Made a brief list. This is of course not all, but the key features:
Web dashboard with Label, Switch, Slider and Graph widgets for every device. Same as we have in the app but on the web
Device metadata - custom properties for every device. For example, timezone of the device or manufacturer. Could be added to any device and filled by end user or owner of the device
Permission based control. Every user now has a role. Every role has a permission that can control any aspect of the platform. For example, allow to share the device, allow to perform control actions over device, allow to create the device, etc
User/organization/device management by invites or by registration flow
Device events - now specific events for the device could be manged and controlled via special object - event. the most basic example is online/offline event. You can add own events and cover them with notifications and view on the web or mobile in a separate view. Another example of this event could be OTA udpate
Datastreams (virtual pin, for example - is the sub type of the datastream). Datastream now has dozens of settings like type, units, formatting, min/max, default value. It is now global setting and doesnât depend on the widget. Here is some cool features:
Invalidate - allows to set some value after certain period of inactivity
Confirmation - allows to define the state of the widget based on feedback from the device. For example, you click on the button and it changes it state if response from the hardware comes or resets to the previous value if no response from the hardware in a certain period of time
OTA with detailed reports and detailed events per device
Log events for every device - ability to see any action over certain device (who, when and from where did something over the device)
Log events for every user - ability to see any action of any user (any user you have access to)
Search across everything - little search engine within the system
Very powerful rule engine (no UI yet, but rules are already configured and used for some clients) with formulas, inheritance and cross product/device communication
Analytic chart - allows to analyze the raw data of the device in the web without need in the external tools
Analytics across organizations/products/users/devices
Provisioning out of the box. We expect it to be the default
Fixed eventor, now works on Android/iOS and works across all devices + improved timers and sunset/sunrise events. No need in Time Input anymore
Thatâs exiting! Iâm sure youâll put out soon a similar 2 columns table showing the âPaidâ and âFreeâ version. There will be a free version for hobbyists like me, right?
Thanks for that @Dmitriy.
Any changes to the app UI such as increased granularity, more resizing options, ability to programmatically enable/disable control widgets etc etc ?
There were only few widgets added: switch button, new rgb, text widget. We mostly restructured old one and 90% of the work was done for Device tiles widget and groups.
I have been using blynk for several years and have spent a lot of time on the coding. Its been hard work to get this far. I have a whole home automation system, alarm etc based on blynk (local server) . But from what I have seen, the delays, costs involved, re-coding projects (its not going to be plug and play) , no local server, limitations to hobbyists and issues related to the ânewâ blynk, I finally decided to jump ship. From the looks of it, the commercial user is blynkâs main focus now, while the hobbyists and home user community are the people that made blynk what it is. I am under no circumstances going to spend $99pm (converterd to South African currency R1500 when the average salary in S.A. is R15k pm) for basic limited functionality. Sad, but rather make the jump now then have to do it down the road anycase. Thanks blynkâŚbut you are on your own.
Blynk also supports over the air updates for - ESP8266, NodeMCU and SparkFun Blynk boards. OTA supported only for the private servers and for the paid customers for now."
Then its what im trying to say all along. The current local server is not limited, yet the new service/blynk will be limited. Hence you will be forced to purchase a fully functional version.
Also want to say. I dont want to be stuck with a system that will have no future development. Maintenance on the current system means nothing if the system becomes outdated with global trends, technology and standards. I mean, Windows XP worksâŚwill you use it though? I loved and still love Blynk very much, but I see no future thats going to be cheap. Sorry guys.
PS. I have started the migration process to home assistant and the functionality is⌠well, lets put it this way, im smiling broadly. Learning curve has been 5 hours to get home assistant up and running and adding my trial esp8266 nodemcu flashed with tasmota. There is some coding involved but not nearly as much as with Blynk.
