Home Assistant Yellow was introduced over two years ago with a focus on adaptability and expanding its functionalities based on user requirements. Users have the option to enhance storage by adding an NVMe drive or switch from Zigbee to Matter over Thread by changing the firmware. With a sample provided by Raspberry Pi, Home Assistant Yellow now supports the Compute Module 5 (CM5), which will be integrated into Home Assistant OS 14 alongside additional hardware support. This upgrade provides users with enhanced performance options, although the Compute Module 4 (CM4) remains sufficient for most users.
Home Assistant is an open-source smart home platform that allows you to control and automate a wide range of smart devices from one centralized system. Unlike many proprietary hubs, Home Assistant is highly customizable and supports hundreds of integrations, making it compatible with devices from various brands and protocols, including Zigbee, Z-Wave, Wi-Fi, and more. It runs locally on your own hardware, like the Home Assistant Yellow, a Raspberry Pi, or a server. This means your data stays private and doesn’t rely on cloud services. With Home Assistant, you can create advanced automations, monitor your devices, and tailor your smart home experience to your exact needs.
The Home Assistant Yellow was designed using Raspberry Pi’s Compute Module platform, offering users the flexibility to upgrade RAM, add eMMC, incorporate built-in Bluetooth, or increase processing speed by simply replacing the module. This design choice also supports the product’s repairability over time. While initially built for CM4, the Home Assistant Yellow is now compatible with future Compute Module iterations, including CM5, following recent firmware updates and hardware testing. The installation process for CM5 is slightly more intricate compared to CM4.
For users requiring increased performance, the CM5 provides notable improvements in specific scenarios. It offers significant enhancements in tasks such as ESPHome compilation, resulting in faster processing times, particularly beneficial for larger deployments. Additionally, CM5 offers advantages in running local speech-to-text processing for those using the Assist feature locally.
Home Assistant OS 14 will also introduce support for the Hailo-8 AI accelerator, found in the Raspberry Pi AI Kit and the Raspberry Pi AI HAT+ for the Raspberry Pi 5. This enables users with a Pi 5 to offload AI processing tasks, such as object and person detection, to an efficient add-on.
The Home Assistant Yellow remains a leading option for power users, with ongoing advancements like CM5 support. For more information, visit the Home Assistant’s website here.
