SONOFF iHost Smart Home Hub
Preorder for iHost Smart Home Hub:
Limited Time 30% Off | Get Other SONOFF Items 15% Off | Free Standard Shipping on SONOFF Orders Over $89
“Hi, SONOFF wants to provide a local control center to make your home automation more fast, reliable and secure, with this vision, iHost Smart Home Hub was born, it allows you locally control devices and set smart scenes in a local control console via LAN. Besides, it supports various add-on to expand more possibilities, If you like it, please don’t miss out the premium presale event.”
Shipping Time: We will have the iHost in stock at the end of April, you can pre-order now but it may be delayed to ship until then.
Features
iHost Smart Home Hub is a private local server for your smart home system, It can not only realize the local connection and control of the devices and scene linkage, but also set smart security according to different scenes, and device data stays local & private.
Compatible with Wi-Fi LAN devices and Zigbee standard protocol devices
It supports connecting and controlling LAN devices. Run the device even if the Internet is down and manage up to 128 sub-devices, work with Zigbee router devices can extend the Zigbee network range and realize the control of the whole house.
Local Data Storage and Manasge stays local & private
All data including scene logs, operation logs, security logs, etc is stored in a local database to protect your data security and each data type supports local storage of 2000 data
Open API and Addon integration
iHost supports open API and Docker containerization. You can install or develop more Add-on to make your smart life more convenient.
Documents
iHost Local Control Guide
Zigbee Devices iHost Supports
Add-ons iHost Supports
iHost API Documents
Video
Additional information
| Weight | 360 g |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 160 × 156 × 46.5 mm |
| Model | Albridge |
| Product | RV1109 DDR4 2GB, RV1126 DDR4 4GB |
| Zigbee Module | Silicon Labs EFR32MG21 SoC |
| Wi-Fi Module | 2.4G Wi-Fi&BLE RTL8723 Wireless Module |
| Storage methods | USB and TF card(Max. 256GB for TF card) |
| Input | 5V 2A |
| Power supply interface type | Type-C |
| Casing material | ABS |
| Network interface type | RJ45 |
| Wireless connection | Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11 b/g/n 2.4GHZ, Zigbee 3.0 |
| Color | White |
| Size | 120mm X 41mm X135mm |
FAQ
1. How to reset the iHost?
Long press the Reset button by the reset pin until the indicator turns red marquee.
2. How to OTA the iHost?
Link your eWeLink account on the 'Setting', and you can OTA the iHost via the app.
3. How to reset your password?
Click the 'Forgot Password' on the login page, and press the reset button on the device 2 times in 5 seconds until the indicator light blinks twice quickly, that is, you can reset your password within 5 minutes. In addition, you can change the password in the settings of the Web center admin console.
4. How to submit your feedback?
Click the 
button, fill in your name, Email address, and the problem detail (including firmware version and device ID), and maybe provide the related uploading pictures, videos, or log files.
5. How many Zigbee sub-device does the Hub support?
Can add up to 128 sub-devices, the max number of direct children is 32.
6. How many cameras does the Hub support?
No restrictions.
7. How many rooms, groups or scenes can be added in the iHost Web center admin console?
Can add up to 100 rooms, 50 groups and 300 scenes.
8. How many trigger conditions and actions does the scene support?
The upper limit number of the "If" conditions and the "then" actions is all 10.
9. Failed to access the URL after switching the network?
Find out the iHost IP address by visiting the backend of the router, and then enter the corresponding IP address on your browser to access it. ( iHost and the PC side are required to connect to the same LAN. )
10. How to access the Web center admin console when the router connects with several iHost?
Find out the iHost IP address by visiting the backend of the router, and then enter the corresponding IP address on your browser to access it. ( iHost and the PC side are required to connect to the same LAN. )
11. If I reboot the device, does the setting will be cleaned?
Rebooting the device on the Web center admin console won't clean the settings while resetting the device with the Reset button will clear all settings.
12. Why should link the eWeLink account to perform OTA upgrade?
Because we reuse the original OTA service and firmware version management system at present, iHost must be linked to the eWeLink account and connected to the eWeLink server to query and download the latest firmware version.
After linking the eWeLink account, the device will not synchronize any local device information and data to the eWeLink cloud except for querying and downloading the firmware. If you are worried about the data security of connecting to the cloud, you can download and update the firmware, then unlink the eWeLink account so that the device will disconnect from the server. Unlinking the eWeLink account will not affect any existing functions of the device.
13. What kinds of TF Card is supported or recommended to install Addon?
iHost supports TF cards with formats such as ext2, ext3, ext4, fat, msdos, and vfat (fat32). and with storage capacity of Max.256GB, you can go to frequently bought together area of iHost to choose suitable TF card.
14. What external devices can the USB port support?
We have reserved the USB 2.0 interface for subsequent hanging on mobile storage and external accessories. In the future version, the USB port will support external mobile storage devices for storing audio and video content and backing up/exporting local storage data. In addition, various external accessories will be launched successively to expand the capabilities of iHost, such as external IR receiving and transmitting modules to realize the ability of infrared remote control; External Thread dongles to realize access to Thread and Thread-matter devices, etc.
15. Is the eWeLink CUBE system used by iHost open source?
eWeLinkCUBE is a localized device connection management system, which is an open but not open-source system. We choose not to open source, because this system involves a large number of outsourced development partners during the development process, and also purchases and uses some commercial functional components, and these codes are also closed source to us or copyright restrictions do not allow open source. Although the system code is not open source, we have always adhered to an open attitude and will continue to provide open interfaces of various capabilities for developers who want to carry out secondary development based on the system to meet the needs of various application scenarios. If the current interface capabilities cannot meet your scenario requirements, please feel free to contact us.
We will open source most of the Add-ons developed based on these interfaces.
16. Can the hardware such as button, LED indicator group, speaker and microphone be used in Add-on?
You can use the speaker in Add-on now, but the interfaces of the microphone, buttons and LED indicators are not provided yet. We consider packaging the hardware capabilities and open to developers in subsequent continuous updates.
17. How can I check and control the devices if I am not at home?
You need to configure your home router to bind and map iHost to your external network IP address, so that you can access the iHost host by accessing the IP address, and view and control the device through the console or Cast. Later, we will publish a more detailed operation guide to demonstrate how to realize remote access by binding route mapping.
18. Does iHost support MQTT? How to integrate with Tasmota firmware devices?
The iHost does not support MQTT, however, there is an open API available, the iHost open API is based on HTTP rather than MQTT as the MQTT interface can not meet the requirement of some iHost feature development. so we currently have no plans to develop an MQTT interface. Based on the open API, it is not that difficult for users to develop their own HTTP to MQTT Add-on. We will also release the Addon for Tasmota integration, which is an MQTT service that connects to the MQTT protocol Tasmota device, then integrate devices into the system through the HTTP interface of iHost.
iHost open API link: https://sonoff.tech/ihost-user-guides/api/
19. How to install Add-on to expand more features of iHost? Which Add-ons are currently supported by iHost?
Please check the tutorial link for the Add-on introduction and installation guide.
https://sonoff.tech/ihost-user-guides/add-on/#Add-on
We have developed 3 add-ons and more will be launched in the future.
● eWeLink Smart Home add-on add-on allows you to synchronize your SONOFF WiFi devices to iHost for local control and local scene trigger.
● HomeBridge add-on add-on to synchronize your iHost child devices to HomeBridge so you can control the devices from Apple Home application.
● Node-RED add-on to create the flow for device integrations and events-driven with endless possibilities.
Please follow our iHost update for more information about add-on development.
20. Does iHost support synchronizing the SONOFF WiFi device of the eWeLink account to iHost? Which SONOFF WiFi devices are currently supported?
Yes, you are able to sync the SONOFF WiFi device of the eWeLink account to iHost via the official add-on of eWeLink Smart Home. Please check it out from this link for the eWeLink Smart Home add-on introduction as well as the supported device list.
https://sonoff.tech/ihost-user-guides/add-on/#eWeLink-Smart-Home-Add-on
21. Will iHost support Alexa and Google Assistant in the future?
iHost will support matter in a future update, then Alexa and Google Assistant can be local supported via the Matter protocol.
Updates
How to do low-code development in iHost?
We briefly covered iHost's API capabilities and referenced the open source project to show you how to connect devices to iHost and how to control devices in iHost. Of course, we understand that some developers don't want to read and learn complex API documents and reference source code, so we also provide a set of tools for developers who want to do low-code development.
Node-RED is a powerful tool for building IoT applications. It uses a visual programming approach. It allows developers to connect predefined blocks of code (called "nodes", nodes) to perform tasks, and when they are connected together, they form a "Flow". It connects hardware devices, APIs, and online services in a low-code development manner.
We encapsulated a variety of iHost APIs and provided nodes with various functions for users to use, facilitating users to call iHost's OPEN API in a WYSIWYG way. The project is also open source, and you can find it here :
node-red-contrib-ewelink-cube (Github)
In this way, you do not need to read and learn the API document, only need to learn how to use the node module, you can implement the device access to the iHost and control the device in the iHost function.
Currently, the following nodes are online:
- Listening node for status change: monitor for the status change events of one or more devices
- Listening node for online status: Monitor the online status of one or more devices
- Listening node for adding device: Monitor the iHost for register device events
- Listening node for deleting device: Monitor for one or more device deletion events
- Listening node for device information modification: Monitor one or more device information modification events
- Device control node: Controls the specified device
- Device list and Device information Query Node: Obtains the full device list or specific device information
- Gateway Status Query node: Obtain the running status of the iHost
- JSON message node: sends a piece of JSON data to the iHost to control device
- Device registration node: registers a new device into the iHost and controls it
If you have any problems with the nodes, please feel free to contact us and we will collect more suggestions and continue to optimize and iterate on these nodes.
For the latest iHost API documentation, please click here:
https://sonoff.tech/ihost-user-guides/api/
node-red-contrib-ewelink-cube Github:
https://github.com/CoolKit-Technologies/node-red-contrib-ewelink-cube
How to get device information and control them in iHost?
Devices that connect to iHost directly through Zigbee and devices that connect to iHost through Add-on can be displayed and controlled on the iHost console. It means that you can check these devices' state and subscribe to state changes via iHost's OPEN API, as well as support for manipulating these devices through APIs.
In order to have a further understanding of the status subscription and device management APIs, we provide an open-source project named "Homebridge eWeLink CUBE plugin" for your reference.
This Plugin takes devices in the iHost and synchronizes them to the Homebridge system for real-time display and control.
Its workflow begins with the discovery of hosts by searching the LAN network through mDNS, after the user selects the host to connect to, "Homebridge eWeLink CUBE plugin" will first call iHost's permission API to apply for an API access token. After manually confirming the authorization on iHost as prompted, the Add-on can successfully obtain the token for subsequent communication with iHost.
Plugin then calls the device query API to get a list of all the devices and will display the obtained list of devices in iHost, after the user selects the device that wants to synchronize to Homebridge, Plugin calls iHost's device status subscription API to monitor the status changes in real-time. Similarly, if the user controls these devices on Homebridge, the plugin will call the device control APIs to send commands to iHost for controlling these devices.
With the same process, any developer can develop an Add-on to get the device list of iHost, subscribe to the device status of iHost, and control the devices on iHost. All you need is this Add-on that also supports data communication with third-party systems, iHost, and its managed devices can be seamlessly integrated into any third-party system for monitoring and management, like Home Assistance, openHAB, iobroker, etc.
For the latest iHost API documentation, please click here:
https://sonoff.tech/ihost-user-guides/api/
Homebridge eWeLink CUBE Plug Github:
-Server: https://github.com/CoolKit-Technologies/cc.coolkit.it.ihost.homebridge.plugin.server.git
-Front end: https://github.com/CoolKit-Technologies/cc.coolkit.it.ihost.homebridge.web.git
How to connect devices to iHost for control and management?
iHost HTTP-based API provides the open capabilities of iHost to any third-party application development as well as third-party devices and system integration. With these APIs, a wide range of applications can be realized to meet various feature expansion needs.
Developers can use iHost as a local server and develop other branded device integration applications via device registration and status synchronization APIs. Register your devices to iHost and the devices would be shown in iHost console. The real-time status of the device is synchronized to iHost via the two-way status synchronization interface, thus, the features of the real-time device status, triggering scene linkage, and device control can be realized on the center console of iHost.
In order to have a further understanding of the registration and device management APIs, we provide an open-source Add-on named “eWeLink Smart Home (Github) ” for your reference.
The concept of the eWeLink Smart Home Add-on is WiFi device synchronization into iHost. The eWeLink Smart Home Add-on searches for "eWeLink Support" devices in the LAN, connect devices through LAN mode, and synchronizes them into iHost for management, control, and automation through iHost. The workflow involves searching for "eWeLink Support" devices that support LAN mode through mDNS, obtaining the LAN communication encryption key of the device through the cloud, and determining if the device type is currently supported by iHost. If supported, the Add-on will display the "Sync" button for device synchronization with iHost.
When the user selects the "Sync", eWeLink Smart Home Add-on will first call iHost's permission API to apply for an API access token. After manually confirming the authorization on iHost as prompted, the Add-on can successfully obtain the token for subsequent communication with iHost. The Add-on will sync the selected devices to iHost through the device registration API, and you can see the device cards on the center console. Afterward, Add-on will synchronize the status changes from the device to iHost through the Device status synchronization API, it will also forward the control commands from iHost to the device through the Device reverse control API so that the user can view the status of the device in real-time, control the device and configure various automations in the iHost center console.
In the future, we will provide open-source "Web API to MQTT" Add-on demo to facilitate the connection of various devices that use MQTT interfaces. Currently, iHost supports only a limited number of device types with simple capabilities. However, iHost will continue to update and support more device types and complex device capabilities in the future.
For the latest iHost API documentation, please click here:
https://sonoff.tech/ihost-user-guides/api/
eWeLink Smart Home Add-on Github:
https://github.com/CoolKit-Technologies/cc.ewelink.smart.home.addon
eWeLink Smart Home Add-on docker hub:
https://hub.docker.com/r/ewelink/ewelink-smart-home
iHost Schematic Block Diagram & External Interface Definition Sharing!
Dear customers,
iHost has been on pre-sale for a week now. Thank you for your support and interest in iHost! To better serve our developer community, we are pleased to share iHost schematic block diagram and interface definition document here. We hope that this will provide you with the information you need to fully understand and utilize the device.
Schematic Block Diagram
External Interface Definition
Click here to download the complete document: https://itead.cc/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Core-Board-Finger-M.2-M-267pin-External-Interface-Definition.pdf
CONTENT PREVIEW:
With love,
SONOFF Team
iHost Smart Home Hub Preorder Is Live Now
We're happy to announce that iHost smart home hub is now available to pre-order at GMT+8 17:00, March 8th. there are two versions available: RV1109 2G and RV1126 4G.
iHost smart home hub is a local smart home server that provides fast and reliable networking. You can control and manage the Zigbee 3.0 certified devices and set up local smart scenes in a local control console with LAN. Besides, it supports open API and Docker containerization. You can install or develop more Add-on to make your smart life more convenient.
Pre-Order now and get up to 40% off, From 8th March to 20th April, limited quantity, first come, first served. Shop Now
Tell Us What You Think
Do you have ideas for iHost that you want to share, questions you want to ask, or something you’d like to see more of? Please feel free to drop us a line in the discussions section
Shipping Plan
We will ship from china to worldwide at the end of March, You will receive your tracking number after the products are delivered
Help Us Share
We are extremely grateful for your support. One of the best ways you can continue to help the campaign grow and reach our stretch goals is by sharing the campaign with someone you think would love what SONOFF iHost smart home hub has to offer.
With love,
SONOFF Team
Got something to discuss?
Any plans to add RF in future versions?
We did not have a development plan for adding RF hardware capability of iHost. The iHost will support the eWeLink Remote feature which is more reliable and convenient for sub-device management. However, we will develop a new RFBridge product with an IR feature and LAN which would be able to be synced the RF sub-device to iHost via the eWeLink Smart Home add-on. Thanks for your support.
Hi,
What will happen if the same scene is set up via eWeLink cloud and locally on iHost as well? Will it run twice and we need to choose which one to enable? If so for any non-supported iHost device we will still need to rely on eWeLink cloud scenes I suppose (like the WiFi devices that do not support LAN mode) and separate them from the supported devices scenes.
Also are there any plans to add official support for Home Assistant as well via Docker?
Thank you,
Istvan
Yes, if the scene is set up in both the cloud and ihost, it will execute twice. We recommend that if the device can connect to ihost through a local area, you only need to set the local scenario. More and more devices will be upgraded to support LAN access.
Any possibility to buy the device and load our own image / OS on it – looks amazing but would like to use in a slightly different application ?
Yes, it is possible as the iHost is based on Linux development. However, it is not recommended to do that as we are not sure you will succeed or not, and there is a risk that you may encounter issues that my team can not help out with. Once you load your own OS, you are not able to return to iHost official firmware as our firmware is confidential and not open to the public.
The hardware alone should be perfect as a computer if reinstalled and repurposed as a dedicated computer for Home Assistant OS -> https://community.home-assistant.io/t/sonoff-ihost-smart-home-hub-computer-from-itead-can-it-be-hacked-to-run-home-assistant-os-with-bluetooth-thread-matter-and-zha-integrations/545962
Will the local API also support https calls instead of http?
Yes, we have plans support HTTPS. However, we can only use the self-signed certificate, which requires the user to configure to accept the self-signed certificate.
Hello everyone!
I’m thrilled to announce that our new product, SONOFF iHost Smart Home Hub, is now available to meet you!
The progress of the product cannot be achieved without your feedback and suggestions. We warmly welcome everyone to participate in the discussion and provide any ideas or suggestions. We will continue to update and optimize iHost to bring you a better user experience.
Thank you for your support!
Hello dear hope that you’re doing great, great job, this is thing that i discussed about in 2016 with Jerry, finally it’s here after several years, we have a brand, it’s name is Arylic, multi room audio system, that supports HTTP API COMMAND, due iHOST support HTTP API , i can share all command list with you , could you prepare a driver to integrate the music servers with iHOST? Please keep in touch with my email,
noroozi.hossein@yahoo.com
We will evaluate your feature request and get back to you, thanks for your support.