Home Assistant Podcast Philips Hue's New Bridge and the Cat Automation Problem with Josh Burg
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Oct 7, 2025 Join psychologist Josh Burg, who transitioned from Google Home to a local Home Assistant setup. He shares insights on automating his home with Philips Hue, discussing innovative lighting projects and motion sensor challenges, especially with his cats. Josh also dives into local vs. cloud hosting concerns, exploring responsive technology and the community's influence on his journey. Plus, he reveals his plans to self-host media and enhance automation with AI, all while highlighting the importance of a reliable and secure smart home.
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ISP Router Caused Repeated IoT Failures
- Josh described frequent IoT devices dropping off after his ISP-provided router caused repeated disconnects.
- He solved it by switching to his own UniFi gear and learned networking through trial and error.
Painful Network Learning Curve
- Josh recounted a network setup breakdown where he had a multi-hour meltdown fixing VLAN and bridge-mode issues.
- He persisted, learned bridge mode and firewall basics, and made his network reliable.
Use A Mini PC And Proxmox For HA
- Try a small mini PC and Proxmox VM approach instead of Raspberry Pi for Home Assistant stability.
- Follow trusted guides but review helper scripts so you understand what they do.