We’ve been in our new house for a few years now, but it feels like there’s always something else to do instead of the smart home improvements I had planned. The builders pre-wired every room with Cat5e through conduit, so the stage was set for something awesome, but it wasn’t until I got a managed switch with Power-over-Ethernet that I realized exactly how awesome it could be.
Access points, cameras, and other smart home equipment could now be powered and have a data connection from one wire, and I could put all my collection of wall warts in a cardboard box just in case (after labeling them, of course). Having a wired network drop in every room makes this possible, but now I want to expand things further. This is the smart home endgame I was promised years ago, with wireless devices as a last resort if they can’t be hardwired, and as many devices as possible free from needing access to wall sockets.
Forget download speeds, PoE is the real reason to wire your house
(Okay, speed helps too)
Part of the reason I resisted wiring my home network for so long was I hate wires. Charging wires, data wires, HDMI wires, and especially wires that lead to a wall wart. Seriously, I know why they’re necessary, but with improved USB Power Delivery specs and GaN technology, there is no reason that bulky wall warts that block the second socket as soon as you plug them in should exist.
The logical part of my brain knows that they’re built to the lowest possible price point, and that’s why they end up with huge current converters and thin, inflexible wire, but there is a better way, and I firmly believe that people will pay for that better way if the opportunity arises. My Eero mesh kit uses USB-C for power, although that’s maybe a bad example because the plug still covers more than just the one socket, and that means I can’t use the two USB ports in my wall plate for charging.
And odd extenders like using a powered hub to reach without covering important wall plates? Forget about that, it’s more mess than the wall warts, and I’d rather not deal with the negative wife-approval-factor (WAF) here. But with PoE, I finally don’t have to get electricians to come and move wall sockets so I can ceiling mount access points, or run high-voltage wiring out to security cameras, or have to deal with the inconsistency of solar panels recharging wireless security cameras.
Look at that monstrosity, and those are just the wall warts that actually fit on the power bar next to each other. I don’t want that. None of that, only finding where to route the twisted-pair cable to the exact spot I want my new smart home appliance to be.
And I can run backup power from one place too
The other thing about PoE? It’s centralized, which means I can have my internal network, router, servers, and more, all plugged into one uninterruptible power supply (UPS). I can even have them shut down gracefully thanks to NUT, and not worry about data loss, crashed heads on my NAS, and any of the other worries an abrupt power disconnection would bring. Oh, and it’ll keep my security cameras running that little bit longer, once I get those installed.
I’m slowly replacing everything I can with PoE-enabled devices
I want a smart home without dumb wall warts
My smart home felt pretty dumb at times, but it’s improving lately thanks to the time I’ve been able to put in. Powering as many devices with PoE as I can has helped immensely, and I’m still looking for new things to add. Next on the list is a
full NVR solution with Frigate and PoE IP-cameras, including replacing my current wireless video doorbell, and finally placing my access points on the ceiling of each floor’s hallway as I intended, and not sitting on whatever furniture was nearest to the wall jack.
And then? I’m not sure, but with PoE being low-voltage, I can run the cables without worrying about building codes, and that makes planning and execution much simpler. I do want a larger rackmount UPS, because the 1500VA one I have doesn’t have big enough battery capacity, and maybe get some SBCs or low-power Mini PCs that I can power over PoE with a little hacking for localized computing experiments. And for sure some low-voltage lighting under my cabinets, and maybe up each staircase.
Power-over-Ethernet helps the smart home realize its potential
Even just taking the stress from powering network appliances is well worth the additional cost of PoE switches. And that’s where I’d look, because injectors get expensive very quickly and then you still need to find a socket for each to power them. I’d love to see more devices powered by PoE, since all they need is to fit the power budget and be large enough for a 8P8C socket. Maybe I’ll add some hidden speakers so I can hide my AV receiver in a closet, and find other devices I can conceivably power. I’m not sure yet, but my smart home just got significantly smarter.
