try the smart lock feature. It can keep your phone from automatically locking in configurable rules such as if it detects it's still on your person, near/connected to a wearable, at home etc.
Any tips on speeding up response time when scanning NFC tags with iPhone? It’s very temperamental for me and seems to need me to hold the phone on the tag (in a specific spot) for several seconds.
I'm a record collector, something I did was put NFC tags in some of my favorite albums so when I scan it it plays from Spotify on all the speakers at home
Does anybody happen to know where to find an in-depth guide on how to use NFC's with an Alexa? I would like to expand to NFC's but from what I have seen online, NFC's can't connect directly with Alexa to activate routines. Connecting through a separate hub wouldn't really work as I am on a budget for my smart home and I only have the Alexa.
This video shows you how to set up nfc tags as Alexa triggers. Then you can just use routines to program them. th-cam.com/video/7ZHs3WfXp88/w-d-xo.html
I don't know why I didn't think about NFC and my garage opener. Two members of my household have the garage openers, so was left without one. Ended up with a smart relay switch so I can open and close. A tag would be much easier than fumbling through my phone apps. Guess I'm buying new tags.
cool tip: if you use water, you can wash the paper off the nfc tag, and it will show the internal pcb, but still work. i use it to get an extra techy look on my earbuds and such
I scoffed at the start when you warned us about potentially buying NFC tags by the time we're done watching... ...anyway so my 50 pack of NFC stickers arrives later today 😹
We use android phones and I'm able to identify who scanned the tag. So if my wife scans the the the smart speaker plays different music than if I scan it. Similarly if I leave the garage and then scan the tag in the car to close the garage door, it will only notify my phone if the garage door failed to close (e.g. because something fell over and blocked the door from fully closing). Let me know if you want me to explain how to do this.
Another person commented and explained how to use the Event as the trigger and not the Tag. Then use tag_scanned as the Event Type. I never said it wasn't possible in the video but I said it was difficult. I still stand by it's difficult because most people won't know how to do that.
@@SmartHomeSolver yes I agree it is more intricate so your statement is correct. That said many Home Assistant users will be skilled enough to do it if you explain them how and it's worth the effort 😉
My coffemaker has wifi, I put an NFC Tag next to it and when I scan it HA turns on the machine, selects my coffee choice and makes the coffee. Its just nice in the morning
I would like to learn how to set up repetitive notifications until the nfc tag is scanned. I want to implement it in HVAC filter change, water softener salt maintenance etc
The example with dryer was really painful for me. I say that because my washer and dryer are what got me into home automation in the first place in 2018. Mine are in the basement, and I'd have a couple of loads to be done. I'd start the washer, it would say it'd be done in 45 minutes, I'd set my phone timer to 50 just to be sure, then I'd come back in 55 minutes and the washer would say it needed 10 more minutes. I came back fifteen minutes later and it still was not done. The dryer was same story. Multiply that by the number of loads resulting to me having to make 20 trips to the basement instead of like 4, it was getting on my nerves. :D That was when I discovered ESP8266, Home Assistant, photo resistors, and I have been going to the basement only when needed, perfectly on time ever since (both washer and dryer change their run/idle state in HA based on whether or not the door-lock light is lit). The solution to this specific problem was like $4 in hardware and is running for 5+ years now. And it is such a bliss. :D Otherwise there were some cool examples, I may get some NFC tags to play with.
I use QR codes and place them on outside of boxes. I took a picture of the contents, created the QR code and placed on box. The NFC looks even easier. Will try that in the future
tried to fallow along to set one up but cant get it to work, i think i need to set up the automation first and not sure how to do that, and i don't see a script option in TAG in HA
Honestly, some of these are better off as buttons. I have a similar setup for toilet/toilet paper, except I'm using a ZigBee button, because guests might not understand NFC... but understand a button better. For the washer, I used a power monitor outlet with counters, so after ⓧ number of voltage spikes, and drops, I'll get a notification.
Really love the documentation idea but I was wondering if you could go into a little more detail. I can't find a simple way to open a webpage via automation unless I'm missing something obvious. Thanks!
For anyone curious, I found a way to do it though it's pretty messy. there are two main parts and I'll preface this by saying I'm an android user. 1) Actionable notification I did my documentation using bookstack and used a URI actionable notification to open the browser to the appropriate page 2) The NFC Tag To make the notification go to the correct phone (aka the one that scanned the tag) I used the device id that comes from the tag event when scanned. The device id however is NOT the actual device id but instead the device id related to the companion app which makes it pretty useless. What I ended up doing was creating a notification group named the same as the device id that would notify the appropriate phone. notify: - name: platform: group services: - service: mobile_app_ the notify service is templated to look like this service: notify.{{trigger.event.data.device_id}} I hope this helps anyone else looking to something similar and if anyone finds a cleaner way of doing it, please let me know!
@@CassidyJames I don't think so, at least not via HA. If I didn't have the NFC tags tied to HA then it would probably work but I want to keep everything connected to HA for ease of use (ironic) and debugging.
Hi Reed. Great video. You could mount the tag on the inside side of the lid of the bin using super glue. On the outside, it may suffer shocks and break when the bin is emptied by strong persons ...
Don't forget, an NFC tag in the bathroom that dismisses an alarm for waking up in the morning for chronic oversleepers. Although, I do prefer to always keep a 30 seconds snooze so I'm not running down the hall with a blaring phone.
Thank you for this very intuitive video on NFC tags, what would be great if you could show a set up of the NFC Tags for Every one of your Apliance this will help everyone get the most out NFC Tags and short cuts, I have some on my Tesla to open Frunk with my hands full or short cut to open trunk when my hands full with tools
Great video. Cool ideas. The criticisms here are weird. "I can only use ine of these ideas!" "You can't rmemember that many tags!" "You have a Tesla" People: he is sharing a lot of ideas so that one or a few of them might appeal to many, not so that we all use all of them. It doesn't matter if he actually uses all of them or not.
3:23 I use my smart switch and double tap down on my outside light switch to set the house into away mode which also shuts off all the lights. I love this automation the best!!
If you have the home assistant app on your Android phone when you scan the tag you will know who scanned it. This does not require setting up the tag on every phone either. Just once in home assistant.
Might be a noob question, but how do you get notifications over and over again until you scan the nfc? Can you have this every few minutes? I know, overkill for most things, but could be great for other things. Thanks!
Thanks to Ekster wallets for sponsoring this video: shop.ekster.com/smarthomesolver
Get 25% off until 9/21/22 with the summer sale + promo code SMARTHOMESOLVER
My favorite NFC tags linked in the description! A few other links you may want to check out:
How to set up NFC tags video: th-cam.com/video/o9WHrX9cvXA/w-d-xo.html
More details on these automations in this article smarthomesolver.com/reviews/nfc-tag-automation-ideas-how-to-setup/
Can you please let me know the steps to set up a simple NFC tag process .. like switching on or off a light bulb ..or something simple .. which tools are you using and how are u setting it up ... are u using amazon Alexa routines also ...
Its a serous question bro,Can we know where the tags are?
I used on my wedding ring witch allows me to call my wide and vice versa
I was just wondering if you still you these?
Wow, really surprised you didn’t mention one of the greatest uses of NFC ever: Guest Wifi information! Android supports the ability to auto-connect to wifi via NFC tags, and with an iPhone you can still send them a webpage with the guest wifi information included. Incredibly helpful when having many guests over at once! There’s a product called WiFi Porter that I love for this functionality, but can also be done with NFC tags like in your video.
We have a framed paper with the wifi information on it with an nfc sticker underneath so people can just tap and connect instead of typing in the long and complicated password I devised
@@joe-skeen I avoid writing my down for security purposes. It’s why I really like NFC for this purpose though, as it helps keep it secure so folks need “physical access”, which is a high bar.
@@GeraldMcAlister you do know that you can read out WLAN passwords in Android? So your approach isn't really any more secure.
@@9SMTM6 can’t do that at a distance. Written down passwords are a significantly higher risk than an nfc tag still.
@@GeraldMcAlister You can display a QR code on android to share WLAN details, although the NFC tag is still less effort.
Dude, you have to remember what 100 NFC tags around your house are for but you forget when the trash cans have to go out!? LoL.
lol yes. how am I supposed to remember something I don't care about
Thanks for sharing all those ideas. I love your creativity. When I design my systems, I really drill down on the WHY and HOW of smart home magic, and NFC hasn't gripped me strongly yet... often you see people designing just a new, and often less convenient, "switch". For example, the bedside NFC tag is less convenient than a button (because you don't need your phone in hand and powered on); the tag on the washing machine is good only if you have your phone with you while you're moving laundry loads; same for the recycling bin, i could imagine me moving that out in the middle of the night wearing only skivvies, i.e. no phone ;). The benefit of NFC is that the physical device must be in physical proximity... so it works well for cases like a Security Guards making their rounds (physically checking in at the various locations on their route. I'm still not sold, but I keep hoping to find more valid uses. Either way, your video is a great overview for helping make those decisions. Fantastic job from your whole family, they're great sports! Keep it up!
This! While I did learn a few things from the video I find myself asking "what if I don't have my phone on me?". I also tend to forget where I put things so hiding them would create an issue as well.
Wont they work with an smart watch (particularly an apple watch)? That makes NFCs very convenient
Yeah, about fifteen years ago I tried using an NFC tag in my car to launch the Android Auto app. Ended up being more awkward than useful.
@@milkflavored The Apple Watch only allows NFC communications for Apple Pay
@@milkflavored But like the OP said... you might not have the device with you... or the battery is flat.
For the storage bins, you can show a picture of the inside of the bin when scanning the tag.
Also you can configure a counter in some type of tags so you know how often it is used.
Nice! Is that done in Home Assistant?
Great idea! How can I find more info on this?
Seems like a menu is an idea for the bins. Scan triggers options: inventory list, edit inventory, show photo, take photo, etc.
Although it’s not an exact replacement, the Home Assistant mobile app supports generated QR codes for automation. Print them out with a label maker and Home Assistant will run an automation or scene when you scan them. Best of all, compared to NFC tags, QR codes are virtually free.
I was about to comment on the same thing but you did it much better.
But the small extra amount or time used to start camera to scan those QR codes makes a huge difference when it comes to easy and fast activation where NFC is faster to use.
Another problem with QR codes is that they can sometimes be time-consuming of sunlight or reflections come in the way.
Also, it would look ridiculous with 20 QR codes on display all over your house.
@@EmilMToft There are pros and cons to both. QR codes aren’t as secure and can’t be hidden. NFC tags aren’t always compatible between Apple and Android. QR codes are virtually free and unlimited. NFC tags cost money. I use a mix of both.
I had no idea... That sounds cool... How do you generate these???
QR code requires turning on camera, while-as NFC tag reader can be a chip in a smart watch. I don't even have to reach my pocket for the phone. With reader in a watch, I can do all these when my hands are occupied.
I like the storage idea, I think I'd find a way to have a picture of each item, to make it easier to know what's in there. Maybe using some kind of inventory software. Maybe just have a prompt when you scan the tag, to add or remove something from the container. And if you're adding something, you can take a photo to add it to inventory or pick from a list of things already in the system. Have a container tag for each room, and one for outside stuff. That way when you are putting winter stuff in storage and pulling out summer stuff, you can reassign things to the place they're going to be.
Basically a wet dream for anyone obsessed with organizing things. Lol
Plus I think having a photo log of all of your belongings could be a good thing in case you need to make an insurance claim or something.
Whenver i run out of toilet paper, i find screaming generally works...😂😂😂
None of this is selling me on NFC tags, but I do like the effort you put into using them and finding out why people might like them!
For those that are asking how you create (more correctly write) the tags, it's done right in the Home Assistant app on either Android or iOS.
“Spare a square” with the Seinfeld clip!!!! LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!
Some of these are good ideas, but others I think could have better triggers. For instance on the laundry I prefer to use a current sensor and an automation that detects when power draw on the washer or dryer drops to zero. For setting the house to away mode I prefer to use the alarm panel to set the alarm when leaving, and that sets everything else to away mode.
Reed, you have some of the best automations idea on the Tube. But I have some improvements for your laundry. I use a smart plug on the clothes washer to monitor the power draw to tell me when the load is done. Then I have a temp probe wrapped into a fold of the dryer exhaust hose. When the temp starts dropping fast, the load is done. I actually did these before I started using NFC tags. They work well and have high WAF because she doesn't carry her phone with her everywhere like some folks do. Thanks as aways and keep coming with the awesome ideas!
NFC tags are the best!!!, I have it all over my home too. In my living room I hide the tags in the back of the controls to start TV, Movie or Game mode routines depending of the control I scan, I love it!
A complete tutorial would be useful, in which we can see how we can program an nfc on android, what programs we need, etc. Thanks !
yes that would be a very informative video
I love the hand off feature with HomePods, so I placed a nfc tag on my echo dot. It uses Siri shortcuts to turn on Bluetooth and set the playback destination to the echo dot.
I've actually never heard of NFC tags before. I made it 6 minutes in to this video (the first video and anything I've ever seen about these) and I ordered some. Holly cow I'm excited to play with these!
We have them all over our house (under coasters too..lol) and in our cars. We love them for home automation! Now since I've watched your video, I need to add an "unlock door" one to each car.
Any possibilty of showing exactly how to set-up the NFC tags? I've never used one, but they do look enticing. Thank you!
Finally, some actually practical applications for smart home tech! A lot of things online are a bit gimmicky or look cool in video but aren't practical for real life. Some of these examples are a bit boring and seem lazy for a quick video, but the more I think about it the better these sound for some daily or weekly tasks.
Also this is the first sponsor I'll actually look into. Seems exactly like what I need!
Another great video! Love the use of NFC tags behind light switch covers!
Another great video, thank you 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 One thing I would love to see is a series of videos showing how you actually build these automations in Apple’s Shortcuts app - it’s really fun coming up with and seeing cool home automation ideas but the biggest hurdle (for me at least) is actually building them. There are very few videos on TH-cam showing how to do this. Seeing how you Pro’s do it would really be so helpful. Keep up the good work!
Thanks for the suggestion, that could be good!
I came here to ask this as well. Just not tech savvy to set up reminders
I once saw an interesting video as to the use of NFC Tag in a car to disable the annoying start-stop system. We put the NFC tag in the phone holder. After starting the car, we put the phone in it, which triggers the Switchbot button, which physically disables the start-stop system :) Simple and you don't have to remember to turn it off every time you start the engine. Of course, this works in case you can't turn it off permanently.
You can use your NFC tag as an automatic mobile charger like when you place your phone on a wireless charging pad the tag there will be scanned it will send a signal to a smart plug to turn the plug of your phone's charger
I have a phone connected to a charger on a smart plug. Plug turns off once battery is >85%, turns on once
Mighty impressed with the video. Suggestion - please do a video on how to setup them. Also, any recommendations on which brand I should buy on Amazon?
I love how you illustrate some of the pitfalls of a given automation with the little skits like at the end of this video. Great job as always.
1:55 Anyone who breaks into your car can use the clicker but with NFC tag, you have to have a phone that is unlocked.
9:18 iOS does not need you to unlock your phone..
I love your videos btw thank you for the tips and sorry for nitpicking :)
I knew someone was going to bring this up and I was going to explain it more in the video but I decided to cut it out because it takes a while to explain.
Basically with iPhone you have two options when using the NFC tags and Home Assistant. You can create a Shortcut with the iOS Shortcut app that makes an Event call to Home Assistant. Doing it this way it can trigger an automation without needing to unlock the phone.
BUT...
You can also add the NFC tag in Home Assistant and scan it that way. Doing that requires the phone to be unlocked and an extra step of pressing the notification banner to run the automation after scanning the NFC tag. So it's not ideal for every day automations but you could use it for the garage door to be more secure.
Don’t they need your phone to start the automation?
@@SmartHomeSolver Well someone bringing up means that we are listening what you are saying carefully :) Thank you for the explanation.
Thank for another great video showing how to put technology to work for us. I have purchased these NFC tags and enabled a few shortcuts and I do love it. As my smart home grows I plan to keep using these to make actions even easier for all to use.
The NFC garage door opener is cool, but you should look into getting a Tailwind iQ3 garage controller. It automatically opens and closes your door when you approach or leave your home, as long as your phone is connected to your car's Bluetooth. It's inexpensive and it's worked flawlessly for me over the years.
Edit: My Google Pixel 6 running Android 13 has an option in settings called "Require device unlock for NFC". You can toggle it off.
YES, Tailwind is awesome, I have used it for over 2 years, the auto open is the best!!
Great Video, some fantastic ideas! 👏
Didnt hear you mention it and haven't seen it in the comments, but another great use for these is setting them up like a contact switch...
Watching a movie, putting your phone on the tag, turns phone onto silent, turns lights off and disable light sensor, etc; then when you remove your phone from a tag (to say grab a drink), it pauses the movie, reactivate light sensor, and sets floor lights/lamp to dim...
Or when heading home in the car, place on tag to set aircon/heating on, then remove from tag when home to open garage door and unlock the front door (assuming smart lock of course)...
...or last one, place you tag on your nightstand (or on a wireless charger), then when you place your phone on the tag at night it set the house to mute, turns off lights and sensors, actives security camera and PIR sensors, etc, etc. Then when you pick it up in the morning it deactivates the "home overnight security mode".
Haven't used NFC tags in a while but I used to do some stuff like this with them and tasker so cant see why the 'in contact with tag trigger' would have vanished
LOVE the idea of putting the tags under the switch plate. Never occurred to me to put them there before.
One correction, you can with Home Assistant tell who used the NFC tag on Android. To do this you will need to change the Trigger Type to Event in the automation with event type of "tag_scanned." Within the event you will find both the tag_id (the one that was scanned) and the device_id (which scanned the tag). You can get these values from the event listener in developer tools.
I appreciate you sharing how to know who scanned it in Android. I looked for a while and I couldn't figure it out using the trigger type Tag. That's why in the video I said it was "difficult to do in Android". I still stand by that being extra difficult because I would have never know to use an Event with type tag_scanned. Very useful though and thank you!
You need an NFC tag to remind you where all your NFC tags are
Love your videos, but NFC tags are weak solutions for most of these usecases.
Definitely a few great ideas in there. Tags on books = awesome. Tags for documentation like on storage bins great.
But most of the others? You have better tools.
For example, the washer dryer. Why not a zigbee button? Same behavior, but you don’t need to get your phone out.
Another example, the lights in the garage. Motion detector? Seems silly to have to remember and manually set a light switch to on via a tag. Can be completely automated.
Big one you missed is the front door. Putting one as you enter is both secure and a lot easier than having to open an app to unlock an August Lock.
Definitely love your push to NFC tags.
So this video is not there to show you better solutions vs buttons/motion sensors. They are alternate options in most cases because they are inexpensive or they help solve random corner cases like marking the trash being taken out because I can't put a button on the outdoor trash can.
In the garage I can't have a motion sensor because I could be inside the car vacuuming it out or something.
For the front door I showed that in my NFC video from 2 years ago and I wasn't trying to repeat that many ideas from it.
@@SmartHomeSolver Solid reasoning 👌
Keep up the great content!
I would love to see a video on creating a chore system for the kids using nfc cards or something similar. Collect it up to some strip lights to add up the chores each week and resets at the end of the week.
Actually came here for this did you have any luck
Cool video
Could you explain how you did thorès timers
Thanks for nice guide to NFC, I am hocked now :-). Intresting is saw this video like 6 month ago, orded tag and forgot them. A quick scan an youtube how to use NFC, and al others only describe how to write tags, no one say anything about how tp use them, like you. The big trick Unlock you phone, Thanks again for a COMPLETE guide.
On my different tools and kitchen gadgets I put nfc tags on. If I am using it and want to figure out a setting or configuration I simply scan the tag and up pops the manual
Seriously great video. But it calls for some humour, screams for some fun. And yes, I've attached a tag to my GF while she was asleep. Now I can scan her to ( insert humour here ).
The TP one is perfect.... specially for using the bathroom after kids who use way to much !! 😂
I have certain spots I set my phone down out of habit, like the mount in my car, and a couple of spots for charging when I'm working or sleeping. I was thinking of putting NFC tags in those spots. To me, the point of automations is to be automatic. I try to incorporate automations seamlessly into my existing routines whenever possible.
3:29 When leaving home, I just say, "Hey Google, see ya later".
I don't even have to take my phone out of my pocket or backpack.
What would be amazing is if we could use the NFC tags with the companion app in a wearable device. No more digging your phone out your pocket.
Raised as a request to the HA "Month of WTH", but due to restrictions in Android and Apple this isn't available right now :(
Very cool ideas! Glad i found this. NFC tags added to the cart😂
A lot of these actions can be done through automations without as much human interaction. Also, this requires that you have your phone on you at all times. Sounds tiring.
And your phone unlocked too
My phone is already always in my hand and I realized that there is no reason for me to have my phone unlocked at home.
Can't you use a smart watch?Also there's a chip you can put in your hand
@@gs-nq6mw annoyingly a lot of smart watches don't work that well for reading
I don't think you'd necessarily need your phone, if you are going this far into home automation, you're likely going to have a smart watch too, and some have NFC capabilities, just have to make it work with the watch too. Then you can wave your wrist or your phone over the tag.
My only critique for any of the automated notification resets, like the dirty water, or dog food could be accomplished with some small light sensors placed where light will hit them when he moves the container and auto reset the timer without having to remember the scan the tag. Oh and also the tags in the car, could have been labeled and most of them placed in the visor. That way you're less distracted than you would be fumbling around to get to some of those tag locations he had in the vehicle.
For iOS, you can share the automations with other individuals. I have an NFC sticker at phone-in-pocket level by my front door to unlock it when my hands are full. I was able to share this with people I trust and there has been zero issues doing so.
Thank's for interesting ideas, however I prefer to not need to wander my phone with me while at home - therefore I solved most of the needs by adding special pushes to standard light switch (no extra cost needed, always powered on, you don't need anything to control it) or sometimes a battery-powered button. I can however imagine this for rare situations like putting house in "guests aboard" mode, which disables some of the automations tailored to the case where nobody else is at home.
Thanks for the confidence to make my apartment a smart home friendly one
The storage bin one is a great idea, that way i can inform everyone in my office or home whats inside each box so i dont have to find things for them
One day ill not only be watching these videos but also USING them. I cant afford any of this stuff you show off but one day... And hopefully ill actually understand how to use it because right now this is all gibberish to me. And I don't consider myself "tech-illiterate" in the slightest, but I guess there's always room to learn. Thanks for sharing!
Creating a smart home and doing automations definitely can come across as intimidating and daunting to approach, let alone seem expensive. However, there are so many smart home products that are extremely affordable right now. Android and iOS both offer automation, features built into the devices. Watching a couple of TH-cam videos of how to create an automation should help. NFC tags as shown in this video are extremely affordable and easily pair to automations.
The simplest way to starting a smart home is taking the first step and buying your first smart home product. Think about what smart home feature you would like the most and start with that. 😁
Hey there, I'm in a similar boat and wanted to share what I'm using them for! I can only afford the $6 tags, and not the whole smart home thing, but I'm using notion (which is free) to have a habit tracker connected to these tags so when I take my meds, I just scan the nfc tag and it checks off taking my meds in my habit tracker. this is especially helpful for my as-needed meds because I don't usually track how much I take, but if I had a tracker that I could look at at the end of the month I would have a better idea of how much I needed those meds or how high my anxiety was at the time and then analyze the cause. I also like giving myself persistent notifications for brushing my teeth that can't be turned off without the physical proximity so if I forget to do it before I get in bed I physically have to get up to stop the notifications. I'm also trying to figure out how long it takes me to go through items that last a long time, such as cat food, toothpaste, and skincare so I can reorder them at accurate times and these stickers help me remember which items I'm monitoring.
These are only a few of the things I'm doing, but especially paired with notion databases, you don't need smarthome stuff to use nfc tags! I wish you all the best!!
I did crazy stuff like this in 2017... connected my undies drawer to the coffee machine, my wife's cycle tracker to the house lights, alexa to a leaf blower in the shower to not have to bother with toweling off. Hilarity ensued.
Here's a challenge for you - a toothbrush sensor that recognises that the toothbrush has been used, connecting to alexa to remind the kids that they need to brush their teeth at the right time... and for the right amount of time! Must be 2 minutes of brushing or it's not long enough.
Challenge laid.
Also re: unlocking android. You should try the smart lock feature. It can keep your phone from automatically locking in configurable rules such as if it detects it's still on your person, near/connected to a wearable, at home etc.
Unlocking with fingerprint is also pretty seamless.
I was also thinking how hard it is for you to unlock your phone. Basically when I pick up my phone it's unlocked before I'm ready to use it.
@@NearCry91 that's the ideal.
This guy doesn't forget to take his phone to the loo but he can't make sure that he has TP! 😂
Any tips on speeding up response time when scanning NFC tags with iPhone? It’s very temperamental for me and seems to need me to hold the phone on the tag (in a specific spot) for several seconds.
Awesome! NFC tag to turn on/off gas grill valve. The problem is our IOS is that someone can steal your phone and unlock house without unlocking phone.
That's a pretty good point 🤔
I'm a record collector, something I did was put NFC tags in some of my favorite albums so when I scan it it plays from Spotify on all the speakers at home
Needing to unlock a phone is a security feature at 1:50. By 9:20 it's a deal breaker! You got lazy real fast! 😂
washer/dryer can be done with a smart plug that has power measurement
garage door button is automatic with carplay based on your location
This dude is gunna be the first in line to be chipped…wonder if he’d grab a nuerolink too
You were right....ordered a pack of tags right after I watched this.
I put NFC stickers on the protective covers of my vinyl records. Scanning it will bring you to the album in Apple Music or the wiki page for it
You weren’t lying about not leaving the video without NFC tags in my cart
Very cool ideas, it would be even cooler if you explained or pointed to a video that explains how to set this up exactly.
Does anybody happen to know where to find an in-depth guide on how to use NFC's with an Alexa? I would like to expand to NFC's but from what I have seen online, NFC's can't connect directly with Alexa to activate routines. Connecting through a separate hub wouldn't really work as I am on a budget for my smart home and I only have the Alexa.
This video shows you how to set up nfc tags as Alexa triggers. Then you can just use routines to program them. th-cam.com/video/7ZHs3WfXp88/w-d-xo.html
Yes. Just watch this video to learn now.
Honestly, I was pretty meh on your ideas until you got to the storage bins. That one is genius!
I just ordered me some today so excited can't wait to get them in the mornings I don't feel like talking to my echo devices
I don't know why I didn't think about NFC and my garage opener. Two members of my household have the garage openers, so was left without one. Ended up with a smart relay switch so I can open and close. A tag would be much easier than fumbling through my phone apps.
Guess I'm buying new tags.
You could add an automation triggered by your GPS location, so you wouldn't need to do anything to open the garage door
@@VadimKraev for entryway related things, I'd rather not have things automatically open without my input. That's just me, though
Nfc tag on the phone holder, for loading the gps app and to turn on the home security before leaving the house look interesting.
cool tip: if you use water, you can wash the paper off the nfc tag, and it will show the internal pcb, but still work. i use it to get an extra techy look on my earbuds and such
your washing machine nfc tag would be perfect for it, as the pcb is the same grey color as the machine
That’s cool, I’ll have to try that out sometime!
I scoffed at the start when you warned us about potentially buying NFC tags by the time we're done watching...
...anyway so my 50 pack of NFC stickers arrives later today 😹
Hmm.. that storage bin idea could be good.
We use android phones and I'm able to identify who scanned the tag. So if my wife scans the the the smart speaker plays different music than if I scan it. Similarly if I leave the garage and then scan the tag in the car to close the garage door, it will only notify my phone if the garage door failed to close (e.g. because something fell over and blocked the door from fully closing).
Let me know if you want me to explain how to do this.
Another person commented and explained how to use the Event as the trigger and not the Tag. Then use tag_scanned as the Event Type. I never said it wasn't possible in the video but I said it was difficult. I still stand by it's difficult because most people won't know how to do that.
@@SmartHomeSolver yes I agree it is more intricate so your statement is correct. That said many Home Assistant users will be skilled enough to do it if you explain them how and it's worth the effort 😉
I am so using the tags for a big move. That and Apple air tags.
Can you make a video on how to connect nfc tags to Alexa
My coffemaker has wifi, I put an NFC Tag next to it and when I scan it HA turns on the machine, selects my coffee choice and makes the coffee. Its just nice in the morning
Just put a bunch of NFC tags in my shopping cart. 🙃 Thanks for this, Reed. Super informative intro and great ideas!
Bro really made a whole routine for asking for toilet paper 🤣 have you tried YELLING?
Oooh, I like the storage bin contents idea.
I would like to learn how to set up repetitive notifications until the nfc tag is scanned. I want to implement it in HVAC filter change, water softener salt maintenance etc
The example with dryer was really painful for me. I say that because my washer and dryer are what got me into home automation in the first place in 2018. Mine are in the basement, and I'd have a couple of loads to be done. I'd start the washer, it would say it'd be done in 45 minutes, I'd set my phone timer to 50 just to be sure, then I'd come back in 55 minutes and the washer would say it needed 10 more minutes. I came back fifteen minutes later and it still was not done. The dryer was same story. Multiply that by the number of loads resulting to me having to make 20 trips to the basement instead of like 4, it was getting on my nerves. :D That was when I discovered ESP8266, Home Assistant, photo resistors, and I have been going to the basement only when needed, perfectly on time ever since (both washer and dryer change their run/idle state in HA based on whether or not the door-lock light is lit). The solution to this specific problem was like $4 in hardware and is running for 5+ years now. And it is such a bliss. :D
Otherwise there were some cool examples, I may get some NFC tags to play with.
I'd love see one on the storage bin setup. Thanks for the ideas.
I use QR codes and place them on outside of boxes. I took a picture of the contents, created the QR code and placed on box. The NFC looks even easier. Will try that in the future
tried to fallow along to set one up but cant get it to work, i think i need to set up the automation first and not sure how to do that, and i don't see a script option in TAG in HA
I love how none of these NFC videos actually show you how to set it up to do these things 😐
Honestly, some of these are better off as buttons. I have a similar setup for toilet/toilet paper, except I'm using a ZigBee button, because guests might not understand NFC... but understand a button better. For the washer, I used a power monitor outlet with counters, so after ⓧ number of voltage spikes, and drops, I'll get a notification.
Please make a dedicated video for Advanced nfc setup gor android...
I don’t know why but I put one in my shoe yesterday 😂
Dude you never cease to amaze me, I swear your from the future 😁
THanks bro not even mad that you're metro
Really love the documentation idea but I was wondering if you could go into a little more detail. I can't find a simple way to open a webpage via automation unless I'm missing something obvious. Thanks!
For anyone curious, I found a way to do it though it's pretty messy. there are two main parts and I'll preface this by saying I'm an android user.
1) Actionable notification
I did my documentation using bookstack and used a URI actionable notification to open the browser to the appropriate page
2) The NFC Tag
To make the notification go to the correct phone (aka the one that scanned the tag) I used the device id that comes from the tag event when scanned. The device id however is NOT the actual device id but instead the device id related to the companion app which makes it pretty useless. What I ended up doing was creating a notification group named the same as the device id that would notify the appropriate phone.
notify:
- name:
platform: group
services:
- service: mobile_app_
the notify service is templated to look like this
service: notify.{{trigger.event.data.device_id}}
I hope this helps anyone else looking to something similar and if anyone finds a cleaner way of doing it, please let me know!
Can't you just write the URL to the tag, so any device that scans it will open the URL?
@@CassidyJames I don't think so, at least not via HA. If I didn't have the NFC tags tied to HA then it would probably work but I want to keep everything connected to HA for ease of use (ironic) and debugging.
Thanks awesome video, it will be great if you could do a serious of video on how you created some of those automations. Thanks again
Hi Reed. Great video. You could mount the tag on the inside side of the lid of the bin using super glue. On the outside, it may suffer shocks and break when the bin is emptied by strong persons ...
Just bought a role of 50 tags and I plan to use them all. And only for $20
Don't forget, an NFC tag in the bathroom that dismisses an alarm for waking up in the morning for chronic oversleepers. Although, I do prefer to always keep a 30 seconds snooze so I'm not running down the hall with a blaring phone.
Wow. I just found what NFC can do. Thnak you so much
Thank you for this very intuitive video on NFC tags, what would be great if you could show a set up of the NFC Tags for Every one of your Apliance this will help everyone get the most out NFC Tags and short cuts, I have some on my Tesla to open Frunk with my hands full or short cut to open trunk when my hands full with tools
Love NFC tags!
Great video. Cool ideas.
The criticisms here are weird. "I can only use ine of these ideas!" "You can't rmemember that many tags!" "You have a Tesla"
People: he is sharing a lot of ideas so that one or a few of them might appeal to many, not so that we all use all of them. It doesn't matter if he actually uses all of them or not.
3:23 I use my smart switch and double tap down on my outside light switch to set the house into away mode which also shuts off all the lights. I love this automation the best!!
If you have the home assistant app on your Android phone when you scan the tag you will know who scanned it. This does not require setting up the tag on every phone either. Just once in home assistant.
On Android you can use NFC tags even if the phone is locked. For people who thought about not getting NFC tags
Might be a noob question, but how do you get notifications over and over again until you scan the nfc? Can you have this every few minutes? I know, overkill for most things, but could be great for other things. Thanks!
Garage Box #1: Miscellaneous
Garage Box #2: Miscellaneous
Garage Box #3: Miscellaneous
Garage Box #4: Miscellaneous
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7:20 the greatest phrase of all time 😂