Nothing really, as for the ESP, I'm using a NodeMCU 1.0 dev kit, but that's just for convenience of uploading the sketch. All you really need is the display, ESP-12E and power.
And of course, you need something to host the VNC server at the correct screen size, in this case it's a Raspberry Pi.
Thanks. Ady here, I wrote that post. There have been surprisingly few successful dev boards with ESP8266 modules. I'd love to see something with smaller modules like ESP-09 and ESP-03. Most of them are using ESP12 variants there days due to the large GPIO count. But sometimes all we need is a single GPIO with all the ESP8266 goodness! I'l love to see one of these in the Digispark form factor. The closes one I've seen is the WeMos D1 mini.
Nah, image through a single fiber sounds like a hoax, it's against the physics of how optic fibers work. But if it's a bundle on fibers, I can see how that would work, but again, projecting it onto a surface seems unlikely. The moment the light leaves the fiber, it starts dispersing.
You're correct in accusing me of using Philips Hue as click bait. Just updated the post title. I was using 'Philips Hue' more like as adjective rather than a proper noun.
My thoughts on this: Seeing ESP8266 in the title itself implies DIY or Hack to me. Practically everything using ESP8266 out there is a DIY project as of today. When your see things like 'OTA firmware updates for ESP8266' or 'HTTPS server' using ESP8266, doesn't mean those are secure in anyway. I'm not really trying to attack the Philips Hue lineup here. My intention is to get people to stop making proof of concept DIY IOT experiments and show them that with the HomeKit API this can be actually useful at home. And if the words 'Philips Hue' help me get some attention to this matter, why not?
I can see how people can get worked up over this. Here's what I replied over there:
Thanks for pointing that out. I agree that from a technical standpoint this is not the same as a Philips Hue bulb or light strip. If you look at it from a users point of view, all Philips Hue is a lamp that you control the Brightness and Hue of. This gives you that functionality.
No Zigbee protocol.
True, but in the context of HomeKit/HAP-NodeJS, does it matter how the bridge talks to the light? I might as well be using 433MHz transceivers, nRFs, or directly controlling the Raspberry Pi's GPIOs. For that matter, ZigBee would be doable too, but I don't know enough about the protocol to see it's benefits.
No smart mesh network where each device extends your coverage.
True, but a mesh network can be implemented with ESP8266. But if my whole house has WiFi, I don't see the point.
No possible compatibility with either Phillips' Hue bridge, Hue remotes, or any other kind of Hue hardware (like Phillips' Hue+Ambilight TV's).
Actually, using the Philips Hue shim in Homebridge, I believe it should be possible to make it compatible to Hue bridge.
My motivation behind making this was to prove that with ESP8266 based projects, you don't need to have a clunky web UI or a custom app. This lamp can be controlled with any app that support HomeKit. Philips Hue was just the most similar commercial product I could think of.
Btw, HAP-nodeJS can be completely eliminated here by using nRF51/52 BTLE chips. They can emulate the HomeKit API and control the NeoPixels both in one chip, so no bridge necessary!
Thanks but the search terms are not in the URL, so I guess monitorhook will not work. About the github repo, that's exactly why I asked here, I'm not good at that kinda stuff.
This is sorta public interest, I guess more than one person might be interested in monitoring new product releases before they're announced. Apple executes it well, but most companies don't. Products end up here months in advance of public announcement.