Home Assistant 2024.2 update is here or it will be pretty soon and I’m diving into ten awesome new features. From drag-and-drop automation editor through some Tuya integration updates and Icon revolution. But let’s explore them all starting with the first of ten new feature which is:
Table of Contents
1 of 10: Streamlined Automation Editing in Home Assistant 2024.2
The days of toggling settings to enable re-ordering in the automation editor are gone. Now, with just a simple drag and drop, you can seamlessly arrange triggers, conditions, and actions effortlessly.
Plus, the new capability to drag elements into nested conditions opens up a world of possibilities as some actions support conditions so you can drag & drop from conditions to the actions section without any restrictions.
I don’t want to read anymore…
If you are tired of reading, no problem check my video below
2 of 10: Enhanced History Dashboard
Next, ever wanted to dive deeper into your automation statistics? Now in Home Assistant 2024.2 and onwards you can! Download the data from the history dashboard as a CSV file.
This is allowing you to do further analysis in tools like Excel or visualize it in different ways. Thanks to this improvement, you have even more control over your home automation insights.
3 of 10: Powered by Python 3.12
There are some exciting news for tech nerds in this 2024.2 release as well, because Home Assistant now runs on the latest Python 3.12 version, bringing not only increased speed, but also laying a solid foundation for future enhancements.
If you’re using Home Assistant Operating System or Container or Supervised installation type, the upgrade to Python 3.12 is seamlessly handled during your routine Home Assistant upgrade and you don’t have to do nothing else. Just enjoy the ride, but If you are using Home Assistant Core you will get a repair notification saying Python 3.11 is still working but we are moving to 3.12, so please upgrade in timely manner.
If these Home Assistant installation types confuse your or you just want to learn more like their pros and cons feel free to join my webinar at https://automatelike.pro/webinar which is also free.
4 of 10: Empowering ZHA Devices
Zigbee Home Automation (ZHA) integration now introduces update entities to Home Assistant so you can receive notifications about firmware updates for your Zigbee devices and not only that, you can trigger updates directly from Home Assistant. This will work for most of the known Zigbee devices apart from the ones coming from IKEA at least for now, but who know they may include them as well in the next release.. Just have in mind that updating process of the devices takes very long time, so be patient and don’t rush it. Small, but good step towards a smarter, more connected home don’t you think?
5 of 10: Matter Diagnostics and Actions
Home Assistant’s commitment to Matter devices shines through with added diagnostic information and controls in the user interface.
Easily troubleshoot issues or report them by accessing details like network type, addresses, IDs, and more. You can also take actions such as pinging Matter devices, starting commissioning or removal of fabrics, and forcing full device re-interviews for complete Matter standard experience.
All of these features makes Home Assistant fully compliant Matter controller.
6 of 10: Assist Devices Insights
A new addition to the Assist configuration dashboard lets you track all known Assist devices in your Home.
It’s a handy feature providing insights into the active assist devices, making your home management more transparent.
7 of 10: Icon Revolution
In the latest Home Assistant 2024.1 release, exciting changes have been made to how icons are handled. Now, icons play a more significant role, allowing integrations to offer specific icons for various functions.
This update in icon handling is a step toward future development, although it doesn’t bring noticeable changes to the user interface just yet. Home Assistant integrations can also use these new Icon possibilities and can provide different icons for different fan speed or thermostat presets for example.
Moreover, every service in the Automation/Script editor is now accompanied by an icon, enhancing the overall visual experience.
Additionally, users can now add icons to areas for a personalized touch in the area section.
These user-friendly updates pave the way for a more visually appealing and functional Home Assistant experience in the near future.
8 of 10: Integration Authentication Alerts
Stay informed about integration authentication issues effortlessly. Home Assistant now displays these issues on the repairs dashboard, providing a centralized location for monitoring and addressing system concerns.
9 of 10: Other noteworthy changes
As always There are some other noteworthy changes in this update. Here are some of them:
- Errors got an upgrade; no more confusing coding jargon. Sweet!
- Switching things up? Now, when you change switch types to a garage door, flipping behavior is a breeze. Kudos!
- Ecovacs integration got some love if you are such user you will appreciate it.
- There is an automatic cleanup of old refresh tokens. Stay logged in, but only if you’ve been around in the last 90 days. Nice and security oriented
- There is one great Tuya update. It is a big one and I actually like it a lot as no more developer accounts and complicated setups are needed? Tuya developed a special new authentication mechanism just for Home Assistant and now adding Tuya devices is a breeze. You just need the Tuya Smart or Smart Life app and in just few guided steps you will be good to go. No more fuss! Please tell me in the comments are you going to try this!
- And there is one jinja template
bitwise_xorfilter that can be useful if you are a template Ninja
10 of 10: New UI Integrations
There are new integrations that can now be set up right from the UI and these are:
- GPS information collected by gpsd
- The proximity integration allows you to monitor the proximity of devices or persons to a particular zone and the direction of travel.
- The time and date integration which allows you to create sensors for the current date or time in different formats
Lot of new “regular” Integrations
We also have quite a number of new regular integrations as well in this latest Home Assistant 2024.2 release. And because they are really a lot I will just link them here and will leave the fun to you to further explore them and dive deep if some of them catch your eye.
Backward-incompatible changes (Breaking Changes)
Don’t forget to check the Backward-incompatible changes formerly known as breaking changes as they may affect your system negatively.
Virtual Integration
Also, one new Virtual integrations is added as well and virtual integrations are stubs that are handled by other integrations. More virtual integrations were added in last release.
So in this case Support for devices by City of Austin Utilities in Home Assistant is now provided by the Opower integration.
Outro
Home Assistant continues to evolve, making smart home management accessible to everyone. If you want to continue this journey join my Home Assistant webinar at https://automatelike.pro/webinar it is all free and your smarter, more connected home is just a click away!
Thanks for reading, I’m Kiril and until next one. Bye!