Quick Reviews of eWeLink -compatible light switches

In this article, I’ll share my experiences with 2 cheap eWelink-compatible wall light switches I’ve had and used for a while now. New ones are probably coming in occasionally – will post about them later.

Background

I’ve ordered different, Sonoff/eWeLink -compatible light switches (also called “wall switches”) for my lighting needs around the house. These were a trial batch to see what models my wife would let me order more, but based on my experiences, I think I need to continue the investigative work.

I ordered one switch with wifi connectivity, and an another one with Zigbee, to see how well they work in my houses conditions.

The Zigbee switch was a peculiar one. In the pictures, it’s the one with 4 buttons.

It’s sold as a Tuya-compatible product, but seems to work just fine with eWeLink/Sonoff as well.

Some brands it’s sold under are KMRDND, centechia and Woolley.

In the pictures, it’s the one above. First picture shows the device(s) in daylight, and the one below shows them in the dark.

This device is recognized by Home Assistant as:

ZIGBEE_SWITCH_4
by coolkit

The other, eWeLink-compatible wifi light switch button (the one with 3 switches, below in the pictures) was a bit of a disappointment. But even it has things going for it.

It’s sold with brand names Woolley, Choifoo, Wonderlite Electronics, “eWeLink” (very imaginative), just genuinely “unbranded” (which is probably the most true statement here) and just with the generic “DS-101” type name.

Home Assistant recognizes it as:

CKA-DM4-GL (SW3C-MW) by coolkit.

So here’s a short pros/cons listing for both!

“Centechia” 4-gang eWelink/Tuya Zigbee 3-gang smart switch

Pros

• Zigbee connectivity is good (but not perfect)
  • It does work with Sonoff Zigbee hub, but has dropped once or twice over 1½ years
• Works great with the eWeLink-app
• Looks great and is easy to find in the dark
• Cheap

Cons

• Does not adhere to the standard eWeLink/Sonoff API (Home Assistant integration is buggy to the level of being unusable)

You can get it here:

• https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DBO8xMz
• https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_Dk8kvip

“Woolley” 3-gang eWeLink wifi smart switch

Pros

• The radar is very sensitive
• Easy to find in the dark
• Works perfectly with the Home Assistant integration (when the wifi works, which is not often)

Cons

• The radar is TOO sensitive
• The wifi is awful
• The buttons in the dark are perhaps too bright – wouldn’t use this in a small bedroom

You can get it here:

• https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DlUOaYD

Last remarks

Out of these 2 options, the “Tuya” Zigbee turned out to be the far more trustworthy one. Both of these products are of lower quality than official Sonoff switches, though – I’ve got a couple of them now, too, so it’s interesting to compare.

References

I’ll add a couple of product photos below so these are easier to find.