One might say that smart home automation via WiFi is the way of the future, or perhaps even the current state of technology, but at the end of the day it’s hard to beat IR control for certain tasks. Simple and inexpensive, if you want to ship a remote control with a TV or other device that just works, IR is often still the default solution. If you’d like to integrate IR devices with a more sophisticated home automation setup, Tindie seller Automate Things has a great-looking solution: the IR Bridge v1.4.
The device uses an included Wemos D1 mini board for ESP8266 WiFi control, making it compatible with both ESPHome and Tasmota. This means that it can easily integrate it with overall automation solutions like Home Assistant, giving you full control of IR devices (and the potential for automation) over WiFi.
The device also features a 38kHz IR receiver, allowing it to relay IR signals from one room to another over WiFi. One could also see this functionality being used to trigger non-IR connected devices via a standard IR remote.
