I recently started using ESP32s for my projects, mostly out of necessity for the flash sizes and GPIO capabilities, but they do bring in another interesting feature I haven’t made use of yet, Bluetooth capabilities. Each ESP32 can be used by home assistant as a Bluetooth proxy and BLE tracker. It should be a simple addition to the ESPHome yaml too!
The ESPHome configuration for the Bluetooth proxy and BLE tracker is nice and simple to add to a device. If you’re running the device on Wi-Fi, you may want to comment out the interval and window configuration settings below as they can interfere with the Wi-Fi and cause the device to disconnect and reconnect to Wi-Fi. If you’re using this from an ethernet device, you’re in the clear.
esp32_ble_tracker:
scan_parameters:
interval: 1100ms
window: 1100ms
active: true
bluetooth_proxy:
active: true
This is a nice little capability to add to an ESP32 especially if it doesn’t have as many components already in the configuration. There are some limits to the Bluetooth proxy as well, but it’s all capability left on the table if you don’t add it to your configuration.