Adding devices into your smart home hubs
You have gotten Home-A-Genius and bought your smart home hubs and gadgets. What next?
Integrating devices into the respective hub
While devices such as Broadlink and TP link can be detected by Home-A-Genius, each device is unique to its own and can only be tagged to its respective hub. e.g. Philips bulbs can only communicate with Home-A-Genius via the Philips Hue Hub. Same goes to Xiaomi devices via the MiJia Gateway.
Understand the excitement in seeing the end result of your smart home, However, it is strongly advised that you spend some time naming your devices so that you can easily identify the devices.
Integrating devices into Securifi Hubs
Almond 3 is equipped with Zigbee/Wifi. Unlike its predecessor (Almond+), Almond 3 does not come with Z-Wave. This could be due to limitations in Z-Wave; i.e. specific Z-Wave for specific countries, making purchasing of devices cumbersome. Almond 3 is a hub for most of the switches, sensors, etc. You may refer to the link for more details about Almond 3.
- Securifi Almond 3
Pre-requisite: Pair all supported* ZigBee/Z-Wave* devices or sensors to the Almond 3 via the Almond mobile app or the router user interface
To add an Almond to Home-A-Genius,
From the Devices page, select +Add Almond.
2. Click on the textbox for the IP address. You will see a dropdown list of IP addresses (as shown on the right).
3. Select the IP address with Securifi. Enter your password and select done. Once you've completed this step, you're good!
- Philips Hue HubPrerequisite: Pair all Hue devices or sensors to the Hue Bridge via the Hue Mobile app
1. Select + Add Hue Bridge
2. Select Next.
3. Press the Hue Bridge Button. All your devices (that was paired to the Hue Bridge) would be automatically synced to Home-A-Genius.
- BroadLink IR Blaster
Say goodbye to your TV remotes, and say hello to the future with universal remote controllers! Hands?! Free 'em up because they'll be busy doing something else! Control your devices with a simple voice command!
The Broadlink RM Mini 3 is currently the most affordable and reliable IR blaster out in the market right now. You can use it to control your TV, sound bar, remote-controlled fan and air con.The best thing: it's low-powered, and requires only 5V. It has a USB cable that allows you to plug it at anywhere that is within line of sight of the device(s) you want to control.
Learn how to "teach" the Broadlink RM Mini 3 IR commands with your existing remote controls and Home-A-Genius.Prerequisite: Pair your Broadlink RM Mini 3 to your home network (same as Home-A-Genius) via the iHC mobile appScenario: you are trying to activate the aircon in your study room using a Broadlink IR Blaster.
In the Home-A-Genius Devices page, select Setup. Wait for Home-A-Genius to complete its search for all the Broadlink devices within range. Select done. Wait for the loader to complete the addition.
Select the + Sign to add devices.
You will see a new pop-up screen: Create IR device. Enter a device name.
Next, select the Broadlink IR remote controller you would like to link with Home-A-Genius. Home-A-Genius recognises each of the IR remote controllers via its MAC address.
If you have more than one Broadlink IR remote controller to connect, it is recommended that you "teach" and "test" each controller one by one, so that you know which IR Blaster you are connecting to. We also recommend you to copy and write the MAC address at the bottom of each controller for future reference.
Once everything is done, select save. Now you can select the study aircon to turn on/off through the quick button. You can now discard the remote control in a safe place until you decide to reset the Broadlink device.
How to teach your BroadLink IR commands?
Selecting “Learn” means that the device is waiting for your IR signal. Your Broadlink will be activated to receive any IR commands from the remote control.
Assuming you’d want to turn on your aircon, the conventional way of doing so would be to point the remote control at the air con and turn it on. The temperature/fan speed, etc. would have been set based on the previous use. Likewise, simply point your remote at the Broadlink device, and press the power button to teach it how to “turn on” the aircon. Behind the scenes, Home-A-Genius will translate the IR signal from your remote into a series of codes that it can remember.
Now, point your remote at the Broadlink and press the button you would like Home-A-Genius to remember. A series of code would appear under the “On” Button section. Do the same for the “Off” button section. You can always check if Home-A-Genius has learnt the IR command correctly by selecting “Test”.
Note: The Broadlink on the right (image below) is activated and ready to receive any IR command that you want it to "learn". Remember to check that the white light is on before activating your remote control.
- Mi Home GatewayThe Mi Home line of products from Xiaomi have become one of the most popularly used smart home gadgets, simply due to its affordability and how readily available they are online. We are delighted to say that Home-A-Genius recognises most of the devices and sensors from Mi Home just by adding the Mi Home Gateway.Prerequisite: Pair all Mi Home devices or sensors to the gateway via the Mi Home mobile app.
Adding Mi Home Gateway to Home-A-Genius
1. From Trigger, go to Mi Home Section, select Setup.
The following instructions will be shown in the pop up window.
To begin setup:
- Open your Mi Home mobile app and go to Gateway > Enter device
- Tap the More (3 dots) icon and tap About
- Tap the bottom of the screen repeatedly until you see extra options that are in Chinese
- Tap the third option and you should see a toggle switch and password
- Turn on the toggle switch and enter the password to the text field below
- Select "Save"
Step 1: From your Mi Home App, Select Default Gateway (as shown on Image 2).
Sometimes a pop-up will appear (as shown in Image 1).
If not, you be directed to the page in Image 2.
Image 1
Image 2
Step 2: Select the 3 dots on the top right corner > Select About
Step 3: Tap the bottom of the screen repeatedly. You may tap anywhere in the area that is boxed up in red.
Step 4: The following screen (as shown below) will pop up.
Select the 3rd option (as highlighted in the red box below)
Step 5: Turn on the toggle button labelled as B in the image below. After which, you will see a series of numbers (labeled as A) and a toggle that is turned on (labelled as B).
Finally: Enter the password (indicated as A in the Mi Home App) into the text field below. Select "Save"
Note that the Password (like any other password), is case sensitive. If you have entered the wrong password, a pop up at the bottom right corner will appear:
If you are successful, all your Mi Home devices will magically appear.
All the best and good luck!
Smart TVs
So you've made the jump and finally upgraded your home entertainment system with a shiny new smart TV! Here's how you can pair your smart TV to Home-A-Genius. Disclaimer: please be aware that this guide will only cover the set-up for Samsung, LG and Mi Smart TVs only.
Get your TV remote, IR/RF blaster, and a web browser handy so that you can access the Home-A-Genius admin page. (Due to the different set-ups of the various TV consoles of Samsung/LG/Mi brands in the market, the navigation may differ slightly based on your TV model.
Step 1: Pair your TV remote with a Broadlink IR/RF blaster and create an IR device for your Smart TV. This step is illustrated in the earlier Broadlink section.
Step 2: The first thing we need to do is to get the IP address of your smart TV. First, connect your Smart TV to your Wifi network; either wired/wireless.
Once done, you are able to get the IP address of your smart TV from your TV settings.
Step 4: Use your web browser and go to the Home-A-Genius admin page @ https://homeagenius.info:2001. Go to your devices page, and scroll down to the 'Smart TV' field.
Click on the '+' icon at the bottom right corner of the field to add your device. It should bring you to this field (pictured above).
- Go ahead and select the type of Smart TV that you have (Samsung/LG/Mi).
- Enter the "On" Controller, which is the IR device you have created in Step 1.
- Enter the IP address of your Smart TV.
Once done, click save.
Your Smart TV will then show a dialogue requesting our Home-A-Genius app to access your device. Click Yes. You have successfully paired the device to Home-A-Genius, and it should now be located in the Smart TV field under your Devices tab (pictured right).
If you wish to enable voice command, quick button in the app, etc. remember to do so through the Scenes feature in your Automation tab of Home-A-Genius!
Step 3: Now, we need to set your current IP address as static (this is very important so as to avoid any network disruptions). To do so, once you've arrived at the Networking page of your Smart TV, go to your IP Setting and set it as manual/enter manually, etc. and use the original IP address that your Smart TV initially had. You should not have the connection be set as automatic. Remember to save your changes!
(Disclaimer: please do not copy the IP address pictured above. Your TV may have been assigned a different IP address.)
Sonos
For the true audiophile, look no further than the Sonos line of wireless speakers and home sound systems. Here's how you can pair your Sonos devices into your Home-A-Genius hub.
Prerequisite: Please ensure that you have created an account with the official Sonos app and paired the devices prior to performing the below steps.
Step 4: If you've followed the steps correctly, all your paired Sonos devices will now appear in the Sonos field of your 'Devices' tab (pictured right).
To control your Sonos devices, remember to add the devices in your Scenes, which can be found in the 'Scenes' feature in your 'Automation' tab.
Step 1: Use your web browser and go to the Home-A-Genius admin page @ https://homeagenius.info:2001. Go to your devices page, and scroll down to the 'Sonos' field.
Click on the 'Login with Sonos' icon at the centre of the field to add your device. It should bring you to this field (pictured below).
Step 2: Just click on 'Continue'! It will then bring you to a log-in page. Just enter the email address and password for your Sonos account and proceed.
Step 3: You'll be asked to allow Home-A-Genius to access and control your Sonos devices (pictured left). Click 'Okay' and you'll have successfully paired your Sonos devices into Home-A-Genius hub.
