(Part 2) Top products from r/homeassistant

I have the Wink hub and like it. I don't know how it compares to Smart Things. Some people, myself included, have had an issue where communication breaks down between HA and Wink, and HA stops displaying the current state of items, but I think that will be fixed in the next release.
The only reason I did that instead of a USB stick is that I started my home automation with Wink, and only tried Home Assistant when I saw how much more robust of a platform it was. That said, I do find it easier to add things to Wink than to HA, so that's a bonus. I also use these little remotes a few places: https://www.amazon.com/Lutron-LZL-4B-WH-L01-Connected-Bulb-Remote/dp/B014STZASK/ And I don't know if they can be connected directly to HA yet.
Basically I use HA for most of my automations, but I use Wink for manual control of my items, whether I'm home or away.
However, it gets a little messy when I start adding things directly to HA because they're not Wink-compatible. Currently I have a Wifi plug that's not controllable by Wink and a Xioami hub with a couple of items hooked up to it, so I can no longer rely exclusively on the Wink hub for manual control.
Still, I like the hub, and I like the app, and since HA is doing all the automation from a Raspberry Pi, I never had to root it.

My guess is that you could do almost all of the same things using a HA installation with the right USB stick, but I still like Wink because I can get stuff added and working more quickly.

Like /u/JshWright, I use z-wave switches and dimmers that replace the physical switch. They're quite a bit more expensive, but easily fit in any switch junction box and don't have to connect to wifi.

I use either GE or Linear/GoControl brand. Both seem to work the same. Only reason I use a combination is because I'm picky and the white color of the Linear ones don't quite match the standard wall plates and switches. So I use the cheaper Linear switches for single gang boxes and the GE for multi:

https://www.amazon.com/GE-Dimmer-Z-Wave-12724-Amazon/dp/B006LQFHN2

https://www.amazon.com/Linear-WD500Z-1-Z-Wave-500-Watt-Wall-Mount/dp/B00E1OVFAK

3-way configurations are pretty easy with these, just might take you a bit to figure out which wires need to go where. With the GE switches you have one master switch like the one I linked above, and then their add-on switch for the others in the circuit. Linear has an add-on switch also, but it's like twice the price of the GE one. So I always use GE for 3 or 4-way switches:

https://www.amazon.com/GE-Bluetooth-Wireless-Lighting-12723/dp/B00RKJS8MQ

I've looked at the HomeSeer ones too, which look pretty cool. They're Z-wave Plus and also support double and triple tap, although I'm not sure if HASS and/or OpenZWave support that function anyway.

http://www.homeseer.com/compare-z-wave-on---off-wall-switches.html

I moved from a Vera Edge to an Aeotec stick and haven't been happier. I'm running HA on VMWare Fusion. If you go this route, check out this article on how to get the USB stick to always reconnect when your VM restarts. My Vera served me well for 5 years (I had a Vera Lite before the Edge), but I always got nervous with their firmware updates as it was all a black box that sometimes just stopped working and I couldn't figure out why.

​

I find that things are more responsive with the stick directly on HA. As others have mentioned, being able to get under the hood is also a plus for me as I had no idea what Vera was doing sometimes. I'm using just about all Leviton devices and they work fine. The only device I still haven't been able to pair on HA (that worked on Vera) is an old Wayne Dalton Homelink to Z-Wave bridge. The devices that really gave me trouble that I had no problems with Vera are Leviton VRCZ4-M0Z in-wall controllers. However, after a bit of tinkering, I figured it out and wrote a blog entry about it.

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If you have problems with pairing and need the stick closer to your devices, consider a USB over Cat6 extender. You plug one end into the computer, plug the stick into the other and run Cat6 between them. I used a similar product (not the Monoprice one, but one I've had for 9 years or so) and it worked fine.

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As for PIN codes, they are easy to handle. With the current version of HA, you don't use the Open Z-Wave control panel, but go into the Z-Wave configuration for HA, select your lock, scroll down and look at the Node user codes. You select a code slot, enter the code (in HEX) and hit Set Usercode. It's pretty straight forward; just make sure you secure add the locks otherwise you won't be able to set the codes.

​

Good luck!

>>What hardware do I need to start running home assistant?

Learn from my experience and just pony up for a Raspberry Pi 3. I tried running HA for a while on an old Win7 laptop. Getting Python to run was a huge PITA. Then I tried running it with Docker on a Synology NAS. Nearly as bad. Then I purchased this CanaKit. A dream come true. A few days later I spent some quality time kicking myself in the rear for not having gone that route in the first place. SO MUCH BETTER.

I'm running Hass.io now and definitely recommend it for just about anyone... but later. First I'd suggest installing Hassbian because, although the water is a little deeper, you'll have easier root access, and you'll be able to learn the basics much more quickly. You may decide to keep that environment -- it's great. Or you may decide to move to Hass.io which, with the exception of enabling SSH, is really very easy. Just back up any .yaml files that you've customized, wipe the Pi's SD card, and install Hass.io. After booting a couple of times to get the "vanilla" environment initialized, put your .yaml files back, enable SSH server, Samba share, and maybe Bluetooth. You'll be back in business right where you left off.

Like I said, SSH wasn't exactly easy when I was first setting up Hass.io. But I documented the process I went through here, so maybe that will help.

> Are you proposing any alternatives to the thermostat or just feel it's better to forgo the smart thermostat all together?

Take a look through this section: https://home-assistant.io/components/#climate

Out of those, the ones that won't be beholden to a third party continuing to maintain a 'cloud' service of some sort for the smart functionality to work (or in some cases, even modifying the schedules) are the Radio Thermostat ones and the Z-wave ones. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00SYPSIRU/ would be a decent choice. Or the T50 from Radio Thermostat.

For Unifi it's REALLY easy. Set the Unifi controller up on something, your NAS or a Pi or even your desktop (note that any future config changes need to be made from this same controller, so the NAS or Pi is a better choice so it can just be left running 24/7). Then you adopt the APs and that's pretty much it. I love being able to manage my Unifi set up from their lovely phone app, too.

Great work! I was a little surprised that Wink isn't on there. For $35 the 1st gen hub is a great entry point for beginners as a Zigbee/Z-Wave radio. I used Wink's built in automations (Robots) to get started while getting HA up and running. It's easy to turn Wink into a "dumb" hub once you get HA all figured out, then you can look into dedicated radios for HA to take Wink out of the picture completely. Wink can be a little slow at times, but it is a great low cost entry point.

You also might want to add Sengled Element bulbs and Sylvania Smart+ color bulb, they are inexpensive and work extremely well!

thanks for the reply.
couple questions. I do have the GE fan controller on a Gen 1 hub but they show up in my Wink as a dimmer (GE brand but no model number, just 'Dimmer'), not a fan.

1. Do you suggest I remove these devices and add them again (hoping they get added a fan now?)?
   
   If I take this route how do i add this so it's identified as a fan? I see options to add a GE switch (no GE fan or GE dimmer), and there is no option for GE fan switch under the fans section.
   I believe i added my fans like this back in the day but they show as switches. What changed that would cause these to now get added as fans? Is it possible Wink had an update which now identifies these as fans rather than dimmers?
   
   Is it not possible to force HA to identify these as fans (like i do in HomeBridge)? something like:
   
   "fan_ids": [
   248563

Thanks for all the great info! I stumbled on Will's repo when I was reading through issues on github. So I had pulled and built that one already. Turns out that using solid core wire was the fix for my rs485 issues. I'm finally up and running!

​

I used a 5V/3A converter (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RE6QN4U) to power the pi from the 24V AC at the thermostat (wires C and D). It powered the pi fine and ran without saying it was throttled. But would almost always timeout in the rs485 communications. I tried running my rs485 ground to a ground on the gpio, just in case. No luck there. I tried tying that ground with the ground on my power adapter too. Still no luck. I tested with the multimeter and it's giving a solid 5.01V DC from the 27.3V AC source, but I guess it must not be putting out enough amps... I plugged a normal power brick into the wall and tried again, and it all worked fine! Guess I'll need to find a better source for the 24V adapter.

​

Anyway, that killed my night, but I'm going to try and grab your component tomorrow and start tinkering with it. Thanks for sharing. Looking forward to giving it a shot!

Ubiquiti has free software for an NVR.

Here is the hardware I used.

Intel NUC: Model Nuc5ppyh
(There may be better ones out now, but this one works just great)
Memory: Crucial 8GB Single DDR3L
Hard Drive: Seagate 2TB Laptop HDD SATA
OS: UBUNTU 14.04 (DO NOT USE version 16, I don’t think it is supported yet, that may have changed)
Direct Amazon Links to the same hardware I got:
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B006YG8X9Y/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00XPVQHDU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01C4W2P18/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Keep in mind, the hardware has improved a bit since I bought my stuff, so you can get better prices or faster hardware.

If you cant/dont want to go the route of ny1105's Fibaro (which is a great option) and you still wanted a repeater with some other useful features, I'd suggest the aeotec multisensor. In the USB powered mode, it'll act as a zwave+ repeater instead of just a battery powered node. And now you have motion and temperature sensors that you can use for other fun automations :)

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I use one of the outdoor GE (dongle) switches as a repeater for my gates. Just barely enough range to hit the back gate ~300ft (los) away

Amazon is out for delivery today, ordered the same kit, I am going to put this bamboo frame around it to match some of the wood in the house: https://www.amazon.com/Eleduino-Raspberry-Official-Touchscreen-Display/dp/B01FZ2RJN8 . I saw another post here where it was mounted with 3m picture Velcro strips for easy removal.

Today I am also going to size up using a double gang old work electrical box behind the display to safely tuck the Pi into the wall. I understand its a low voltage device, but I would feel better having it contained somewhat, at a minimum if the thing burns up, this would force the smoke into the house where I have a smoke alarm within 8ft.

Thanks for the inspiration!

I had the same issue on HUSBZB stick, Never could figure out why the lights kept disconnecting. I ended up switching to Conbee stick for zigbee.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01FDWOIHK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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I'm not sure if the HUSBZB is having issues due to bad design or if HA implementation of zigbee protocol is having issues. If you switch to the conbee stick, you can still use the HUSBZB stick for z-wave. Conbee stick uses deconz addon to control zigbee devices and passes them into HA, deconz is available to install through hassio.

https://github.com/marthoc/hassio-addons/tree/master/deconz

​

I have not had a single dropped device on the deconz stick, nor has several of my friends who have switched over.

Nice benefit from the Conbee stick; if you create a light group in deconz system, the lights all come on at the same time, dim at the same time, and change colors at the same time. When I was using the HUSBZB stick, the light changes for groups would trickle in one light at a time.

Not the original commenter, but I'm currently using a combination of smart switch/remote thing and smart bulbs. Admittedly not a typical use case, but I have a couple switches that control multiple fixtures.

For example I have a switch that powers both a fixture on my three season porch, and my outside patio light. One of these and two smart bulbs allows me to control them independently.

So currently, I have one z-wave fan speed controller installed: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XTKQTTV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I was looking at getting this one for the bedroom where I would prefer to have a remote (although it uses zigbee, it is supported by zigbee2mqtt which I am using):

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Hampton-Bay-Universal-Ceiling-Fan-Wireless-Wall-Switch-68109/205846346?MERCH=REC-_-PIPHorizontal2_rr-_-206591100-_-205846346-_-N

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Hampton-Bay-Universal-Wink-Enabled-White-Ceiling-Fan-Premier-Remote-Control-99432/206591100?cm_mmc=SEM%7CG%7CBase%7CD27L%7C27-20_CEILING_FANS%7CNA%7CDSA%7c71700000038715506%7c58700004243495124%7c39700035278826584&gclid=CjwKCAjwiZnnBRBQEiwAcWKfYoB74QoAKRuieWiAgpXCWa0EHvxcQRIh168qS5wm_M7SnFNPZb_YyRoCIZ0QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

​

I would also highly recommend checking out the following two blog post:

Automating a Multi-speed Fan

Convert your pull-chain ceiling fan to z-wave

Based on this amazon listing (https://www.amazon.co.uk/NECO-MK1-Remote-NEW/dp/B00BZ0VG5C) it looks like the remotes are using 433mhz which is a pretty common frequency for RF remotes because it has good wall penetration and range.

There are a bunch of good tutorials online for sniffing 433 mhz codes from remote controls (i.e. http://www.princetronics.com/how-to-read-433-mhz-codes-w-raspberry-pi-433-mhz-receiver/) using a raspberry pi and 433mhz transceiver sensors.

Another good option is the Broadlink RM Pro which is a supported component in home assistant (https://www.amazon.com/Broadlink-Automation-Universal-Compatible-Smartphones/dp/B01GIXZDKO) which takes some of the hassle of sniffing / sending the codes out of the equation. As a bonus it also does IR transmission so it can control TVs / other devices that utilize infrared (line of sight) instead of 433mhz (longer range).

Personally, I setup the 433mhz sensors before coming across the broadlink devices so I bought the slightly cheaper RM Mini 3 which only does IR but I imagine the RM Pro is just as simple to setup with 433Mhz + IR.

I've learned you're pretty screwed when it xomes to ZigBee and the ST sensors.
I bought the Conbee from dresden elektronik and it works awesome - but just for lights.
And you have to use their deConz software - which actually isn't bad at all. There's a REST API as well as a website, and it integrates into Home Assistant with the automatic discovery.

However, I haven't found sensors that work with it, despite it saying it supports sensors.

For that I would use a couple z-wave wall switches. Since it would be the easiest to implement. GE Enbrighten Z-Wave Plus Smart Fan Control, Speed ONLY, in-Wall, Includes White & Lt. Almond Paddles, Zwave Hub Required, Works with SmartThings Wink and Alexa, 14287, White and GE Enbrighten Z-Wave Plus Smart Dimmer Switch, Full Dimming, In-Wall, Incl. White and Lt. Almond Paddles, Repeater/Range Extender, Zwave Hub Required, Works with SmartThings, Wink, Alexa, 14294

My cameras in Home Assistant and on my dashboards are not live. I have a few PoE IP cameras. I have them recording into Milestone XProtect Essential+ (free up to 8 cameras). This doesn't integrate with Home Assistant so I'm grabbing still images from the camera directly using a generic camera

I like Hikvision cameras, especially since the Hikvision Binary Sensor exists. They're built well for the price.
I got a Hikvision DS-2CD2332 for inside the garage. I am in love with this camera.

I have a Hikvision XC-2142FWDI on my front porch(album here). The XC-2142FWDI looks good, but sometimes grabbing a jpg from the camera takes longer than it should. The video stream is fine tho.

Since these are PoE cameras, you need to supply power with a PoE injector or a PoE enabled switch

Here's the camera relevant parts of my Home Assistant configuration, assuming my home assistant is 192.168.0.1 and front porch camera is 192.168.0.10

camera:

• platform: generic
  name: camera_front_porch
  still_image_url: !secret camera_front_porch_url
  username: admin
  password: !secret hikvision_password
  
  binary_sensor:
  
• platform: hikvision
  name: PorchCamera
  host: !secret camera_front_porch_ip
  username: admin
  password: !secret hikvision_password
  
  secrets.yaml
  
  hikvision_password: MY_PASSWORD
  camera_front_porch_ip: 192.168.1.10
  camera_front_porch_url: http://192.168.1.10/Streaming/channels/1/picture
  
  doorbell.dash
  
  title: Doorbell Panel
  widget_dimensions: [137, 139]
  widget_margins: [8, 9]
  columns: 7
  
  layout:
  
  • camera_front_porch(5x3)
    
    camera_front_porch:
    widget_type: camera
    entity_picture: http://192.168.0.1:8123/api/camera_proxy/camera.camera_front_porch?api_password=MY_HASS_PASSWORD
    refresh: 10
    

Definitely don't try just add random amounts of cat5/6 to your antenna. That won't work.

Here's a monoprice USB extender. Not sure how good it is, but it's pretty cheap:
https://www.amazon.com/Monoprice-Extender-CAT5E-Connection-150ft/dp/B003L14ZTC

Do you actually have a separate Ethernet jack you can use for this? Also, not sure if wyzesense supports multiple instances of the device at once?

If you're ok with the strips only being one color at a time (no rainbows, fire effects, chasing lights, etc.), then the absolute simplest thing to do would be a wifi controller with a set of rgb(w) lights:

• Controller: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DY56N8U/
  
• LED Strip: https://www.amazon.com/SUPERNIGHT-Changing-Lighting-16-4ft-300leds/dp/B00K6ZJVP4/
  
• Power Adapter: https://www.amazon.com/LEDMO-Power-Supply-Transformers-Adapter/dp/B01461MOGQ/
  
  Once you get it wired up, you can add that to Home Assistant like this:
  
  light:
  
  • platform: flux_led
    devices:
    192.168.1.10:
    name: NAME
    protocol: 'ledenet'
    
    You can also find snap-on 5-wire connections to extend or change the direction of the led strips, but I add a little solder to the connections on them anyway, to make sure they connect.
    
    That controller has a few effects you can choose from but if you want something fancier like fire effects & rainbow, then go with the ws8212b/esp8266 solution that /user/MeudA67 suggested.

Quick question, does this bulb work with the stick you recommended? In the description it says "Bulbs are also compatible with the Wink smart hub. These may work with other Zigbee HA 1.2.1 compliant hubs". No idea what "HA 1.2.1 compliant" means.

Sorry if this is a stupid question, sorta new to this.

Sengled Element Classic Programmable LED Smart Home A19 2700K Smart Bulb, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N7I4X94/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_g8XGzb489RSJM

I have a couple of these zigbee Peanut Smart Plugs and they work well with HA.

GE Z-Wave switches. Use their add-on switch combined with one of their regular z-wave switches. (or zigbee or bluetooth it would seem, I am just a fan of bluetooth so that's what I used)

I just did one of my lights that was controlled by two switches with this. The main switch goes where there's power to the switch (and you'll need to make sure you have a neutral wire there) and then your existing traveler wires should be able to be used to connect the other switches.

I also saw these Zooz switches which looked interesting and claim to work with existing three way switches but I have no experience with them. I went with the GE switches because I've used them for regular switches in the past and have been very happy with them.

My fav Z-Wave motion sensor is the ecolink (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MQXXG0I/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1). Out of all my zwave motion sensors these are by far the best motion sensor I have. Only 'down side' is the detection range is sort of large for my rooms so motion is triggered from hallway when walking by.

Pros:
- Fast triggering

- Very long battery life (running same batteries over a yr now)

- Has never needed tinkering with after setup, very stable and reliable

​

Other Z-Wave motion sensors i have, ordered by best to worst imo:

- Aeotec multisensor 6 (3x) best multi sensor option imo but burns battery fast (~1-2months) (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0151Z8ZQY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1)

- Fibaro Motion Sensor (1x) works great most of the time, but every few months it freaks out and constantly triggers motion and needs to be removed and re-added to network. prob bad unit (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01KOGDETI/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1)

- Mono Price multi sensor (2x) very slow motion sensor detection, scan freq is low and afaik unconfigurable. bottom barrel option imo, do not recommend as motion sensors but do ok w/ temp / humidity / light but lite measurement is in a weird scale vs other lux sensors i have (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MRYFE90/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1)

Recently got a Peanut plug from Amazon that works great with ZHA. Only $15 US. https://www.amazon.com/Securifi-compatible-Remotely-Monitor-Appliances/dp/B00TC9NC82/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?keywords=peanut+plug&qid=1558202801&s=gateway&sr=8-1

Someone else said the same thing lol. There's also these https://www.amazon.com/SYLVANIA-LIGHTIFY-Wireless-SmartThings-Assistant/dp/B0196M620Y
Same concept but looks better.

This is what I'm currently using. Much faster than the pi1+b that I was using previously and no real issues with getting it working.

• Freenas box
  
  • InWin IW-MS04 ITX Case
    
  • AsRock J3710
    
  • 8GB Crucial Ram x 1
    
  • HGST Ultrastar 7k4000 3TB x 2
    
  • Aeotec z-wave adapter
    
  • Intel PRO/1000 Pt Network adapter
    
    • !! Note, x4 PCI slot where motherboard only has x1. I modified motherboard to fit card, don't really recommend. Still better than Realtek.
      
  • 16GB USB drive x2

Ecobee is looking real nice now. I wanted to switch even before, as I believe that Ecobee can be controlled locally.

*edit: The Nest thermostat was literally the first smart home device I bought and what got me started down this path. A couple years of education later, I'll be getting one of these: https://www.amazon.com/TRANE-Thermostat-Z-Wave-Works-Alexa/dp/B00SYPSIRU/

indeed! https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RE6QN4U
enjoy!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N7I4X94/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

they're $8/bulb right now on amazon but i often see 3 packs for like $20 on sale. I bought 8 of them about 2 months ago and so far no problem. They don't work as a zigbee repeater just FYI.

Don't be sorry for the wall of text, that link was very helpful.

I'm giving up on the RGBW and going with standard RGB for the time being.

If I go with one of the Magic Home RGB controllers, they state they can go all the way up to 12v, although I'd probably rather run 5v to it. I could get this step-down (as the article suggest) with this power supply. Or can the Magic Home take 12v no problem?

This is the easiest kit to buy.

You may just want to switch out for this controller, it works with home assistant and not too much coin.

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https://www.amazon.com/LEDENET-Smart-Controller-Channels-Control/dp/B01DY56N8U/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?keywords=led+wifi+controller&qid=1559254576&s=gateway&sprefix=led+wif+&sr=8-6

Don't know if this counts as "good" but I put together a nodemcu and an RF receiver that transmits the codes over MQTT to my raspberry pi. NodeMCU ~$9 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B010O1G1ES/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_3t7.zbNNKST99 and RF receiver ~$7 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00M2CUALS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_bx7.zbPBPEM90

Just noticed you said 345mhz... these receivers are made for 433mhz but you might be able to find a similar one for 345mhz?

Let me know if you want any more details.

That's why I went with Sylvania bulbs: these switches are the fancy commercial version of OPs project and cover the hardwired light switches. Also, their tunable white bulbs were the cheapest available at the time, and I don't really need colors, but do want F.LUX for my whole house, not just computer screen..

The RM Pro 2 does both IR and RF, RF is 433 and 315.

https://www.amazon.com/Broadlink-Automation-Universal-Compatible-Smartphones-IR/dp/B01GIXZDKO/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1480802327&sr=8-3&keywords=rm+pro+2

Bamboo case - I didn’t use the provided legs, of course.

Touchscreen

This is the one I have:
https://www.amazon.ca/BroadLink-Automation-Universal-Compatible-Smartphone/dp/B01GIXZDKO/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=broadlink+rm&qid=1562448792&s=gateway&sr=8-3

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00RE6QN4U

You can use a conbee zigbee-controller and the zwave stick at the same time

https://www.amazon.com/NEW-gateway-compact-certified-operating/dp/B01FDWOIHK

This one needs the software deconz on the raspberry tho

I use https://www.amazon.com/GoControl-WA00Z-1-Z-Wave-Scene-Controller-Switch/dp/B01BKWG9XS

$40 tho

not zwave but https://www.amazon.com/Lutron-LZL-4B-WH-L01-Connected-Bulb-Remote/dp/B014STZASK

get that and the mounting kit

You're fine on the SSD, just don't go retaining tons of logs because that's what will eat your space. 2GB RAM is fine to start, but if you start packing in automations and a lot of docker containers you're probably going to need to add more. Having said that, RAM isn't exactly expensive at the low end https://www.amazon.com/Crucial-Single-PC3-12800-Unbuffered-204-Pin/dp/B006YG8X9Y/

The camera is connected to this PoE injector. The injector itself is connected to this repeater. It has a ethernet port that can be used to either connect the repeater via cable or to "translate the wifi to ethernet". The repeater is connected to my Unifi ap. Thats it.

I just don't wanted a normal wifi camera for security reasons. Also it wasn't possible for me to run a network cable to the camera itself. That's why I use this "complicated" method.

Edit: here is a really crappy picture I drawed on mobile :D

It was the SMAKN® 433Mhz Rf Transmitter and Receiver Link Kit for Arduino/Arm/McU. (Its just over $6 now)

You can find it here:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00M2CUALS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Still have not gotten this thing working yet :(

I've not tried it personally, but a person used ser2net & socat to share a USB device (in their case a z wave hub) over IP to their home assistant instance. They wrote an article about it here:

https://blog.paul-steele.com/tech/2018/12/25/homeassistant-kubernetes-zwave-oh-my.html

Of course, this requires another device which may be more of a pain than a USB extender.

There are also USB over Ethernet adapter which would let you run much further: https://www.amazon.com/Monoprice-Extender-CAT5E-Connection-150ft/dp/B003L14ZTC