The complete Guide - SONOFF iHost

With the constant evolution of home automation worldwide, the SONOFF iHost emerges as a remarkable solution, positioning itself as the central brain of a smart home. This device is designed to locally manage a vast range of smart devices (from SONOFF and beyond), acting as a bridge to various platforms and even allowing the execution of advanced systems like Home Assistant directly on its hardware.

The iHost stands out as a versatile automation hub, capable of integrating Zigbee devices, security cameras, creating scenes and automations, and building dashboards, all while prioritizing local data control and privacy.

Its functionality as a Matter-Bridge also allows you to migrate configured devices to other platforms with a Matter controller, such as Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit, SmartThings, and more.

Design and First Impressions

The iHost boasts a minimalist and discreet design, making it easy to integrate into any home environment without compromising aesthetics.

On the top, the device features four essential buttons: a power button to turn it on or off, a physical pairing button for Zigbee devices, a mute button, and a button to activate the alarm system. Additionally, a small microphone is located on top, suggesting future voice control capabilities.

On the rear, the iHost is equipped with a series of ports to ensure its versatility and expandability:

• TF card slot: Primarily used for installing third-party add-ons and managing storage.

• USB-A port: For connecting additional devices, such as another Zigbee dongle or for future expansions.

• The iHost is powered via a USB-C input.

• For a stable and high-speed network connection, the device features an Ethernet port (RJ45).
  

The iHost also integrates wireless modules like 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0. Although the Wi-Fi connection is a "Pilot Feature" still under development, it can be used stably.

Initial setup

The initial setup of the SONOFF iHost is designed to be straightforward and quick.To start using the device, simply connect the USB-C cable to the power port and the Ethernet cable to the RJ45 port. Within a few seconds, the iHost will be ready for the initial setup, indicated by the front blue LED light.

At this point, to proceed with the setup, open a web browser and navigate to the local address: http://ihost.local.

NOTE: The computer and the iHost must be connected to the same network.

On the first access, the iHost will prompt you to set the time zone and create a password—both essential steps for the device’s security and personalization.

Once these steps are completed, the iHost will be ready to use, and the main page, called "Home", will be displayed—although it will initially be empty.

Add Zigbee Devices

The SONOFF iHost comes equipped with a built-in Zigbee hub capable of adding up to 128 smart devices.

There are two ways to add a Zigbee device to the iHost:

• By pressing the pairing button located on the top of the iHost.

• Through the "Home" page, by clicking the ( + ) button and selecting "Add Device".

Let’s proceed using the second option.

After clicking on the "Add Device" option, a page will appear with several pairing methods: "Zigbee", "Matter", or "Cameras".

Let’s choose the Zigbee option.

At this point, the iHost is listening for nearby Zigbee devices.

The next step is to put your device into pairing mode.

Within seconds, the iHost will detect the device and it will be added.At this point, you can rename the device and assign it to a room, if available.

By clicking on the device, you’ll see more options, such as battery status and available actions.In this case, we’re viewing a Zigbee button—you can see if it registered a single click or a double click.

You can also access more details to rename the device, assign it to a room, and check the signal strength.

Zigbee map

As we saw in the previous step, adding a Zigbee device is quite simple.

On the main page, you can now view the Zigbee network map.This feature is particularly useful as it helps you understand how your Zigbee network is structured and troubleshoot any potential connection issues between devices.

On this map, the legend shows that there are different types of devices:

• Coordinator: The coordinator of the Zigbee network—in this case, it’s the iHost itself.

• Devices in orange are Routers. These are responsible for repeating the signal within the Zigbee network.

• End Devices, marked in green, are final devices that do not repeat the signal—typically sensors.

Still on this screen, you can also see a number between the connections of two devices: the LQI (Link Quality Indicator).This value helps you understand the connection status. The higher the number, the better/stronger the connection.

Add a new room

The best way to organize our devices is by rooms.

Creating a room on the iHost is quite simple. At the bottom, just click on the "Add Room" option.

Next, a new page will appear where you can choose an icon and a name to identify the room.

Finally, select the devices you want to add to the newly created room.

Another way to move devices to an existing room is to click on the device you want to move, open its settings, and select a different room.

Docker Containers

One of the standout features of the iHost compared to the competition is its native support for Docker containers.

This means the iHost can run third-party applications in an isolated and modular way.

With this feature, it is possible to run add-ons directly on the iHost, such as:

• Home Assistant

• Node-Red to create advanced automations using flows.

• Homebridge to turn devices not supported by Apple into devices compatible with Apple HomeKit.

• Adding other services like MQTT Brokers and much more.

To access this feature, you need to insert a TF card into the iHost.

Install the official eWelink add-on

Let’s now see how to install an add-on using Docker containers.

For this example, we will install the eWeLink Smart Home add-on.

This is the official eWeLink add-on and allows you to access all devices integrated in the eWeLink app and connect them to the iHost.

Installing it is quite simple. Just open the Docker containers page and find the eWeLink Smart Home add-on. Then click “Install”.

After the installation, let’s start the container by clicking the "Run" option.

Now, let’s log in with your eWeLink account so that the iHost can access your devices and display them on the main page.

After this, all the devices that the iHost detected on our network will appear on the screen.

To add them to the iHost, simply click the "Sync" option for the devices.

After this step, the devices will be added to the iHost so we can control them and create automations.

Create automations

On the iHost, we can create automations with the added devices.

We can create two types of automations: manual scenes (scenarios) and smart scenes (automations).

The only difference between them is the type of trigger or mechanism that activates the automation.

In the case of manual scenes, there is no trigger. That is, the automation is not activated based on the state of any device or sensor. Instead, the automation is triggered manually by the user.

Create a manual scene

In this example, we will create a manual scene that, when executed by the user, turns on the Wi-Fi lamp and sets the color to blue. To do this, follow these steps:

Click the "+" button to add a new scene:

Next, set the trigger (IF) to "Tap to run".

In the actions (THEN) section, select "Smart Devices" and choose our Wi-Fi lamp.A new window will appear allowing us to select the lamp’s options. Let’s choose according to the image.

At this point, the manual scene is created.

Now, whenever the user runs this scene, the lamp will turn on with the color blue.

Create a smart scene (automation)

Now let’s create the same scenario, but the trigger that will launch the action will be a click on the SONOFF Zigbee button.

The only thing we need to change is the trigger (IF) part. This time, we want to choose a Smart Device, which will be the Zigbee button, to trigger the click action.

This way, it’s very easy to create automations on the iHost. Automations are key elements to bring more intelligence and autonomy to our home.

Automation History

On the same automation creation/editing page, you can also check the history to see when a specific automation was executed.

To do this, simply click on the history icon.

You can also apply filters to make it easier to find what you need and view the details of the automation.

Security System

The SONOFF iHost comes equipped with a small speaker that can be used as a siren thanks to the security system functionality.

On this page, you can configure various aspects of the security system, including the type of siren, the volume, and which sensors will trigger the alarm.

In this security system, there are three modes: Home Mode, Away Mode, and Sleep Mode.

For this example, we will focus only on Away Mode. This will be the mode we use when no one is at home.

By clicking on the Away Mode card, we access the details and can configure various aspects, including the type of siren, the volume, and which sensors we want to add.

To choose which sensors will trigger the alarm, simply toggle on the ones you want to select. The active sensors will then appear on the right side.

This means that if we activate the Away mode, and any of these sensors detect motion or if a door is opened, the iHost siren will sound.

We can also associate other automations like sending notifications, closing or opening blinds, etc.

eWelink CAST

Let’s now talk about the eWeLink CAST feature.In this menu, we can create personalized dashboards based on the devices connected to the iHost. These dashboards can be customized according to our preferences and are automatically adjusted for tablets or smartphones.

To create a new dashboard, simply click the "+" button.

Next, a new page will open where we can build the dashboard.

To add devices, simply click on their names on the left side.

After adding all the devices we want, we can drag them with the mouse to the desired position.

The created dashboards can then be accessed at the following address: http://ihost.local/cast/

Matter Bridge

One of the most amazing features of the iHost is that it functions as a Matter bridge. If you’re not familiar, Matter is a new smart home protocol aimed at becoming a standard for the smart home market and making communication between brands seamless for the end user.

The iHost has the capability to act as a Matter Bridge. This means it creates a bridge between the devices connected to the iHost and the Matter protocol. This way, all devices associated with the iHost can be migrated to Matter and integrated into other platforms like Alexa, Google, Apple HomeKit, SmartThings, or Home Assistant.

To enable this feature, simply go to the Matter menu and follow the steps. This will generate a QR code that can then be used, for example, in Apple HomeKit. This way, all compatible devices will be integrated.

Pilot Features

In this menu, you will find features that are still under development but can already be used by users.

These are the features available so far:

• Turbo Mode: improves the range of the Zigbee network.

• eWeLink Remote Control: transforms the iHost into an eWeLink Remote Gateway, allowing integration of sub-devices like the S-MATE 2 or R5.

• Bluetooth Speaker: it is possible to connect a Bluetooth speaker.

• Wi-Fi: allows connecting the iHost via Wi-Fi without needing an Ethernet cable.

Settings

In this menu, you can access the general settings of the iHost. Here, you can change things like the iHost’s name, set a password, language, or time zone.

You can also, very importantly, set up backups.

In the backups option, you can even schedule the days and times for automatic backups.

Summary

The iHost is undoubtedly an excellent automation hub for those who want to build a smart home. A highlight is that it is a solution that prioritizes local operation, without the need to use external clouds.

Its capability as a Matter bridge to expose devices to the new Matter protocol is a great advantage, as well as its internal Zigbee hub that allows adding SONOFF devices but also devices from other brands.

This device is available for purchase at the official ITEAD store.