The convenience of picking a shiny new smart home gadget from an electronics store is hard to resist. But I always ask too many questions. Why does a smart plug need a cloud account? Why do they keep sending data to a remote server? And why are the automations limited to their app?

Since I began building my own sensors and devices with ESP32, I have stopped asking such questions. All I do is wire the sensors to the ESP32 board and flash a customizable firmware using ESPHome. Then, it integrates with Home Assistant, a smart home platform, keeps my activities on my home network, and gives me access to all the data it generates. These are some of the many reasons I keep buying ESP32 boards rather than smart home gadgets.

Freedom to repurpose into another project

Most components are reusable

It’s easy for me to repurpose my ESP32-based device rather than a store-bought smart home gadget. For example, my motion sensor-based ESP32 device could turn into a weather station next month.

Even the cheap sensors are reusable after I dismantle the single-purpose smart home projects. After extensive research, I built a multi-node presence sensor using a dual-core ESP32 for efficient parallel processing.

An ESP32 board can hold multiple sensors and pack several capabilities into a single unit — something off-the-shelf smart devices simply don’t offer.

Built to fix and outlive the hype

No expiry date

I often end up breaking the ESP32 device either from soldering heat or bad lines of incorrect code. Luckily, the code is fixable, especially when I want to integrate some features. Swapping out a component that costs under $1 sounds better than tossing a $30 brick into a trash can — yes, I’m looking at those busted smart plugs.

I mostly use jumper cables to prototype ESP32 devices before soldering components. And even after soldering, there’s enough room to reuse them. Smart home gadgets often stop working when their makers stop issuing firmware updates or discontinue the cloud services. Most can’t be flashed with a custom firmware like ESPHome to extend their useful life.

Every build taught me something new

Skills over convenience

Instead of falling into the plug-and-play trap, building my own smart home devices taught me far more than a pre-built smart home gadget ever could. With ESPHome, I’ve learned a lot about microcontrollers and smart home automation. Despite several mistakes, I acquired real skills while building solutions that work exactly the way I want.

Sure, there’s a lot of reading, experimentation, and purchases involved. Despite the occasional component costs, I still manage to save money by choosing ESP32 boards instead of pre-made solutions. Also, these tools continue to evolve, and that’s why learning never stops. And the thriving ESP32 and ESPHome communities that always help out to sharpen my ideas and provide solutions whenever I am stuck.

Creating devices for my usage and problems

Designed for my world

The flexibility to build and rebuild smart home devices entirely on my own terms is genuinely liberating. I can cram a couple of humidity and temperature sensors, along with motion, light, and sound sensors, onto a single ESP32 board. Such a multi-sensor node delivers rich, actionable data from a single board.

Using that information, I craft a variety of automations that aren’t bound by the outcome or a generic “scene.” A multi-sensor node can detect light, temperature, and humidity outdoors to turn on lights and fans, or activate HVAC, accordingly. I define the rules and build automations around my life — not around the limitations smart home gadgets impose.

Plays well and gets along with my smart home

No ecosystem lock-ins

I no longer pick devices for specific ecosystems — Google, Amazon, or Apple. Instead, I use lightweight, efficient protocols like MQTT, BLE, OpenThread, and Matter that don’t crowd my Wi-Fi network.

ESP32‑C6 boards support WiFi, BLE, Thread/Matter natively. Zigbee requires custom C++/ESP‑IDF builds (no official ESPHome component yet). That way, I break the chains of ecosystem loyalty. Also, the ESP32 devices integrate natively with Node-RED and Home Assistant. That’s convenient since no cloud bridges are necessary.

Without a cloud bridge in the way, everything operates locally with full interoperability and clean communication between devices.

Getting full ownership at a lower price

Pay only once

Branded smart home gadgets are expensive and often come with a subscription or a cloud account dependency. Even when there’s no cost involved, my data still sits on someone’s servers, which is rarely transparent.

On the other hand, the ESP32 is a steal at under $10, with no cloud requirement. The generated data stays local, private, and entirely on my home network.

Still buying and never going back

I am no longer exchanging my data, money, and privacy for convenience. My ESP32 boards only ask for my time and curiosity. In return, I get to build a dream smart home that works the way I want. Every hour spent teaches me something new, and every completed project strengthens my conviction that this is the right way to build a smart home.