This Smart Home Control Panel Cost HOW MUCH!?

The Rithum Smart Home Control Panel is a competitor to the NSPanel Pro, that allows for centralised control over your smart home device, but it comes with a pretty hefty price tag, let's see if it's additional features can possible make it worth it and if we can get it working with Home Assistant!
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[@EverythingSmartHome]

THAT price tag tho 🤑

[@DobuDobuDobuDot]

It is too expensive but hardware-wise I can see it has a better screen and processor than the NSPanel. So, you still pay a premium for the OS, and that doesn't seem like it's the best at all. I use a combo of KNX and HA, the KNX touchpanels are rather expensive but you can basically use every function on them. This seems like a very restrictive OS with very few supported brands. The only way this thing can succeed is if the software drastically improves.

[@benjyross4626]

Fr😊

[@Phettsack]

No home assistant integration and a horrible price. No, thanks.

[@christiaanprenger8653]

I have this Rithum display at a central location in my livingroom / kitchen. I absolutely LOVE this display. It just always works perfect, is super responsive and has excellent software support. Even my wife is enthousiastic! Yes the price is high but you get quality and reliability. Thats worth something. Cheers

[@wagnerfontes2]

I was considering the NS panel a little expensive... But this Rithum thing is definitely not in my shopping list. I'd better print a stand for an old phone and configure my dashboard. OK, not the same, but will do the job.

[@EverythingSmartHome]

That's kind of a nice idea for recycling an old phone for sure

[@thomasvnl]

That's also a nice way of upcycling something that would otherwise get thrown into a drawer so good idea!

[@jjbankert]

Or buy a galaxy tab a8 for less money, and screw that to a wall.

[@thomasvnl]

@@jjbankert also a solution

[@joshcliffejones]

⁠@@EverythingSmartHomeThats actually what i have done with some cheap Xiaomi phones around the house. Flashed them with LineageOS to slim down the OS of bloatware, then use Fully Browser app (which integrates into HA) to show HA dashboards and my Solar Assistant dashboard. :D

[@dvwebster]

Clearly the Rithum Smart Home Control Panel is *NOT* a competitor to the NSPanel Pro, or indeed any other DIY enthusiast alternative. I think it is aimed at professional installers wanting to offer their clients a lower cost and simpler solution than the likes of Control4, Crestron, Savant etc. Such clients may already have invested in Sonos (which alone may have cost around £250-£1300 per room) so the £250 for an in-wall touch panel that controls whole home music with cover art displayed in colour (and perhaps controls other devices, such as Hue lighting, also not a low cost system) without expensive new wiring, does have appeal and commensurate value. BTW such mid-tier professional installers will want a margin and so too will the product distributors, so inevitably the price will be higher than for a product sold directly by a manufacturer.

[@husseinj]

Rithum has tap gestures and is super responsive means that it is not more annoying than a normal light switch and why it can't really be compared to slow devices that have multiple "clicks to action" like the Sonoff NS Panel. It's clearly not designed for Home Assistant in mind, and if you use HA you will want to use something else for sure. I have Lutron RA2 in my Living Room, Tado Heating and Sonos Amp with a pair of big speakers and Rithum can control all of this on it's own in a matter of minutes with no Raspberry Pi's, no server software and no automation code. Costs the same as a couple of Lutron Pico faceplates, it's reliable and my mum can use it when she comes over with no instructions. Worth it!

[@jerseyman99]

The product has a lovely look and feel, and is not aimed at the HA or "Roll your own" market, more high end fit-and-forget installations.

[@paulh43]

Have it now for I think 1,5 year or maybe longer. Still love it! Using it for the lights in the livingroom/kitchen and for Sonos. Kids knows how it works, it's great.

[@ArabianBytes]

Insanely expensive. Aliexpress alternatives with android so much better. Am still holding my breath for shellys control panel. I don't get this, at this price point I'd just go proper Luton or philips....so agree, great video.

[@EverythingSmartHome]

Those have their own problems mostly due to really laggy software and old versions of android but would tend to agree they are better value for money mostly. Thanks!

[@zwart592]

@@EverythingSmartHomehi, does that also go for the shelly panel? Is that allready distributed to youtube testers?

[@jamesderrick8201]

* Phase conductors seem accessible without the use of a tool so can't meet BS7671 for UK use. * No HASS integration. * Requires a Neutral wire (so hard to fit in the UK) * Silly price, plus pricey app store. Nope, nope, nope, nope! 🤦

[@garethcondliffe6238]

Completely agree, even batteries need a tool to access to conform to the UK standards

[@EverythingSmartHome]

I was very surprised too considering they are a UK company

[@roodynewbie8122]

Pfft. I currently have my son's old fire tab 7 kids edition on the wall for my control hub. Definitely works perfect for that application and they're easily found dirt cheap used.

[@petercook4350]

This doesn’t really comply with UK wiring regulations either-An obstacle may be removed without the use of a key or tool but shall be secured so as to prevent unintentional removal. As demonstrated-unintentional removal is achieved quite easily

[@brianmorgan7207]

I went with the Sonoff NS Panel Pro. At the $78 per panel, its a no brainer.

[@phil-jc8hp]

Are you using it out of the box or flashed? I want to switch out some light switches with it, but am not yet sure if I want to get the regular one or the pro

[@johnrostron2801]

Interesting comments about the price. If you compare it aginst Control 4 or similar products it seems more reasonably priced. It looks like a quality product, but the biggest downfall to me is the lack of integrations; fine if you have SONOS for example, but there are other home media solutions available.

[@EverythingSmartHome]

It does but those are also more pro products, bigger screen and works seamlessly with the rest of their products. Plus if you have a control 4 install you are probably used to high prices 😆

[@johnrostron2801]

@@EverythingSmartHome Interesting reply, are you saying this doesn't work seamlessly? For the price I'd expect it to work seamlessly with the supported products, my point is it doesn't work with enough. My second point is, I think there is a market between the top and bottom end (Control 4 versus cheap unbranded Chinese products). I am interested in one of these as it comes across as a well built product; I get the point that one in every room will become expensive, but if it works well that may be a price worth paying.

[@gordon861]

To be honest, I am having a problem seeing the point of these. If you already have all your stuff working in HA you could make dashboards for each room and take a tablet from room to room, or just leave them there mounted on a wall. But half the advantage of automating things is that you don't have to keep getting up to change things via a button, hence we all use remotes on our TVs now rather then telling the kid to get up and change channel.

[@phil-jc8hp]

I have an nspanel right next to my front door. On Screensaver mode it shows the time and weather forecast, if I open my front door, it asks me to arm the alarm and shows any sensors that block arming (eg open window). If I trigger my alarm, it shows the keypad to disarm, very handy imo because I do not need my phone ever. Also solves the problem with smart bulbs and light switches. I usually use a shelly for that but if a shelly is 15€ and a nspanel 55€, I take a panel for my use case any day. Even just an zigbee alarm keypad is already 40€ and way more difficult to setup then this

[@kleeenco]

Shrink wrap licenses were really big in the days when software was sold on CDs. I am not sure if they ever were able to legally enforce it though.

[@JamesMossR33]

Insanely expensive, no native Home Assistant integration, just unclip to expose mains connections?!...I'm already out, but thanks for showing us and a great honest review as always.

[@jameswoodhead7729]

To be honest, I don’t think the price is too bad We fit the higher end products, whole home computerised lighting systems you consider the costs involved in the systems. This device gives something in between Crestron , control 4 and a do it your self option if you think that an 7 button wall plate can cost £240 +vat with no screen and will do nothing with out £1500 of kit behind it to make it work. We just did Crestron system for 3 tv some heating and ac control and to integrate with an existing computerised lighting system and the kit at cost was £8000 we also have to pay £250 for the licenses to integrate with some companies, API hence the charges for some of the apps on the App Store. Anyway, just some thoughts easy to think that £250 is a lot of money which it is but when compared to the high-end systems, these devices mean that if you were just doing one room in a house and wanted to be able to integrate a few things together, this is an off-the-shelf solution and it works well. Keep making super videos. Kind regards, James

[@MrSpleenboy]

For that price, you could buy a zima board, pop home assistant and an OLED display on it, slap it in the wall and you'd still have change left over... Hell, you could buy a not quite new iPad or android tablet, and embed it in the wall, running as a home assistant dashboard for the same price. You'd have a bigger display too... I'm sure other examples could be made, but it does kinda highlight the insanity of their price point. Frankly, I thought 90 quid was a bit much for the NSP Pro, since it's as laggy as it is

[@Ranjitzu]

I'd buy ONE of these if I ever would, to have as a Desk Panel at my desk or Livingroom table - I would not buy one per room, tho I would with the NS panel buy ONE Pro Panel and have on my desk, and then buy the Light switches with screens to the other rooms, I think I could live with the lag.

[@andy_warb]

Thanks for sharing Emulated Hue! That’ll be super useful!!

[@EverythingSmartHome]

No worries!!

[@zht9]

For my curiosity. If this type of device with the same look and user experience as Nest Thermostat or Ecobee, will you be willing to pay 250 pounds for it and deploy them in every room?

[@JelleRevyn]

I don't get this, "let's replace the light switch with a home control screen + switch possibility". The height you install those (because they are switches) might work fine for my kids but for adults that's way to low no?

[@EverythingSmartHome]

I'm not sure what you mean sorry, my light switches are at just below eye level, though I guess new builds now have them much lower for disability access if that's what you meant?

[@JelleRevyn]

@@EverythingSmartHome Yeah, that's what I mean. I've just checked my switches are installed at 1m10 (that's the bottom of the switch). How high are your switches installed?

[@cyucel2241]

Perhaps the target market is builders making new properties smart-ish just by adding a few Sonos and Hue devices as well as one of these.

[@manicmods]

Agreed, super sketchy removal. Crazy price, but definitely has use cases.

[@chrisdixon5241]

Very slick, well made product. I was super interested until around 3 minutes in when you dropped the price :( After that I only kept watching because I appreciate the time and effort you put into your videos. I have no problem with paying more for a better product, but it still has to represent value for money and here I just don't see it. Also, I want my smart home tech to join my existing ecosystem and make it better. This should be a screen to show a HA dashboard, with sensors and actuators I can feed in. Instead it wants to work like a hub, sit at the center and order the other devices about through its own integrations (will they be maintained?). That's not what I'm looking for.

[@RNMSC]

I would imagine that they are probably looking at it as being in competition with something more like a Lutron panel or something, and possibly part of a home flipper's add in to justify the bump in price they expect a sale to go for.

[@timr798]

Saw the price -> closed the video. It's that simple

[@frankmthompson]

Seems like they are a UK Company. I don't know how it works there, but for Software in the US (in the 90s I think), the courts found that "by opening this you accept our agreement" to not be enforceable. Basically the thought is, you can't force a user to agree to an agreement they can't read without opening the box and having the opportunity to read it. Not sure if the fact that they may provide a URL would suffice, but I would say no. Completely anti-consumer and based on that, regardless of the price, I would pass on this.

[@EverythingSmartHome]

I was pretty surprised too since they are a UK company

[@RafaGmod]

The problem on the NSPanel responsiviness seems to be the swipe function. Swiping is a little hardware intensive, need a goot touch sensor and it's not a good pratice on lou power devices. Using buttons greatly improve the UX

[@KawekSL]

I think still best option is to buy some cheap android phone and put it on some stand

[@sevo92]

That price with micro USB? Almost insulting. I don't care if the panel made me dinner, the sight of micro USB inspires the same disdain as Comic Sans. Hard pass

[@kaadhome5821]

Seems similar model to the Brilliant switches.

[@user-rd9kb6ox1v]

Great video!

[@rj-zn3cw]

So what is the best alternative? I want to run home assistant panels on the device but wanted to be responsive.

[@jamiefl]

Nice music selection!

[@kelvin1316]

I just want something that can run a basic webbrowser so I can just use a HA panel on it. It doesn't need to be yet another hub to control stuff, HA is doing that.

[@sethkazzim731]

Noooope. Is anyone selling HA ready 4” touchscreens?

[@TeoTN]

Is there a way to display HA sensor value on it? Or on the Sonoff? (e.g. outdoor temperature from smart thermometer)

[@gahkak]

The only thing this has is snappy response, makes the sonoff look laggy and unusable in comparison, that price tag just makes me want to build something better for cheaper though

[@EverythingSmartHome]

Let me know if you manage 😅

[@SmartLifeEnthusiast]

Will you be getting a sneak peek at the Shelly panel?

[@470patrol]

Fantastic review. Expensive but looks like it works well. I will definitely be getting one

[@alexey_sychev]

Logo on the front panel is immediate no go

[@qazwsx000xswzaq]

You can literally root NSPanel Pro and do whatever you want with it. It is good old Android. This moddability is a pro to me already.

[@stebradbury6275]

Ye the price tag throw me off right from the start, that and the panel not screwing to the wal 👎 Video idea: Integrations in HA for wearables to use bio info to trigger automations? Or ChatGPt as the voice assistant controlling HS?

[@ernststag771]

Why they don't make oled screen? without the borders.

[@michaelrichardson8467]

It seems like you pay up front for not having to have a cloud account or an app required. I would gladly pay up front for something like that if it had better Home Assistant integration.

[@ReaperSilently]

I've looked for a long time at those panels, being Sonoff or now this, and I've always rolled back to the easiest way of working: Fire Tablets from Amazon. Here in AT they sometimes just go dirt cheap (I bought a 10 inch and 2 7inch for 100EUR last year! and that was without their ad option). Then I have Wallpanel booting up on it and placed themstrategicly in my house, wired up an USB connector of BTicino in the switch box (and pass through the wires to the lights), and with some Ugreen wall mounts, I just putted them over the open switch box, connected the USB cable (flat one) and that's it. Running dedicated dashboards on each of them, and combined with all the rest, their are a true asset in the house. To be clear, I'm a learned electrician, so DON'T GO PLAYING WITH YOUR WIRES IF YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE DOING!! other then that, there is not a panel on the market that can beat it, for now. I did see that Shelly should be working on one, but that is tbd later, didn't see anything go live yet. Great video as always! keep it up! EDIT: Mis typed, meant WallPanel, NOT NS Panel! Sorry!

[@motowoody66]

How did you get NSPanel running on the Fire tablet?

[@EverythingSmartHome]

Thanks for watching and the info!

[@ReaperSilently]

@@EverythingSmartHome I actually stole the tablet idea from one of your older videos, and to add to it, you use a Smart plug to have smart charging cycle, well, I did the same, but with a shelly in between them, so depending on the status of the battery, it charges or not ;-) I let it cycle between 20% and 90% ;-)

[@EverythingSmartHome]

@@ReaperSilently awesome good job! That's what my smart plug does too, keeps the battery nice!

[@ikku4321]

What are people' thoughts on Orvibo products?

[@lifeai1889]

what software core this runs is it android like the nspannel if not its totally useless for the price better off just mount a fire tablet to the wall with some wifi relay on the back

[@davidw717]

Looks nice though

[@TommysDaddy]

Safety ! That shouldn't be on the UK market !

[@Flytrappa]

Would not be legal to instal in Norway, should not be able to access mains power without tools. So either a press fit that requires a flathead to open or a screw.

[@EverythingSmartHome]

Yeah definitely seems weird to me, I've never seen another in the UK light that

[@ahmadsaeid]

two things: 1) diy would be cheaper, and prob better 2) have those guys never heard of something called "tablet"?

[@MrSpleenboy]

"Tablet" the Scottish confection made from milk (normal and condensed), butter and sugar, or "Tablet" the keyboard-less computing device? Sorry, couldn't resist... Can't resist tablet either, even though it's diabetes in a bag

[@EverythingSmartHome]

Love me some tablet 🤤

[@neelamaudiovideointegrator5133]

how to update his fomwear ??

[@MAMDAVEM]

I can't see this busness model working for DIY'er Home automation folk

[@kobi-kobsen]

I am not sure, but I think it was 170 when I bought it. Event that was way too expensive. I use it as Sonos remote and that works quite okay but as said - the price tag is a joke.

[@Sebastian-xf8je]

Everything Panel coming when??

[@EverythingSmartHome]

Hahaha I would love to....one day 😆

[@rogermosborne]

@everythingSmartHome Don’t be shy Lewis, you got this! Just need to get your old man back on the payroll 😜

[@justatiger6268]

7:18 Wait, so what kind of non-Sonos speakers can you connect? How does that even work? IS there any good multi-room sound setup that actually works, doesn't require you to be a programmer and doesn't cost a kidney?

[@DaveyGification]

snapcast is the (free) solution I use. You don't have to be a programmer, but you'll need to tweak some configuration files.

[@mr_sheen_asg]

Just buy few second hand smartphones and stick them to walls with double sided tape 😂

[@anton2497]

Maybe I'd pay 50 ish euros for that, and even that is a lot more than the tech inside is worth. Maybe they're doing the whole thing locally where everyone needs a proper pay. Not a great idea if so. I think you could get a lot more out of making something with a couple different parts, like an old/refurbished tablet running a stripped OS of Android or something. You can get them running pretty well with no bloat, especially if all it does is host the same kind of functionality this device does.

[@djLovelyTime]

I really don't think this is a competitor to the NS Panel. It integrates with systems like KNX, Shelly, Sonos, Blu OS and Homey. I get why they don't give a damn about HS. Everything they already support doesn't really fit into the same market. It's aimed at installers and all in one home systems that don't need to be tinkered with every five seconds with 500 devices running on different protocols.

[@streetwiztech5505]

WOW.. £250 a pop ! wifi instead of matter / zigbee .. and it doesn't even screw to the wall ! it's a hard no from me..

[@hackwar1]

Price tag is absolutely rediculous, and on top of that you have to pay extra for additional integrations. Next please!

[@MattTaylor7]

Why not just buy a tablet and flush wall mount it then power it with nearby AC

[@EverythingSmartHome]

That's what I did 🤷‍♂️

[@markgilbert249]

Magnetic Hinges for a disposable cardboard box, is just wasteful. Shrink Wrap License Agreements are just about as bad as Click-Wrapped License agreements. What if the sticker fell off before you bought it? I'm just buying a SeeedStudio reTerminal DM and some Shelly's.

[@domramsey]

That's a nope. They sound like the kind of company that will start charging a subscription for integrations. Then in 3 years when they go bust, your multi-thousand-pound control panels stop working entirely.

[@EverythingSmartHome]

The charging for integrations is a real shame

[@mattt9640]

Wow what a price tag. That’s just nuts. Well done for calling out a good product but such a daft price

[@EverythingSmartHome]

Appreciate it!

[@deefdragon]

I'm willing to pay a premium price for a premium experience, but when I say premium experience, I mean seamless integration into basically everything (That IS what Im paying for and totally not a wasted, over-engineered product right? ). The fact that they DONT have home assistant integration sucks. the fact that the plugins are paid on TOP of the main purchase? Thats no longer a premium price. thats a nickel-and-dime you price.

[@EverythingSmartHome]

That is my thoughts too!

[@rklauco]

I guess the target group is Swiss market...

[@xypod]

The whole company is giving off red flags 😂expensive product, license sticker, no home assistant integration, PAYING for an integration.

[@JasperJanssen]

Anything over the price of an android tablet plus mounting is fighting a really uphill battle.

[@mosher2302]

These devices should have LTPO Displays! LCD is not good for this purpose

[@davideyres955]

The UI needs to look better and the price is way too much. Fleecing people for the integrations is a con too. On top of it being live plus neutral which means most of the uk won’t be able to use it.

[@DelBouy-lc5wx]

They are way off the mark with that pricing.

[@l.h.1545]

300??!?!!1!!11!!?! NO.

[@madman1027]

These guys must have been high when developing the marketing this. Straight nope. I thought the NS panel was expensive. I'd rather tolerate the lag for the price or as others have said a tablet or phone is a much better solution that will provide a better experience. That said that is thinking with HA in mind. I assume other hubs would work with Fully Kiosk Browser or similar.

[@ProjectileGrommet]

Not even 120hz? All I want is an NSPanel with a 120hz screen

[@David-bl1bt]

😮 nope!

[@SoulReaver]

250 + 20 for most integrations individually? That's just pure greed. You either make the unit affordable and charge for the integrations perhaps, or just sell a premium priced unit w/ free and copious integrations for it to worth that 250 price.

[@EverythingSmartHome]

I agree!!

[@mjbates]

lol, the auto captions kept calling it the "anus panel".

[@EverythingSmartHome]

It's not wrong...

[@paulatkinson9010]

They might have listened to you mate as they have dropped the price to £208 😂 I guess it's a start lol at AUD$396 each that's a definite no from me lol

[@ericapelz260]

$50 Amazone Fire, or $100 Samsung Tab and either the HA app or Fully Kiosk....

[@EverythingSmartHome]

You don't need to tell me 😅

[@BobFrTube]

I just use a high-end ($100) smartphone which is far more powerful and supports web apps.

[@Stephen-Jones]

I liked the idea, but at the price it's a total nope from me. Sad really

[@manfredzimmer1199]

250£????? Never ever

[@markshaz8691]

It’s too expensive

[@pn8902]

This product will fail.... or it should fail sorry to say, you can get your hands on a fire tablet HD 10 and mount it on the wall for less money and its an android tablet so you can do whatever modifications you want and whatever apps...including home assistant. I hope to finish my wall mount for tablets project soon

[@kenibarwick]

Any ideas on how to get this or any other panel to work without a neutral wire?

[@MrSpleenboy]

Just out of interest, why would you want to run it without a neutral wire? Pretty much every plug and lighting socket in the UK will have one - I don't know about other countries, so genuinely curious here

[@eholloway]

​@@MrSpleenboylots of older lighting circuits in the UK won't have a neutral

[@wagnerfontes2]

For some smart switches a capacitor in parallel with the lamp makes them work without a neutral. No idea if this works for the panels.

[@wagnerfontes2]

@@MrSpleenboy In Brazil there is almost never a neutral in light switches. The neutral usually goes directly to the lamp.

[@kenibarwick]

@@wagnerfontes2 thanks

[@Airbag888]

DoA product with that price

[@marcusone1]

openHASP to the rescue!

[@mikewickens2016]

Lost me at the price no thanks 250 quid wtf

[@EverythingSmartHome]

😂

[@timsbird1971]

Got as far as £250…… nope - nope - toodaloo….

[@sun1234567890]

That's not safe.

[@SONOFF]

👀👀👀

[@TheCowboysdude]

Yeah, noooooooooo sorry that price is just waaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyy too much.

[@Etacovda63]

If they came to you for a review, their marketers are idiots. This is a integrator smart home product, not a DIY device.

[@EverythingSmartHome]

When did I say it was a DIY device?

[@Tntdruid]

Wast of money 🤑😂

[@cesarbattistini]

At that point just buy a cheap iPad.

[@POPOL2999]

wahoo nice device! the price? what a sh... device lol

[@EverythingSmartHome]

😆