I rarely need to use remote control to my TV (many reasons besides GF) however I'm still struggling with integration LG AC to my Home Assistant. The Broadlink or similar device is the way to go. However I have feeling that it will be only 1-way communication (Boradlink - > LG AC).
No, but currently I use a Logitech Harmony remote, so no juggling, but I did replicate the most common buttons on to a lovelace dashboard so I can override my OH when he has the physical remote.
Nice video as always, very well explained. When you learn commands, you can use a list of commands instead of learning them one by one, for instance : - turn on - turn off - volume up - volume down I bought a Broadlink RM Mini (IR only) a while back and I love it. At first, i used scripts like you did, but since moving all my automations to node-red, I use node-red to create switch entities in HA, and pressing them triggers automations in NR.
One thing that makes adding commands a little easier, is you can add multiple lines to the "learn commands" section, I did this for a fan remote by adding: power, light, reverse, fan 1, fan 2 ... fan 6. Then you can just keep an eye on the notification section of home assistant to make sure you're picking up the commands in the right order.
If you are adding an rf remote code, HA will ask you to hold the button down first while Broadlink scans the rf spectrum first for the right frequency and then it will prompt you in notifications to press the button one time to capture the code. It is a tedious process and you may have to also watch the orange light too on the broadlink. It took me a while to figure that out. The IR scanning is as the video shows. RF scanning requires two steps to capture the code.
Must admit I don't understand the above. My Home Assistant hasn't asked me to do anything like the above, but seems to have failed to communicate with my RM4 Pro after the first one or two learned commands. And I can't locate the file where it would have saved the commands if it did...my File Editor has no Configuration tab and I can't see the Storage folder.
Brilliant and easy to follow video's as always. ive had the rm pro for a good few years. and previously had it connected to Smartthing and Hubitat. Ive only been using Home assistant since December, so loads to learn, and my old way of using the broadlink hub was via the old Rm Tasker plugin, which is no longer being looked after and is having issues, as the software is struggling to run on the latest android tablets. This has givin some life to something i was about to ditch . Thank you, keep up the good work
Brilliant thanks. I wasted a day yesterday trying to remember how to do this but forgot 2 simple steps. You refreshed my memory. Wish there was an easier BroadLink integration though.
Thank you so much, you just saved my RM 4 mini from the garbage bin. It was laying around here being useless for a whole year! But now, it finaly does, what it has to. Like, put my LED candles on, when the TV goes on and set the right color. Fabulous. I love your way of explanation, a child can do it with your lesson... ;-)
Thank you. I have DIY ambient lightining behind my TV using an Rpi running Hyperion. My issue was always I could only connected 1 HDMI into it. So I had to choose if I wanted the light strips to mimic what was coming in through our firestick or through cable box. But now I can pickup an HDMI switcher with IR remote, plug both the firestick and cable box into the switch, plug switch into the RPI and use broadlink RM to control the switch!
I'm new to Home Assistant. First, your videos are SO helpful... thank you! Second, I freaking LOVE Home Assistant! Is there a way to back up the learned commands? It would be a huge PITA to have to re-learn all the codes after a re-install of HA.
Thanks very much. I just bought one of these on the strength of your video to see if it will be a viable replacement for my now-discontinued Logitech Harmony. Beautifully-explained and worked first time. I must say that I'm a bit of HA nerd though but for the lay-person, it should be ok. Lay-people, WARNING: He speaks fast, so have pause at the ready and you'll be grand!
Love your videos, always very helpful. Exactly what I needed in order to read tbe IR from the remote control. The only problem I have faced is creating and saving the scripts, no matter which way it tried it didn't let me save the script.
An excellent video, thank you very much! I wanted Home Assistant to control (= start & stop) my IR remote controlled air heat pump based on room temperature and electricity prices. Works like a charm 😊
Thanks man. Cant believe this video is 2 years old. I have the scripts in HA but I am struggling to create a thermostat card to control my Split AC. I have 5 of them and have tried to find a solution for some time. What I am finding is the quick solutions don't have my make/model of AC and some solutions are no longer supported etc. I am no good at YAML so its even more daunting.
Great custom guide! If you're trying to automate an Air Conditioner use of the SmartIR integration can make it much quicker and simpler as people have already worked out the codes. There's other videos on youtube that show how that's done.
This is the best comment here, I was trying to setup an AC with Home Assistant and the Broadlink RM4 mini and I didn't wanted to learn one code for ON/OFF/Auto/Cool/Fan etc.. this integration helped a lot! Thanks!
Thanks for this video as always nice and easy to follow had a few issues getting the Broadcom connected to the WiFi and learning the remote was not fun. But I think I’m there. However my device as a separate on off switch do you know how I can combine this into a toggle switch? Save having an on and off button on the dash board ?
on passage approx 7:00 / 7:20 where you typed each command separetedly, u can use - command_name on each one line for one command to avoid that time consuming process... and learn all commands in one run
I just bought a Broadlink RM4 and this video is a must-watch because setup, though not difficult, is far from self-explanatory. I use it mostly to implement Alexa commands; for example you can say "Alexa, TV Pause" whatever you are watching; a script pauses the TV, the Firestick, the Sky Box and the DVD player. That's also handy in other scripts e.g. to pause the TV when someone presses the doorbell, before announcing "there is someone at the door" and putting the doorbell's camera image on the screen. Question 1: is this integration "local", i.e. not using the cloud? I assume it is? My previous solution used a generic IR blaster set up through Smart Life exposed to Alexa through (a lot of) Smart Life scenes, so the argument for adopting the Broadlink solution could be more than just that it is a cooler device. Question 2: you mentioned fleetingly that a remote might send different commands from the same button e.g. for power on and power off. How can I tell? Toggle commands are the bane of my media-programming life because it is too easy for devices to get out of step, so that e.g. the TV truns on and the Sky Box turns off. I am in any case hoping to make my HA scripts smarter than my Smart Life scripts because HA has access to state -- i.e. I can check that the TV is on before turning it off. Remark: It would be a great addition to Home Assistant in the future if we had a library of remotes to load instead of having to learn every button (as the Broadlink app does). Some devices actually have more IR commands available than the physical remote implements, e.g. "set input to HDMI3", which therefore cannot be taught by the method you describe.
@@EverythingSmartHome LOL last night I decided I could do a bit more automation in the office including some IR and.... decided to get a RM4 Mini. Thanks, again! UPDATE: Received and setup. Your video made setup quick and painless. I'm using it with the Ikea Tradfri 5-button remote it's working great.
Great video bud! Just about to head down the rabbit hole here. Chose this RM Pro only because this seems to be the only IR blaster that anyone talks about in HA. I have worked with other devices in other systems. This seems straight forward enough to use though. Unsure if this is the best choice, but the deed is done! One note to any that see this - IR is very susceptible to light noise - Make sure you are learning codes in an area that doesn't have a lot of sun or any flickering light sources. Other platforms have you trigger the IR signal 3 time (or more) and the software will average the signal eliminating anomalies. Honestly, I would recommend placing the remote and the learning sensor under a cover to make sure you get the cleanest signal. Noise is fine as it can be ignored (and more IR remotes send the signal more than once anyway), so these issues would usually go unnoticed. I presume that the .storage file that contains the codes and the scripts can be shared, so I plan to post mine out to the HA forum as I complete the mappings (save someone else the effort (I know that's the first thing I went looking for and was sad to not see!) Cheers!
I've personally have been using it to control air conditioners, a wall fan, and speakers for quite a while now. Though granted, air conditioners tend to be a lot more complicated to train because so far the ones I've seen send the *entire* state with each button press. Ended up picking apart the IR code format and writing an appdaemon app to build the correct IR code on the fly because I didn't want to record n(modes) * n(temps) * n(swing states) * n(fan speeds) number of commands. Fun fact: the remote.send_command service can accept broadlink command strings and thus can be used without training, if you know the IR codes to send..
Hey, im new to home assistant and I have a couple of broadlink devices I want to use to control my heat pumps. Could you share some insight of how I can do this? Learning all the commands seem like a hassle.. thanks in advance
@@dixon266 in my case, I actually spent time reverse engineering the IR protocol for the A/C and coding it up in Appdaemon. Sorry I can't provide more specific steps. Like, the broadlink code is just a sequence of on/off timings for IR pulses. And in most cases, those can translate to a binary sequence, I just recorded several samples and compared them to see what bits changed.
Watched the video whilst I already had integrated RM4 Pro. Wish you had made this video a year ago. I had however done same as you and created scripts with buttons.
Hi Really good video!!! I followed it just the other week. But then I upgraded HA and now these no longer work. Do you have a quick guide to update to whatever the new forms are?
Even if you program a remote control into it by learning, is it still line of site? In other words, this still has to be in the same room, right? I have one in the bedroom but i want to send a remote control signal to the electric fireplace in a different room.
Interesting! Question: instead of sending commands from the RM4 (remote.send_command), can it listen to an IR signal and then trigger an action via HA? Goal: trigger some HA automation from my sofa using my TV remote's IR keys.
There is a custom component for home assistant called smartir that allows you to more easily control climate, tv and fan devices without going through all the learning process. Works with the broadlink devices and others.
Thanks for the video! What is the best place to have the ir controller since you can have a verry big living room with IR devices everywhere. Do you have pictures where you tested this ?
I always out of breath after watching your videos! :-D Nice video! I'm in the process of using that device to control my A/C and I'm still struggling a bit with Climate and Thermostat things...
Hi Nice video Just to let you know @3:58 you can get device IP address by clicking Device info ther you will find it also you can find MAC address PID , DID and other information :)
Thanks for putting this together. I got this device in order to control an IR electric fireplace. The problem is, in order for the fireplace to be fully turned on, on its original remote, you need to click the on button, after that the heat button once, a 2nd time, and than a third time. So a combination of 4 total button presses. To your knowledge, does the Broadlink RM Pro have a way to program a combination of button clicks into a SINGLE click (that triggers it)? I hope that this makes sense... thanks :)
Juggling multiple remote (my elderly Mom needs them) but the unreplaceable remotes are wearing out. So I have 2 RM Mini 3 that I hope I can build into a workable remote of some kind. Now to figure out a IR (or something ) receiver. PS yes I know a year late, still a good usable video. 🙂
Awesome Video. I am having some issues with the LG Magic remote however. The RM4 Pro is able to assign a generic WEBOS template if I search within the app and control the TV entirely but if I try and get the RM4 Pro to learn the rf frequencies in HA, nothing happens. Any thoughts
What if you have multiple ir remotes in different rooms that does the same thing (controlling mini splits), do you have to create same scripts for each remote?
Love the broadlink devices. I have it with some ir blinds and my rf ceiling fan and of course my tv and sound system. One button lowers the blinds turns the tv on sets the ceiling fan light off and the fan to low, turns the tv on and changes to plex and goes to my movie folder/section. The other button reverses that. Also put it all in automations in home assistant. When I start playing a movie on the firestick on plex/netflix it will do the blinds and lights and fan. Really one of my favorite devices.
I had setup where i had connected like 10 consoles and long combination of commands to switch between them... Then my drive died so here i am to refresh my memory :)
If I was to use a RM4 Mini to toggle a light, is there any way this can be set up as a switch? I’ve tried using an input boolean, with some automatics to run the scripts as you’ve shown, but when I link it to Alexa it still shows as an input Boolean. Changing the device_class in the Customization UI didn’t seem to help. Any help would be great!
Is there any way to figure out the IR codes without the original remote that you know of? I have an expensive component switch that originally came with an IR remote but I don't have it and it's impossible to find online
First - the video was excellent, thank you!!! It was easy to follow and got everything integrated easily. My struggle is that the 'call service' works, however nothing happens to the device(s) I first started with some cheap puck lights with an IR remote, and the broadlink learned it just fine. When executing in HA, nothing turned on... went and looked inside the file editor and i notice that each time i tried to teach it 'power on' the code itself changed for each entry ("rolling code"?) hitting the same "on" button on the remote each time. Thought it was a fluke, and am noticing the same behavior with my Sony Bravia TV remote - same result and different codes each time. Any bright ideas on what I'm missing - if anything?
Does broadlink have a physical remote? I use my harmony companion to control all my av rack that is situated in garage via RF / IR I personally couldn't use my phone as a primary way of controlling my av kit. I just want to pick a upa remote turn TV on to what ever pre defined sequenced macro. I like the idea of adding lots of other ir rf bits of kit not just av kit though. Video definitely helped with seeing the potential of the rm4 though 🙂 nice one
Could this broadlink also be used to detect IR signals? Say I press a known power command on a remote for my tv, Coult the broadlink receive this and via a HA script send a IR Power on signal to say my sterio?
Thanks for the video!!!, missing the second part... read IR or RF from device to HA, for example for RF Door sensor to communicate to HA the change of state, or use a universal/old remote to fire events from other remote controls. maybe you can consider do it in another tutorial.
I don't believe the broadlink device is capable of doing that, it can only do a button press and not a sensor, I tried it :) that's why I didn't cover it
Hi!! I was wondering if there is a way to create a temperature button. Not a temp up or down, but one that would set the AC to a fixed temp when pressed...
Love the video. very informative. Has anyone manage to get the Sky Q remote to work. I've taken it out of Bluetooth mode and the orange light goes out when I press a key but won't operate the Sky Q STB. I've also tried it directly from the app and still no joy. Can anyone help please?
Hi, very nice and explicit video, please I just want to know and be sure if this could work locally without Internet connection, kindly respond timely. Thanks so much 🙏
Hi, did you try to control without internet connectivity? We are struggling with that! Please give me 👍 if working without internet connection or 👎 if not! I would also appreciate your support to tell about your experience and how you made it local control!
I use Node Red for all my automation, how would I tell it to turn off my fan? I understand how to setup the automation for when to do it but what do I use in node red to call the command?
You can use home assistant button to call a service instead off running a script. You also don't need to have a entity because you can pick your own icon and have your own name. Side note: the RM3 mini works.
Excellent video. I have had the Broadlink RM Mini 3 for a couple of years and had it integrated into the HA with smartIR, but I was always looking for a way to integrate it directly and there this great video appeared. Now I have a concern, I followed the steps you take, but I did it with the air conditioning, it turns me on, but it does not turn me off, also, I added an input_select, with the options for the fan speeds, but I have no idea how to make it work (When selecting one of the speeds, it applies to the air conditioning). I hope you can help me, either by telling me how to do it or by referring me to a page. Thanks in advance.
@@EverythingSmartHome Alternate code? What I would like to know basically is how I relate the content of the input_select to the air conditioning. I do not know if I mean myself.
Hello, is it possible to user tv remote to control HA entities?...one scenario will be to turn off the lights from original tv remote, when your phone is not close. I have RM4 Mini. I find your videos very educative. Thx
Unfortunately not with the Broadlink devices as they only receive IR codes when in learning mode. You might be able to do it with a Flirc device though.
Hello, I have a question. I have portable thermostats Habitat, which send the signal to the wall-mounted ac unit. I don't want to buy their hubs because they are super expensive. The portable thermostat works with RF. Is there a way I can connect those to HA? Thank you
Is there anyway for the icon to change colors to indicate power on and off? I have some lights on ir, so it would be great for the mushroom theme I just set up
Hey Lewis, does Broadlink sell an IR extender blaster separately? I have some devices that are inside my cabinet and some that are outside, what's the best way of dealing with that scenario? Could I buy multiple broadlink devices maybe and have them work together in some way? Thanks!
I know for sure you could have different broad link boxes, each device you control you choose which device it is a “sub device” of, and use that box to control those devices in the cabinet
I have a broadlink for controlling old stuff like VCR. But I have not integrated it into homeassistant yet. What would be GREAT is to have something that LOOKS like a remove but lets you connect the buttons to scripts so you are able to use a remove... that looks like a remote... in HA. Any ideas?
![ILLSLICK - WINTER IS COMING [Official Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/dwTMeM1zIhQ/mqdefault.jpg)
How many of you are still juggling multiple remotes!? 😱
Not me but great video!!!
I rarely need to use remote control to my TV (many reasons besides GF) however I'm still struggling with integration LG AC to my Home Assistant. The Broadlink or similar device is the way to go. However I have feeling that it will be only 1-way communication (Boradlink - > LG AC).
No, but currently I use a Logitech Harmony remote, so no juggling, but I did replicate the most common buttons on to a lovelace dashboard so I can override my OH when he has the physical remote.
@Jane haha love that! 😅
Nice video as always, very well explained.
When you learn commands, you can use a list of commands instead of learning them one by one, for instance :
- turn on
- turn off
- volume up
- volume down
I bought a Broadlink RM Mini (IR only) a while back and I love it. At first, i used scripts like you did, but since moving all my automations to node-red, I use node-red to create switch entities in HA, and pressing them triggers automations in NR.
3 years later and this video is still helpful. Thanks so much Lewis!!
One thing that makes adding commands a little easier, is you can add multiple lines to the "learn commands" section, I did this for a fan remote by adding: power, light, reverse, fan 1, fan 2 ... fan 6.
Then you can just keep an eye on the notification section of home assistant to make sure you're picking up the commands in the right order.
Much simpler than other guides on internet, thank you.
Thanks for watching!
I was literally just trying to integrate the RM mini! Thank you!
What are the chances 😅
If you are adding an rf remote code, HA will ask you to hold the button down first while Broadlink scans the rf spectrum first for the right frequency and then it will prompt you in notifications to press the button one time to capture the code. It is a tedious process and you may have to also watch the orange light too on the broadlink. It took me a while to figure that out. The IR scanning is as the video shows. RF scanning requires two steps to capture the code.
thanks for explaining WHY it's a 2 step process. would be nice if you could add the Mhz into the ui to skip the press and hold
Thank you so much! I'm glad i found your comment! Saved me from sending back a LED stripe. This comment shoud be pinned!
Must admit I don't understand the above. My Home Assistant hasn't asked me to do anything like the above, but seems to have failed to communicate with my RM4 Pro after the first one or two learned commands. And I can't locate the file where it would have saved the commands if it did...my File Editor has no Configuration tab and I can't see the Storage folder.
Just what i needed on my HA journey. I have a lot of RF and IR remotes in my kitchen so this is perfect. Great clear video.
Brilliant and easy to follow video's as always. ive had the rm pro for a good few years. and previously had it connected to Smartthing and Hubitat. Ive only been using Home assistant since December, so loads to learn, and my old way of using the broadlink hub was via the old Rm Tasker plugin, which is no longer being looked after and is having issues, as the software is struggling to run on the latest android tablets. This has givin some life to something i was about to ditch . Thank you, keep up the good work
Awesome, glad you found it useful! Welcome to the dark side of HA 😎
Brilliant thanks. I wasted a day yesterday trying to remember how to do this but forgot 2 simple steps. You refreshed my memory. Wish there was an easier BroadLink integration though.
Great, glad I could help!
This is awesome. I can now hide my kvm and all the cords away under the desk and switch between my work and home PCs without a remote control. Thanks!
Thank you so much, you just saved my RM 4 mini from the garbage bin. It was laying around here being useless for a whole year! But now, it finaly does, what it has to. Like, put my LED candles on, when the TV goes on and set the right color. Fabulous. I love your way of explanation, a child can do it with your lesson... ;-)
Haha amazing, thanks! Glad it was useful!
Thank you. I have DIY ambient lightining behind my TV using an Rpi running Hyperion. My issue was always I could only connected 1 HDMI into it. So I had to choose if I wanted the light strips to mimic what was coming in through our firestick or through cable box. But now I can pickup an HDMI switcher with IR remote, plug both the firestick and cable box into the switch, plug switch into the RPI and use broadlink RM to control the switch!
Great video straight to the point. Explaining this complicated setup process is not easy. Maybe a two part video would help.
I'm new to Home Assistant. First, your videos are SO helpful... thank you! Second, I freaking LOVE Home Assistant!
Is there a way to back up the learned commands? It would be a huge PITA to have to re-learn all the codes after a re-install of HA.
Thanks very much. I just bought one of these on the strength of your video to see if it will be a viable replacement for my now-discontinued Logitech Harmony. Beautifully-explained and worked first time. I must say that I'm a bit of HA nerd though but for the lay-person, it should be ok. Lay-people, WARNING: He speaks fast, so have pause at the ready and you'll be grand!
Love your videos, always very helpful.
Exactly what I needed in order to read tbe IR from the remote control.
The only problem I have faced is creating and saving the scripts, no matter which way it tried it didn't let me save the script.
Thanks! Hop in the discord I'm sure we can sort it
You are a lifesaver! Been struggling with this. Thank you for making it easy. Love your videos!
I agree. I have had a rm mini for months and just couldn't get it working correctly. After his video works perfectly.
I made my own ESP based IR extender. Took about 30 minutes and about $10 bucks. Been working with HA for a year now. Not one issue.
An excellent video, thank you very much! I wanted Home Assistant to control (= start & stop) my IR remote controlled air heat pump based on room temperature and electricity prices. Works like a charm 😊
Thanks man. Cant believe this video is 2 years old. I have the scripts in HA but I am struggling to create a thermostat card to control my Split AC. I have 5 of them and have tried to find a solution for some time. What I am finding is the quick solutions don't have my make/model of AC and some solutions are no longer supported etc. I am no good at YAML so its even more daunting.
Excellent video. Thank you. Got my new projector and fan setup quickly using this video as a guide :)
Great custom guide! If you're trying to automate an Air Conditioner use of the SmartIR integration can make it much quicker and simpler as people have already worked out the codes. There's other videos on youtube that show how that's done.
This is the best comment here, I was trying to setup an AC with Home Assistant and the Broadlink RM4 mini and I didn't wanted to learn one code for ON/OFF/Auto/Cool/Fan etc.. this integration helped a lot! Thanks!
@@jdknoHi, is this still working ? How to Access this intégration please ? Can't find it on hacs
Many thanks, worked good for me as well After a bit of research.
Best Broadlink to HA explanation by far👍🏻
ps. If got the RM mini 3!
Nice one! Thanks!
Thanks for the breakdown on this, it helped me to set up my BL mini!
Thanks for this video as always nice and easy to follow had a few issues getting the Broadcom connected to the WiFi and learning the remote was not fun. But I think I’m there. However my device as a separate on off switch do you know how I can combine this into a toggle switch? Save having an on and off button on the dash board ?
You are an absolute lifesaver, this tutorial is fantastic and really helped.
Great video, i'm getting one of these soon, this is the best tutorial i have found so far! Thanks
on passage approx 7:00 / 7:20 where you typed each command separetedly, u can use - command_name on each one line for one command to avoid that time consuming process... and learn all commands in one run
+1 for rocking the MKBHD merch!
Hahaha gotta rep!
I just bought a Broadlink RM4 and this video is a must-watch because setup, though not difficult, is far from self-explanatory.
I use it mostly to implement Alexa commands; for example you can say "Alexa, TV Pause" whatever you are watching; a script pauses the TV, the Firestick, the Sky Box and the DVD player. That's also handy in other scripts e.g. to pause the TV when someone presses the doorbell, before announcing "there is someone at the door" and putting the doorbell's camera image on the screen.
Question 1: is this integration "local", i.e. not using the cloud? I assume it is? My previous solution used a generic IR blaster set up through Smart Life exposed to Alexa through (a lot of) Smart Life scenes, so the argument for adopting the Broadlink solution could be more than just that it is a cooler device.
Question 2: you mentioned fleetingly that a remote might send different commands from the same button e.g. for power on and power off. How can I tell? Toggle commands are the bane of my media-programming life because it is too easy for devices to get out of step, so that e.g. the TV truns on and the Sky Box turns off. I am in any case hoping to make my HA scripts smarter than my Smart Life scripts because HA has access to state -- i.e. I can check that the TV is on before turning it off.
Remark: It would be a great addition to Home Assistant in the future if we had a library of remotes to load instead of having to learn every button (as the Broadlink app does). Some devices actually have more IR commands available than the physical remote implements, e.g. "set input to HDMI3", which therefore cannot be taught by the method you describe.
Thanks for this! I'd considered getting one and decided it's not for me based on this video. I'll keep using my Harmony Hub and remotes for now.
No worries glad it was useful!
@@EverythingSmartHome LOL last night I decided I could do a bit more automation in the office including some IR and.... decided to get a RM4 Mini. Thanks, again! UPDATE: Received and setup. Your video made setup quick and painless. I'm using it with the Ikea Tradfri 5-button remote it's working great.
Thank you for another great video. as always informative, latest information, as well as slow and simple enough for everyone.
Thanks, really appreciate it!
Great video bud!
Just about to head down the rabbit hole here. Chose this RM Pro only because this seems to be the only IR blaster that anyone talks about in HA. I have worked with other devices in other systems. This seems straight forward enough to use though. Unsure if this is the best choice, but the deed is done!
One note to any that see this - IR is very susceptible to light noise - Make sure you are learning codes in an area that doesn't have a lot of sun or any flickering light sources. Other platforms have you trigger the IR signal 3 time (or more) and the software will average the signal eliminating anomalies.
Honestly, I would recommend placing the remote and the learning sensor under a cover to make sure you get the cleanest signal. Noise is fine as it can be ignored (and more IR remotes send the signal more than once anyway), so these issues would usually go unnoticed.
I presume that the .storage file that contains the codes and the scripts can be shared, so I plan to post mine out to the HA forum as I complete the mappings (save someone else the effort (I know that's the first thing I went looking for and was sad to not see!)
Cheers!
Thanks man! Good tips about IR learning, good luck with the broadlink!
I've personally have been using it to control air conditioners, a wall fan, and speakers for quite a while now.
Though granted, air conditioners tend to be a lot more complicated to train because so far the ones I've seen send the *entire* state with each button press.
Ended up picking apart the IR code format and writing an appdaemon app to build the correct IR code on the fly because I didn't want to record n(modes) * n(temps) * n(swing states) * n(fan speeds) number of commands.
Fun fact: the remote.send_command service can accept broadlink command strings and thus can be used without training, if you know the IR codes to send..
Hey, im new to home assistant and I have a couple of broadlink devices I want to use to control my heat pumps. Could you share some insight of how I can do this? Learning all the commands seem like a hassle.. thanks in advance
@@dixon266 in my case, I actually spent time reverse engineering the IR protocol for the A/C and coding it up in Appdaemon. Sorry I can't provide more specific steps.
Like, the broadlink code is just a sequence of on/off timings for IR pulses.
And in most cases, those can translate to a binary sequence, I just recorded several samples and compared them to see what bits changed.
This video was very helpful, thank you!
I just love you now. You saved my life. I was seeking for this for ages!
Haha glad I could help 🙏
Watched the video whilst I already had integrated RM4 Pro. Wish you had made this video a year ago. I had however done same as you and created scripts with buttons.
Well, I thank you for watching it anyways 🙏
You read my mind :D I was actually discussing this on discord while ago so happy that you have made a video :)
Amazing! 😅
Hi Really good video!!! I followed it just the other week. But then I upgraded HA and now these no longer work. Do you have a quick guide to update to whatever the new forms are?
You just saved my ass from a lot of hussle! ZHX for your clear explanation!! Nice job!
Even if you program a remote control into it by learning, is it still line of site? In other words, this still has to be in the same room, right? I have one in the bedroom but i want to send a remote control signal to the electric fireplace in a different room.
Interesting!
Question: instead of sending commands from the RM4 (remote.send_command), can it listen to an IR signal and then trigger an action via HA?
Goal: trigger some HA automation from my sofa using my TV remote's IR keys.
THIS video is soooo helpful. Thank you!
There is a custom component for home assistant called smartir that allows you to more easily control climate, tv and fan devices without going through all the learning process. Works with the broadlink devices and others.
smartir is great but dose need some love to get more devices listed
That's good to know, thanks chaps!
Been looking to integrate my RM PRO for ages, thanks!
Awesome, hope this helps!
Thanks for the video!
What is the best place to have the ir controller since you can have a verry big living room with IR devices everywhere.
Do you have pictures where you tested this ?
Thank you Bro, excellent video as always!
I always out of breath after watching your videos! :-D
Nice video! I'm in the process of using that device to control my A/C and I'm still struggling a bit with Climate and Thermostat things...
Haha sorry! 😅
so helpful and timesaving your video!!! Thank you so much ❤❤
Do you still recommend this control for use with the home assistant?
Hi Nice video Just to let you know @3:58 you can get device IP address by clicking Device info ther you will find it also you can find MAC address PID , DID and other information :)
Thanks! Not on my one, that was the first place I looked, mine only shows Mac address, no IP address for some reason!
Thanks for putting this together. I got this device in order to control an IR electric fireplace. The problem is, in order for the fireplace to be fully turned on, on its original remote, you need to click the on button, after that the heat button once, a 2nd time, and than a third time. So a combination of 4 total button presses. To your knowledge, does the Broadlink RM Pro have a way to program a combination of button clicks into a SINGLE click (that triggers it)? I hope that this makes sense... thanks :)
Juggling multiple remote (my elderly Mom needs them) but the unreplaceable remotes are wearing out. So I have 2 RM Mini 3 that I hope I can build into a workable remote of some kind. Now to figure out a IR (or something ) receiver. PS yes I know a year late, still a good usable video. 🙂
Just an FYI, the broadlink app does in fact tell you the IP address of your RM4 Pro. You just need to dig for it a little.
Awesome Video. I am having some issues with the LG Magic remote however. The RM4 Pro is able to assign a generic WEBOS template if I search within the app and control the TV entirely but if I try and get the RM4 Pro to learn the rf frequencies in HA, nothing happens. Any thoughts
VERY VERY Helpful! Thank you!!!
Thanks for the detail in the video, wish i'd found this one earlier.
Thanks for commenting, appreciate it!
What if you have multiple ir remotes in different rooms that does the same thing (controlling mini splits), do you have to create same scripts for each remote?
Is it possible to add Codes manually in the Broadlink Storage Section when you dont have a Remote anymore for a Fan f.e.?
Love the broadlink devices. I have it with some ir blinds and my rf ceiling fan and of course my tv and sound system. One button lowers the blinds turns the tv on sets the ceiling fan light off and the fan to low, turns the tv on and changes to plex and goes to my movie folder/section. The other button reverses that. Also put it all in automations in home assistant. When I start playing a movie on the firestick on plex/netflix it will do the blinds and lights and fan. Really one of my favorite devices.
Sounds like a nice setup you've got there!
@@EverythingSmartHome Thank you.
Excellent video, thank you!
I had setup where i had connected like 10 consoles and long combination of commands to switch between them... Then my drive died so here i am to refresh my memory :)
Damn that sucks!
If I was to use a RM4 Mini to toggle a light, is there any way this can be set up as a switch?
I’ve tried using an input boolean, with some automatics to run the scripts as you’ve shown, but when I link it to Alexa it still shows as an input Boolean. Changing the device_class in the Customization UI didn’t seem to help.
Any help would be great!
Again love from India. Waiting for this video.thank for tutorial.. 🙏🏻
Your the MVP!
Is there any way to figure out the IR codes without the original remote that you know of? I have an expensive component switch that originally came with an IR remote but I don't have it and it's impossible to find online
First - the video was excellent, thank you!!! It was easy to follow and got everything integrated easily.
My struggle is that the 'call service' works, however nothing happens to the device(s)
I first started with some cheap puck lights with an IR remote, and the broadlink learned it just fine. When executing in HA, nothing turned on... went and looked inside the file editor and i notice that each time i tried to teach it 'power on' the code itself changed for each entry ("rolling code"?) hitting the same "on" button on the remote each time.
Thought it was a fluke, and am noticing the same behavior with my Sony Bravia TV remote - same result and different codes each time.
Any bright ideas on what I'm missing - if anything?
At 4:57 you will notice an option named 'Alternative'. I hear this is what works for rolling codes.
Does broadlink have a physical remote? I use my harmony companion to control all my av rack that is situated in garage via RF / IR I personally couldn't use my phone as a primary way of controlling my av kit. I just want to pick a upa remote turn TV on to what ever pre defined sequenced macro. I like the idea of adding lots of other ir rf bits of kit not just av kit though. Video definitely helped with seeing the potential of the rm4 though 🙂 nice one
Not that I'm aware of unfortunately, I can see why that wouldn't be suitable!
Hi. Thanks for the video. Are the steps the same for a Broadlink RM3 PRO+ ? I can get IR working but not RF???
I'm in same situation. I'm trying yet a week, but nothing
Could this broadlink also be used to detect IR signals? Say I press a known power command on a remote for my tv, Coult the broadlink receive this and via a HA script send a IR Power on signal to say my sterio?
Now that was super easy :) Thank you Lewis
Your welcome buddy!
Thanks for the video!!!, missing the second part... read IR or RF from device to HA, for example for RF Door sensor to communicate to HA the change of state, or use a universal/old remote to fire events from other remote controls. maybe you can consider do it in another tutorial.
I don't believe the broadlink device is capable of doing that, it can only do a button press and not a sensor, I tried it :) that's why I didn't cover it
Hi!! I was wondering if there is a way to create a temperature button. Not a temp up or down, but one that would set the AC to a fixed temp when pressed...
Thanks for the nice video!
Now I'm considering to resume my project of IR automation using ESPHome.
Nice! 🙌
I'm paralyze and need something to channel surf and turn off & on devices using voice command. Would I be able to do it with google mini?
Love the video. very informative. Has anyone manage to get the Sky Q remote to work. I've taken it out of Bluetooth mode and the orange light goes out when I press a key but won't operate the Sky Q STB. I've also tried it directly from the app and still no joy. Can anyone help please?
You could use the Sky Q integration instead.
Hi, very nice and explicit video, please I just want to know and be sure if this could work locally without Internet connection, kindly respond timely. Thanks so much 🙏
Yep should do!
Hi, did you try to control without internet connectivity? We are struggling with that! Please give me 👍 if working without internet connection or 👎 if not! I would also appreciate your support to tell about your experience and how you made it local control!
Thanks! Now I'll find out if this works the same with the RM4 mini.
Good luck!
@@EverythingSmartHome Yes it works identically with the Mini.
Do you know of any remotes that can work for 2.4 GHz signals?
I use Node Red for all my automation, how would I tell it to turn off my fan? I understand how to setup the automation for when to do it but what do I use in node red to call the command?
Thanks a lot for youre video!
Very good tutorial. Works well thanks.
Thanks Mario!
You can use home assistant button to call a service instead off running a script. You also don't need to have a entity because you can pick your own icon and have your own name. Side note: the RM3 mini works.
You can indeed, I just don't prefer that approach over this one personally but if you do then that's great!
Yup... i have 2 rm4c in my HA to control aircond.. tv.. fan.. really love the learn process 😁😁😁
It's the greatest right?!
Awesome video!
Excellent video. I have had the Broadlink RM Mini 3 for a couple of years and had it integrated into the HA with smartIR, but I was always looking for a way to integrate it directly and there this great video appeared.
Now I have a concern, I followed the steps you take, but I did it with the air conditioning, it turns me on, but it does not turn me off, also, I added an input_select, with the options for the fan speeds, but I have no idea how to make it work (When selecting one of the speeds, it applies to the air conditioning).
I hope you can help me, either by telling me how to do it or by referring me to a page.
Thanks in advance.
Thanks! Did you try using the alternate code?
@@EverythingSmartHome Alternate code? What I would like to know basically is how I relate the content of the input_select to the air conditioning.
I do not know if I mean myself.
I covered alternate code in this video. Input select was release a couple of hours ago today so haven't yet looked at it sorry
Hello, is it possible to user tv remote to control HA entities?...one scenario will be to turn off the lights from original tv remote, when your phone is not close. I have RM4 Mini. I find your videos very educative. Thx
Unfortunately not with the Broadlink devices as they only receive IR codes when in learning mode. You might be able to do it with a Flirc device though.
What if i already have setup remote on broadlink app, can that be imported in assistant?
Hello, I have a question. I have portable thermostats Habitat, which send the signal to the wall-mounted ac unit. I don't want to buy their hubs because they are super expensive. The portable thermostat works with RF. Is there a way I can connect those to HA? Thank you
wow this is amazing!
Is there anyway for the icon to change colors to indicate power on and off? I have some lights on ir, so it would be great for the mushroom theme I just set up
Hey Lewis, does Broadlink sell an IR extender blaster separately? I have some devices that are inside my cabinet and some that are outside, what's the best way of dealing with that scenario? Could I buy multiple broadlink devices maybe and have them work together in some way? Thanks!
I know for sure you could have different broad link boxes, each device you control you choose which device it is a “sub device” of, and use that box to control those devices in the cabinet
Advanced made simple 💪🥳
Thankyou! Great guide
Thanks!
I have a broadlink for controlling old stuff like VCR. But I have not integrated it into homeassistant yet. What would be GREAT is to have something that LOOKS like a remove but lets you connect the buttons to scripts so you are able to use a remove... that looks like a remote... in HA. Any ideas?
Can you run broadlink locally or still need to connect broadband server?
I'm guessing through their app no but I don't know for sure if HA can
Greatful for the in-service. I know what universal remote system I won't be buying just yet.
Tks for the vídeo. Work for me. But if I want say: alexa, turn on my tv
What would be The steps?
So if I put one of those rf remotes in all of my ceiling fans and get this I should be able to control them through home assistant with this.
I wish there was a remote code database like the Harmony so you don't need to manually learn every button
Post your codes along with the names of the remotes and the models of the devices they control! Let's get one started!
Wow so user friendly