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Hello friends The topic of this review will be a device that is neither a sensor nor an executive device. It does not transmit any readings and does not perform any actions, therefore it cannot be used in automation. This is a Zigbee router – its task is to transfer data from other devices on the network, thereby expanding its capacity and coverage. Model: RP280, in zigbee2mqtt – TS0207_repeater Protocol: Tuya ZigBee 3.0 Range : 20 ~ 30 meters Power: 10 dB Power supply: USB A – 5 V to 1 A Dimensions: 28 mm * 18 mm * 7 mm Color: white The device is supplied in a small white box, although given the size of the device, it could fit a dozen of these routers. The inscriptions on the front side, except for the word Zigbee, are executed in hieroglyphs – this is a sign that the device is intended for the domestic market. The technical parameters of the device are written on the back side , which I have already described, and there is also an abundance of hieroglyphs here.

The first thing that came to my mind after I opened the box was the royal bed. But everything will arrive safe and sound. By the way, the store was very conscientious about the outer packaging. The complete instruction is in Chinese, so it is rather difficult to understand something from it without a translator. But even here the store showed its best side. An instruction in English was enclosed in the package, and this was the initiative of the store, since the box was sealed, and the instruction was separate. In addition, it has the name of the store. The most useful thing in it is a way to reset the router settings, for which you need to connect and disconnect it from USB three times in a row . Externally, the device is identical to a USB flash drive. Or, it would be more accurate to say – an external USB Bluetooth adapter is white, since manufacturers of flash drives usually pay more attention to design, but here everything is quite simple.

On one side is the Zigbee interface and model number. Here is a comparison with the 64 GB flash drive from Xiaomi that I got my hands on. The device is very compact. USB is needed to receive power – and any free Type A connector is suitable for a router – on a charging station, on a TV, computer, speaker, power supply, and anywhere, they are now installed literally everywhere. The consumption is very modest – only 150 milliWatts, which is 0.02 A. So you can even connect to a power bank – one charge will last for a very long time, if there is, of course, a need for such a solution. The gadget has one single LED that glows when it is turned on. In pairing mode – it flickers. The device is designed to work with Tuya smart gateways and we will start an overview of the logical part with this application.

We launch the Zigbee gateway plug-in – I have an Ethernet version from Moes and start the add process, having previously connected the router to the USB connector. After that, the device is detected and connected to the gateway – choose a name for it and specify the location. This completes the connection process and the router appears in the list of gateway child devices. That's all – the device is simply in the system, you cannot get any additional information on it in the application . The plugin has an inscription that the gateway is working. The router does not participate in automations. But I took it not for the Tuya gateway, but for working with zigbee2mqtt.

The connection process is standard, the router must be in pairing mode , by the way, after being removed from Tuya Smart, it is automatically reset to factory settings and transferred to this mode. It is found quickly, running ahead I will say that during testing I dropped it and connected it several times and there were never any problems with it. The model is defined as TS0207_repeater. Support is official and full – up to the correct picture of the device. It is defined as a router, which is logical, since this is the only function of the gadget. The only parameter that can be obtained from it is the level of signal quality. It is also forwarded to Home Assistant. The network map looks like this immediately after connection. In my case, most of the connections are still built on the coordinator, since I recently transferred all devices from the CC2538 stick to the CC2652, and I had to do this manually one device at a time – by combining two zigbee2mqtt in one mqtt system of brokers connected in bridge mode.

The gadget has built connections with other routers within sight. In general, to optimize connections, it will be useful to turn off the coordinator for a couple of hours, but due to quarantine, since the whole family is constantly at home, I still cannot do this, the end devices themselves decide whether to switch to the router or not. As usual, let's check the support on the zigbee2mqtt alternative – the SLS gateway. During testing, we used the most current firmware as of the testing date of April 4, 2021. The device connected quickly and without problems, although it surprised me with its picture.

Here you can see a leakage sensor from Tuya Smart, which has the same model number TS0207, apparently that's why the word repeater is added to it in zigbee2mqtt But apart from the picture – otherwise there are no problems, the device will work as a router for Zigbee In the SLS gateway, in addition to the signal quality level , it will be displayed one more parameter – last seen, the time of the last response from the device, in UNIX format, this is the number of seconds since 00:00 on January 1, 1970 . On the network map – a gadget, it is on the right, with an image of a leakage sensor, is displayed with a blue, router connection.

In my case, the router is designed to be installed in a bathroom, where there is a wall outlet with USB ports, one of which is used from time to time to charge toothbrushes and a dispenser, the other is always empty. Was up to this point. It has several sensors – motion, opening, climate and a pair of opening sensors. There is also a router – the Aqara outlet that controls the boiler. But it is built into the wall and the signal level to it is rather weak – for comparison, the hero of the review is a little more than a meter from socket 108, and socket 33. Therefore, all the sensors are lower in this list, the names begin with BT, they prefer to cling to where anything but not to the outlet. The process of independent transition of sensors is not fast, but after a day one of them decided to switch to a new router. I watch the rest. Let's summarize. The hero of the review is a compact, but at the same time quite powerful router with a good signal level, which can solve the problem of unstable or weak communication with remote devices.

For power supply, a standard USB A port of 5 volts is required, and any unused port will do, its power requirements are very modest..