Unlocking the Power of Home Assistant: 8 Unique Automations You Need to Try
The Home Assistant Companion App for Android is such a great app and here’s why…
Did you know that Home Assistant notifications can do more than just act as notifications on your phone? They can open apps, control media, manage ringer modes, track locations, and even run automations in other apps on your phone through broadcast intents. Let’s delve into eight unique automations that will revolutionize how you interact with your devices through Home Assistant.
Unfortunately this functionality is ONLY AVAILABLE ON ANDROID.
1. Opening Apps with Home Assistant
Imagine stepping into your favorite cafe and having your loyalty app ready to use on your phone without lifting a finger. With Home Assistant, this is possible. By setting up a simple automation, you can prompt your phone to open specific apps based on location triggers. This could be a game-changer for managing your kids’ study time or effortlessly accessing your preferred apps without even opening them yourself.
2. Text-to-Speech Notifications
For those moments when you can’t sift through numerous notifications, Home Assistant offers a solution. It can convert important notifications into spoken alerts using the Text-to-Speech feature. This ensures crucial messages don’t go unnoticed.
3. Media Control from Home Assistant
Hosting a party? Home Assistant can double as your entertainment manager. Create a Home Assistant dashboard allowing guests to skip tracks without handling your phone. You can pause or play media on your phone remotely. This could also be handy for when the doorbell rings and it pauses your media for you automatically.
4. Ringer Mode Control (Do Not Disturb)
Customize your phone’s ringer mode through Home Assistant. Whether it’s switching to silent, normal, or Do Not Disturb mode, you can adapt your phone’s settings based on triggers, ensuring uninterrupted focus.
5. GPS Location and High Accuracy Mode
Leverage your phone’s GPS data with Home Assistant for location-based automations. You can enable high accuracy mode remotely, ideal for ensuring the safety of loved ones or tracking activities based on their locations.
High Accuracy Mode is battery intensive so you don’t want to use it all of the time, but being able to activate it remotely or based on entering certain location zones can make it really useful for getting more frequent update.
This could be useful for children and or elderly people that you need to know where they are so that you can come to their rescue if needed.
6. Update All Sensors Remotely
For sensors that update infrequently, Home Assistant allows you to force an update remotely. This ensures real-time data availability, even for sensors that typically update at longer intervals (typically every 15 minutes).
7. Direct Notifications Using Persistent Connection
Customize how notifications are sent to your phone by enabling a direct connection from Home Assistant. This bypasses external servers, potentially reducing delays in receiving notifications.
This does seem to use more battery, so give it a try and see if it’s for you or not. You can set it to only be active when at home, where you’ll likely have easy access to a phone charger.
8. Phone Intents: Home Assistant and Tasker Integration
Unlock a realm of possibilities by using Home Assistant to send broadcast intents to your phone. Pair this with Tasker, an app that executes tasks based on received intents, to create complex phone automations, from setting alarms to sending SMS messages.
Experimenting with these automations can streamline your routines, enhance home security, and elevate your overall interaction with smart devices. From managing media to fine-tuning your phone’s settings, Home Assistant proves to be a powerful tool for orchestrating your Smart Home.
Feel free to explore the links in the YouTube video description for more detailed information on these automations. Have ideas or unique automations of your own? Share them in the comments!