Show HN: Itsyhome – Control HomeKit from your Mac menu bar (open source)

[nixus76]

Hey HN!

Nick here – developer of Itsyhome, a menu bar app for macOS that gives you control over your whole HomeKit fleet (and very soon Home Assistant). I run 130+ HomeKit devices at home and the Home app was too heavy for quick adjustments.

Full HomeKit support, favourites, hidden items, device groups, pinning of rooms/accessories/groups as separate menu bar items, iCloud sync – all in a native experience and tiny package.

Open source (https://github.com/nickustinov/itsyhome-macos) and free to use (there is an optional one-time purchase for a Pro version which includes cameras and automation features).

Itsyhome is a Mac Catalyst app because HomeKit requires the iOS SDK, so it runs a headless Catalyst process for HomeKit (and now Home Assistant) access while using a native AppKit plugin over a bridge protocol to provide the actual menu bar UI – since AppKit gives you the real macOS menu bar experience that Catalyst alone can't.

It comes with deeplink support, a webhook server, a CLI tool (golang, all open source), a Stream Deck plugin (open source, all accessories supported), and the recent update also includes an SSE event stream (HomeKit and HA) - you can curl -N localhost:8423/events and get a real-time JSON stream of every device state change in your home.

Home Assistant version is still in beta – would anyone be willing to test it via TestFlight?

Appreciate any feedback and happy to answer any questions.

[marceldegraaf]

Hey, this looks great! I would love to test the Home Assistant version via TestFlight if that's possible; email is in my profile.

[nixus76]

Perfect – I will send the link shortly – waiting for the new build to be cleared by Apple.

[nickthegreek]

bought pro immediately on just the idea of being able to integrate into HA!

[blokey]

Looks interesting.

What's the difference between your app and Home Control: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/homecontrol-menu-for-homekit/i... HomeControl Menu for HomeKit

other than this ones yours!

[nixus76]

Home Control is a solid app and was actually one of the first in this space. The main differences are: Itsyhome is open source (MIT), has a built-in webhook server with SSE event streaming so you can integrate it into scripts and dashboards, supports deeplinks for Shortcuts/Raycast/Alfred, has a Stream Deck plugin, and a CLI tool. The base app is also completely free. Basically I built it for people who want to go beyond just toggling devices from the menu bar.

[roughfalls]

This is so wonderfully done! Great icon choices & use of fill to indicate active devices. I love how you grouped accessories by category, and included temperature/humidity sensor readings next to thermostat controls. I instantly upgraded to Pro for the additional features!

[nixus76]

Thanks so much! I'm obsessed with great UX, spent some time thinking how to lay it out properly.

[trymas]

Wonder if OP is also an author of: https://www.mowglii.com/itsycal/ , though looking at the website - probably not.

[nixus76]

Nope, but I love it too! :) I'm the author of Itsyhome, Itsypad – https://itsypad.app (a tiny scratchpad & clipboard manager for macOS) and Itsytv - https://itsytv.app (the missing Apple TV remote for macOS).

[nanobuilds]

This is really clean. Smart architecture and the convenience of having everything in the menu bar is top notch. My devices are in Alexa & Hue ecosystem right now. Any plans for integrating them in the future?

[nixus76]

Thanks! Hue actually works with HomeKit natively – you can pair your Hue bridge in the Home app and then all your Hue lights show up in Itsyhome automatically. For Alexa-only devices, the Home Assistant integration (currently in beta) would cover most of them since HA supports pretty much everything.

[j4mie]

This looks great! Question on the API/CLI - is there any provision for capturing frames (or even streams?) from Homekit cameras, or even triggering events or webhooks based on the cameras detecting motion?

[nixus76]

The camera streams are HLS via AVFoundation – Apple doesn't expose raw frames, so no programmatic capture there. But motion detection events do flow through the SSE endpoint (/events), so you can use those to trigger webhooks or automations. For HA cameras there's also a snapshot endpoint you can hit on demand, e.g. when motion fires.

SSE is in the upcoming 2.0.0 which is currently on TestFlight – happy to add you if you want to try it out.

[sputge]

I would be very interested in testing the Home Assistant version!

Recently I created a KOReader plugin that let's your control Home Assistant entities from an ebook reader and I am still missing something for my Mac.

[nixus76]

Sure! Please e-mail me at [e-mail] and I will send you the TF link.

[c-hendricks]

This is amazing. Assuming yes, but is there any way to get a camera feed to automatically pop up if motion is detected?

[nixus76]

Thanks – well, in theory yes. I will add this as a feature request to Git and consider how to implement it.

There is update 1.3.1 pending review at Apple which introduces doorbell support – it opens camera feed when someone rings.

[jamesponddotco]

This looks amazing, I'd love to try the Home Assistant version! Email is on my profile :)

[nixus76]

Perfect – expect the TF link in the e-mail soon!

[luthMan]

Is there a way to add devices to HomeKit with a MacBook without an IPhone?

[nixus76]

Unfortunately no – HomeKit pairing requires an iPhone or iPad. Apple doesn't support adding devices from macOS. Once they're added though, Itsyhome can control everything from your Mac.

[petepete]

I'm nether a Mac or HomeKit user but this looks slick AF. Well done!

[nixus76]

Thank you!

[spiderfarmer]

I’m going to install this as soon as I get back home.

[nixus76]

Hope you like it!

[drcongo]

This is great, thanks, I paid the IAP immediately. So much more usable than the risible Home app.

[nixus76]

Thanks, really appreciate the support! Agreed – the Home app is way too heavy for quick device control. If you run into anything or have feature requests, feel free to open an issue on GitHub.

[FranklinJabar]

> I run 130+ HomeKit devices at home

This is insane. I couldn't name a single homekit device if you put a gun to my head. Where do you find these things?

[nixus76]

Honestly most smart home devices support HomeKit these days – lights (Philips Hue, IKEA), thermostats (Ecobee), locks (Yale, Schlage), blinds, cameras, sensors. And anything that doesn't can usually be bridged through Homebridge or Home Assistant. It adds up fast once you start – lights alone can be 50+ if you do every room.

[ramses0]

148 Home Assistant (bridged) accessories checking in... sign me up for the beta!

On the accessory count, call it a 2-story house, ~5 rooms per floor, plus an outdoor zone:

2x thermostat, 2x speakers (HomePod), 2x door, garage door, 2 lamps per room, pool "accessories" (filter, cleaner, heater, lights), 2x outdoor lights... that's 27 just off the bat!

Now adding Home Assistant and you start getting 2x Zigbee interior door sensors (privacy locks/detection for when we have a babysitter), 2x interior motion sensors (upstairs/downstairs stairwell), patio string lights, front throw/spot lights, 3x decorator bulbs for the hanging entrance lamp (bridges three bulbs as one since they're individually controllable bulbs instead of a smart fixture or switch), an AirPlay compatible TV, fridge and freezer temp/humidity sensors, the outdoor AirPlay speaker, outdoor gate open/close sensors (front and back), outdoor motion sensor...

...and then the random other "every HomePod technically has an in-built temp and humidity sensor", the Home Assistant integration for the router that reads the packets in/out, the printer thing that reads the ink status for all the ink cartridges, etc.

It's a lot, but start with a single reading lamp and night light per room. Make a "lights" and "mood" scene per room/floor. A few key motion/door sensors (turn on a downstairs mood light when opening the door after sunset, turn on the hallway mood light when motion is detected after 9pm, etc).

[drcongo]

They sell them in shops.

[spiderfarmer]

Do you want to be taken seriously?