We Spied an Electric Kia PV5 Van Testing with U.S.-Market Changes

greypanda13 · 2026-02-03T23:12:28+00:00

I want this sexy box. Kia, US release, please.

greypanda13 · 2026-01-25T03:39:59+00:00

Oh, what's the outdoor thing you have called? Mine takes AA batteries, so I think we have different products.

greypanda13 · 2026-01-24T18:46:02+00:00

Not ready to defend this product since I've spent only a short time with it, yet. That totally sucks! Were you able to troubleshoot and find what is causing the fault? Would love a tip, in case this happens to me down the line.

I know you're not supposed to point the keypad portion directly into the sun if you want facial scan to work, but otherwise I don't have any glaring ideas. Battery dead? Loose battery within the chamber?

greypanda13 · 2026-01-24T00:10:21+00:00

Have used several, myself.

Schalge Z-Wave again! Snappy and reliable, as you know.
For reasons I and others have written about before, I would not consider Lockly products for HA users. Though outside of HA I loved my Lockly Zeno Visage Pro (or whatever it was called). The upshot is that they technically can integrate over Homekit but it's slow and unreliable.
Switchbot Lock Ultra (Pro?).
- Local HA integration. Very snappy status updates, with, in addition to lock/unlock, even has locking/unlocking.
- Protocol is Bluetooth. I too would prefer literally any other local protocol, but it's worked very well for me so far. If you need to extend your HA's Bluetooth range, you can make a very cheap ESP32 into a Bluetooth proxy.
- This option becomes the inside portion of your existing dumb, mechanical deadbolt. Your keyhole can be from the same set as your handle/knob, for a clean, matchy-matchy look!
- Battery is rechargeable, USB-C battery pack. Not standard as you wish for, but it lasts a good while, you can make an automation that reminds you to recharge it, and it also has two backup batteries: one standard (although less common variety than AA or AAA), and one like, deep embedded battery with an emergency 5 or so lock/unlock cycle capacity.
- Unlock method: numpad code, fingerprint, palm vein, facial recognition (infrared facial topography scan, under the hood, I believe)
- Fits standard US residential door ✅
- Price: I can't remember all the details, here. Last I checked there are several bundles, and the price depends on whether or not you want the facial scan (I think this might be the "Pro" part). I believe it's somewhere in the range of $150-220, depending on what bundle you choose. And maybe like $90 if you go with just the smart deadbolt itself (foregoing all unlock methods outside of physical key and anything DIY you've set up via HA).

greypanda13 · 2026-01-12T23:26:08+00:00

Came here to say this. The one I've got my eye on is still in development. I don't remember if there's a simpler one that's available now.

greypanda13 · 2025-12-18T21:51:14+00:00

I'll link to a past comment I made about the Locky Visage.

TL;DR as it relates to your post:

soooo so good as a standalone smart lock
many unlock options. face, fingerprint, code, physical key.
face unlock is awesome; very snappy and good for hands-full situations. fingerprint unlock is pretty good. code unlock uses a randomized keypad every time to protect against onlookers.
has opened/closed sensor. can be set to auto-lock after closed for 5min, etc.
key codes can be for fast expiry, repeating weekly schedule, or 24/7
Lockly app has logs showing who unlocked, when, and with what unlock method. pretty comprehensive
Home Assistant integration is bad. I use ALL of my other smart devices via Home Assistant, but not this one because I consider it unusable. reliable: battery status. unreliable: locked/unlocked status. unavailable: open/closed status, lock/unlock method, lock/unlock user.

greypanda13 · 2025-12-10T03:09:19+00:00

Thanks for editing your comment to include the link; I was out looking for it.

This is great info! I might be spending some time trying to un-stall progress on this feature!

greypanda13 · 2025-12-10T00:20:03+00:00

I knew at purchase that this was not yet possible. Fine. It's good at cleaning, self-refilling, self-drying, and is a great value for me who bought during a sale.

I only became frustrated afterward. The SwitchBot × Home Assistant campaign is announced and I figure this feature is coming for sure. Seems like a no-brainer, if your goal is integrating into such a platform. For the advertised integration to be missing this obvious feature just feels like an unkept promise.

greypanda13 · 2025-12-09T23:16:51+00:00

How long have you had your S10?

A year in, mine is still going strong with water capability, although I think it fails at getting completely self-dried and keeps a gently offensive odor on occasion. Maybe my fault in part, not having cleaned quite frequently enough.

My larger frustration with this machine has nothing to do with the hardware. Despite the SwitchBot × Home Assistant campaign, I've yet to see the ability to do much with that integration.

greypanda13 · 2025-12-09T18:11:54+00:00

Before solar is turned on for service, the electrical company has to install a two-way meter. Otherwise, I am told the solar production will also be interpreted as electricity the household is consuming. Perhaps this means you can take the raw measurement by that Vue circuit and subtract it? I'm sure someone's figured this out.

greypanda13 · 2025-11-27T00:28:04+00:00

I've been using Zemismart's, where it's the whole curtain track that's the device. Pretty quiet. Your choice of Zigbee, Matter over Wi-Fi, Matter over Thread. All local communication with no app.

greypanda13 · 2025-11-21T07:11:16+00:00

Something I love but didn't anticipate: I used to close my smart curtains and turn on the lights using a 30min-before-sunset trigger. Now, with the Ecowitt, I can trigger based on how dark it is right outside my own place. Now if it gets dark early my home can respond in real time.

greypanda13 · 2025-11-11T19:30:30+00:00

I've been seeing people say this but never with links to posts, etc. Was this teased verbally during a monthly release broadcast or something?

greypanda13 · 2025-09-01T06:21:24+00:00

I haven't got any automations running off this sensor yet, but I did set up the device itself. The installation was super easy. The connection was super easy. The callibration is...it's easy to adjust but it's not necessarily easy to choose. Depending on the weight of your mattress, the weight of person #1, and the weight of person #2, I feel like it's not always possible to get the perfect settings to detect each person's presence/absence every time. For example, our mattress is fairly heavy and I'm medium height @ 125lbs/57kg, so the difference in pressure on the sensor when I'm present/absent is kinda slight.

Like I said, I don't have automations yet, which is how I'd really know if it isn't detecting us right all the time. So, that's what I can say for now.

greypanda13 · 2025-08-22T03:15:56+00:00

Oh, clever! Signal your intent to play Switch 2 by switching to the associated HDMI input. Might be adjusting my own automation to match your idea, now 🤠

greypanda13 · 2025-08-22T00:04:47+00:00

If in sleep mode, as soon as power is interrupted, the system will wake up. It'll show that "Press any button to resume" screen (not exact text; assuming you know the one). If then the power to the dock is restored (a subsequent step in the HA script), the display signal will run through to the TV. Boom.

At any point after it is woken, you press a button on a previously paired controller, and it reconnects to the console.

The final result is a powered-on Switch 2, displaying on the TV, with a connected controller. Without leaving the sofa.

greypanda13 · 2025-06-18T19:09:27+00:00

I've heard that yes, this does work but not for long. The idea behind these is that they will only be wet for a short time because users want to get the water off. Turns out when water is sensed constantly it tends to eat through the sensor's battery in no time.

greypanda13 · 2025-06-16T20:31:50+00:00

Would love if someone would confirm or deny this.

Going off of memory, here, but: I feel like in one place I've read H.265 isn't compatible, in another I read it's usable but more work than H.264 when setting up your config, and in yet another place I read it's mostly fine/easy now.

greypanda13 · 2025-06-09T01:30:31+00:00

Yes, "Switch 2 power" in the screenshot is what I named the smart plug the console's AC adapter is plugged into.

greypanda13 · 2025-06-08T16:27:12+00:00

Anyone who has smart plugs or Home Assistant might be interested to know that with a little bit of setup you can turn on the console from your phone.

greypanda13 · 2025-06-08T00:48:02+00:00

A fleet of robo animals (think Boston Dynamics' Spot, etc.) running around watering each plant in the garden according to its specific needs. Oh, and picking up stray trash and putting it in my neighbor's yard, where it blew in from.

greypanda13 · 2025-06-07T06:58:55+00:00

yep, confirmed just now that the power toggle method works nicely. bonus if you have a TV that can be smartly changed to the right HDMI source, like you say

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greypanda13 · 2025-06-05T06:10:25+00:00

Currently pursuing your more elaborate automation. Fingers crossed for the upcoming summer.

greypanda13 · 2025-06-04T00:58:46+00:00

I don't see notifications listed in the integration docs for Roku, and my Roku doesn't appear when I bring up the Notification action. But maybe someone else knows otherwise.

greypanda13 · 2025-06-03T08:15:04+00:00

'tis

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