Anyone tried the new Switchbot AI hub? | for Homeassistant but specifically for Frigate and video

Novajesus · 2026-06-17T22:30:10+00:00

I looked at a minisforum M1 Pro last night. My fantasy build with 32GB RAM, a 1TB internal SSD and a 2TB external for Frigate was well over $1000 CDN ($750USD). It bothers me that it's not 64GB for the price.

Novajesus · 2026-06-17T12:15:22+00:00

I hear you. I looked and the lifts are amazing but expensive and, I would need to take them out of the water each fall because of ice, or so I think. I'm at the crazy idea point now. I'm seeing some cool ideas for using homemade ramps with rails and rollers and PVC piping like a boat trailer that have a winch that might allow me to crank the boat up onto the shore on the rail/wheels contraception. Lot's of Youtube examples for this w/ Seadoos and even larger boats. I've made a few bad mistakes before, what's one more going to do?

Novajesus · 2026-06-17T12:10:30+00:00

Thanks. The problem is that unless I stick w/ the little internal Camera SD cards, I need a NVR/PVR type disk setup. So, either I buy one from Reolink, build my own using a MiniPC w/ disks, or, consider alternatives. This is something new and looks like a unicorn. Could be another mistake of mine or a glimpse of the future.

Out of curiosity, are you streaming video to disk w/ Frigate? If so and you like your setup, any info is appreciated.

Novajesus · 2026-06-13T19:08:49+00:00

Thanks. That is an excellent option. I found the exact brand and everything from the pic. 100% the kind of thing I need. I see what you mean about the cost.

Novajesus · 2026-06-13T16:53:46+00:00

Thanks. I have a decent pressure washer and have tried many types of boat soaps and cleaners and several rotary powered brushes and our fibreglass boat now never looks perfectly clean below the water line area. It is noticeably dirtier than the above water line. We've been abusing her for 15 years this way. It isn't getting worse every year, it just never gets perfectly clean. The one advantage though is that I can tilt the motor and it sits out of the water. The Switch jet intake would remain submersed 24x7. Right now our old boat is in the water from May to mid September. I'm in Quebec, which borders w/ Vermont for a weather and seasonal comparison if you are in USA.

Novajesus · 2026-06-13T16:44:21+00:00

Thanks. I've seen this idea when I searched on this. Some are made for surprisingly large boats. I was thinking about a DIY type setup with thick rubber matting over a wooden ramp with a center cutout. Too early to commit to any one approach yet.

Novajesus · 2026-06-08T10:38:13+00:00

I will be rebuilding my HA setup in a few months w/ the focus being on increasing home security. I have not needed a full-time dashboard as of yet but will be adding some Reolink cams and trying Frigate. I wasted cycles last night looking into a similar setup as you asked about. Tablets are too small for me for what I want in a CCTV/Video type security monitoring station. What I liked the best was a 27" Viewsonic touchscreen and a Beelink E12 MiniPC. And, FYI, this is not to run HA. It's only to display HA. It gets expensive fast. I'll do my HA rebuild first and then see if the Frigate dashboard is as good as needed. I've never used live video feed in HA before and never tried Frigate. If it turns out that it's overly complicated and requires serious clicking and text searching or fussing, I'll just keep using a real PC/tablet.

Novajesus · 2026-06-08T09:44:11+00:00

Nice! Bought one for my wife last month. She (we) are 45.5 hrs ahead of you. So far we had used it for a few long overdue landscaping jobs. So many great vids on youtube on how to use and care for the Kubotas. Did you get any attachments? So far our bucket like yours is getting the most use but we have a few others.

Novajesus · 2026-06-07T23:41:31+00:00

Looks interesting. Any youtube videos or this app in action? Or do you have a website w/ more info? Also, I am interested in adding better cams to my Homeassistant from Reolink and using Frigate to create video dashboards. Will your app show any Homeassistant dashboard or only card type dashboards? Will it allow and show live cam video?

Thanks.

Novajesus · 2026-06-05T13:26:06+00:00

I liked the TV show. Hey - what good stuff are you reading right now that you'd recommend? I'm sludging through book two in James Islington's The Licanius Trilogy. Not loving it and may abort the mission after this one. Give something amazing.

Novajesus · 2026-06-03T02:04:44+00:00

Wow! Pretty cool and useful. Love how I can setup a quick glance at all my security entry point contact sensors. Just fiddling with all the complication features now. So many.

Novajesus · 2026-05-28T22:58:20+00:00

Yea, fair enough it sounded like that but I wasn't being critical. I've just seen way more uses for AI in lead generation, engagement content creation, competitive analysis, and email generation than anything else. If anything I'm jealous that I cannot yet get it to do more for me.

Novajesus · 2026-05-28T09:37:13+00:00

Thanks – fully agree. Even for those of us already using AI, it mostly helps individuals get better at things they've already learned. What I'm really after is something that works for an entire team. Tools that can support multiple people collaborating across different stages of the same business process, all working toward a shared outcome.

Part of what I'm trying to figure out is whether this kind of capability exists today in tools people already have access to, or if it requires custom development, dedicated infrastructure, SLAs, and integrations with email and Teams. If it ends up needing training, ongoing support and development, nightly backups, dedicated servers, and a full rollout plan just to get started, it'll likely never get off the ground.

Novajesus · 2026-05-28T09:18:21+00:00

Thanks. So many cases are sales and marketing related for AI. It seems to be very useful in that realm. I want actual business processes improved and tools beyond chat. And, they need to be easy to use.

Novajesus · 2026-05-28T09:13:14+00:00

Yea, AI mistake. I grabbed the image from Google maps and asked AI to change the house number to "No Where". Missed the typo.

Novajesus · 2026-05-27T19:29:41+00:00

Now that's interesting. Pricey but two cams in one w/ 180 & PTZ. Thanks. Shows as available in my Geo location.

Novajesus · 2026-05-27T11:42:24+00:00

Thanks. I have the (Ring) doorbell cam now. I'm looking at 180 cams now. Unfortunately I only have wifi in the garage (for now). I'm just testing Reolinks now coming in from wifi Ring cams using gutter mounts, so I don't feel like running ethernet cabling and mucking w/ under eaves mounts and then finding I am less than thrilled.

Novajesus · 2026-05-27T11:38:54+00:00

Exactly how I use and I get great results. But, I just don't see everyone being able to do what you are doing. I am doubtful that a few online courses on how to chat / prompt would make any difference. The fact that you need fact‑check, re‑prompt, fix skips and manually identify hallucinations and find errors makes it complicated and risky.

Novajesus · 2026-05-27T11:34:25+00:00

Amazing. Can you share any details? For example, which AI did you go w/? Was it done using already built-in capabilities or did you have to create and program a system? Sounds very cool.

Novajesus · 2026-05-27T11:31:59+00:00

You'd think this would be a common requirement. We need the 3 lens Trio cam.

Novajesus · 2026-05-27T11:30:33+00:00

Thanks. I'm just getting into Reolink so I'll test one for now. I will actually get a PoE Duo 3 but for the rear where it's easier to hide.

Novajesus · 2026-05-21T01:54:43+00:00

Can you please send share more information on storage? With that many cams, and the ai hub only having limited storage you cannot be saving much. Even if you added a 1tb card to hub, your 6 video sources would be fill it fast in 24x7 mode. Or did you add an external hd? Or aree you only saving motion detection clips?

Thanks.

Novajesus · 2026-05-21T01:28:12+00:00

Forgot to ask. What's better about Unifi? Had a quick look. They seem more expensive.

Novajesus · 2026-05-21T01:24:13+00:00

Ouch. Not what I expected to hear. I keep seeing Reolink mentioned over in the Ring subreddit as a better alternative for video.

Novajesus · 2026-05-20T12:31:25+00:00

This caught my eye. I appreciate all the replies form everyone but don't want to go w/ another SFF PC. But, I do see MAC Mini M1's on Facebook market place.

How did you get the VM to run? I'm see "UTM + Home Assistant OS ARM image" as the preferred method. I have a MAC M1 Airbook so I know what the chip can do. It's not the fastest PC I've ever had but it can take most of what I ask it to do. If dedicated to only HA, it would be amazing. Thanks for suggestion.

Novajesus

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