Zigbee USB stick for Home Assistant

The Sonoff ZBDongle-E is a USB stick that turns your Home Assistant computer into the hub of a Zigbee network. With it you connect cheap Zigbee sensors, plugs, relays, radiator valves and bulbs to Home Assistant. Everything runs locally, without the maker’s cloud.

What is inside

The stick uses the Silicon Labs EFR32MG21 chip, supports Zigbee 3.0 and has an external antenna you can angle. In Home Assistant it works with the ZHA integration and with Zigbee2MQTT.

How to set it up for a reliable network

1. Connect it through a USB extension cable, not straight into the server. USB 3.0 ports and the computer itself cause interference in the same 2.4 GHz band.
2. In Home Assistant add the ZHA integration (the easiest option) or install Zigbee2MQTT. The stick is usually detected automatically.
3. Pair mains-powered devices first (plugs, relays). They act as repeaters and extend the range for battery sensors.
4. Put the Zigbee channel away from Wi-Fi, for example 15 or 25.

Firmware

The firmware can be updated right in the browser with the maker’s web tool. The stick can also run as a Zigbee router and serve as a repeater elsewhere in the house.

What to watch

• In a large house with the server in the basement or a cabinet, a network coordinator (such as the SMLight SLZB-06U) placed in the middle of the house is better.
• There is also the ZBDongle-P with a Texas Instruments chip. It works too, but the “E” is the usual recommendation today.

Who it is for

Anyone starting with Zigbee in Home Assistant in a flat or smaller house. It is the cheapest reliable way to begin.