Good day to you all! The Sanytron Astrion video has been up for a while and is doing much better than anticipated, which I am very grateful for, thank you! 🙇‍♂️

This edition of the Times is again an appendix to said video, where I would like to highlight some of your comments. So without further ado, let's begin, and thank you for taking the time. ❤️

The Appendix

Corrections! (No support needed)
In the video I mentioned that, because RosCards are developed by Sanytron, you're reliant on their continued development, which isn't exactly true, as @ndom91 pointed out:

  • "As the components are open source and on github, realistically its impossible for them to ever take that back. And it looks like the device directly connects to your homeassistants websocket endpoint, i.e. over your local network."
  • "Long story short, there doesnt seem to be any cloud requirement here! 👏"

That's correct: RosCards are open source and the remote talks to Home Assistant over your local network, so there's no cloud in the chain. Meaning if Sanytron were to disappear tomorrow, everything would still work. Apologies for not stating this properly in the video and thanks for pointing it out!

A Word From Sanytron
Sanytron themselves replied with a rather long comment, which I will attempt to summarize:

  • The Astrion was never meant to be a standalone universal remote that hides everything behind a wizard. It's a physical interface for a Home Assistant system, which means that when HA, networking or integrations get complicated, some of that complexity inevitably reaches the user.
  • Network discovery, first-time setup, media controls, IR configuration and more ready-to-use home theater workflows are exactly the friction they want to remove over time.
  • "We're not trying to make Astrion another box that replaces Home Assistant. We're trying to make Home Assistant easier to live with."

The last point especially is something I can very much get on board with. 🙂

Static!
Two of you independently commented on something that cost me an exorbitant amount of time in the first few weeks with the remote.

As @leiflang8097 put it:

  • "Home assistant should recommend setting a static IP during their installation, it kind of surprises me they don't."

@Yuriel1981 added to this that reserving Home Assistant's IP is a good idea in the first place, especially if you run dashboards or other touchscreen devices that access it through Chrome or Chromium, since it's sometimes easier to set those up under the direct IP instead of the .local address.

Learning IR Codes With An ESP32
Lastly, if you're planning on using IR a lot, @sharpy-w8f has an interesting approach when it comes to getting those codes, which I will just paste as a whole:

  • "It's pretty easy too build a device using esp home that you can use too find the codes of remotes you own. Just use a IR receiver and a esp32. Press a button on your remote and it will be displayed in the Webui. That code can then be copied into the custom code section on your remote. After you have learned everything you need you don't need the esp anymore"

I haven't tried this myself, but it's an enticing solution. Sounds like a fun DIY project that I might try out in the future if needed.

Three's Company!

That's it for the comments. 🙂 I want to thank everyone who took the time to watch and add their feedback, insights and kind words. 🙇‍♂️

Now for the semi-related/unrelated tidbits about what has been going on behind the cheese for the past few weeks:

  • The next video about the WorkLouder XYZ is coming along nicely, the script is locked and shooting will commence soon. If you have any questions ahead, let me know! 🙂
  • The Altar II from Electronic Materials Office will launch on Kickstarter on November 10, 2026. I asked on IG if you were interested in a full review, and to the absolute horror of my bank account, I placed my $1 deposit. NGL, I am actually quite excited about all the promises this board is making.
  • There unfortunately won't be a successor to the Naya Create as Naya has filed for bankruptcy. I was toying with the idea of backing the Naya Connect, but I'm very glad that I didn't.

Bye!

That's it for now. 🙂 Thanks for reading! If you have any question just reply, drop a comment or find me on Instagram.

Have a wonderful day and see you soon in the next one, bye! 👋