Zigbee and Thread – alongside other popular smart home and IoT protocols such as Z-Wave, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth – are widely used in modern ecosystems. Many users build their smart environments using a combination of these protocols. However, managing such a diverse setup often requires multiple dedicated devices: for example, a Zigbee coordinator for Zigbee networks and a Thread Border Router for Thread 📡.

While some commercial solutions support both Zigbee and Thread simultaneously, they are typically locked into specific vendors or ecosystems 🔒 (a lot of such hubs with Zigbee + Thread are available on the market). This vendor lock-in, despite showcasing the technical feasibility of coexisting Zigbee and Thread radios in the same hardware device, limits flexibility and user choice 🚫.

With the SLZB-MRx series, we set out to change that. Our goal was to empower smart home enthusiasts and developers👨‍💻 with a multiradio device that enables native, vendor-agnostic access to both Zigbee and Thread protocols. “MR” stands for MultiRadio – this series allows users to freely choose their preferred ecosystem and integration path, leveraging the full capabilities of open-source smart home software and platforms.

Remark for running several 2.4 GHz networks on the same device.

It’s completely valid to run Zigbee and Thread radios in the same device – and many smart home hubs already prove this (various manufacturers and models support many protocols simultaneously).

These devices combine multiple protocols (Zigbee, Thread, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth) into one enclosure (on multiple SoCs).

💡 With proper set-up (use different channels for each network Zigbee and Thread), stable operation of both radios works reliable.

Bottom line: Multiradio is the future, and it’s already here. In addition to existing solutions, SLZB-MR1 just made it flexible and easy to use.

Yes, you can. You can set up as many SLZB-MR1 coordinators as you want with one Home Assistant. For that, you just need to run a separate instance of Zigbee2MQTT for each coordinator. We have now received feedback from our lovely Customers about using 6 items with one Home Assistant. Please also note that you can connect to devices that are outside your LAN network, e.g., somewhere in another location with access to the internet. More details can be found in this Article of the official manual.

Overall system architecture with multiple adapters looks like this:

The device can be switched between USB or Ethernet either through a web-interface or by button. Just short press – and the work mode changed. Switching by web interface allows changing the work mode distantly. 

Oh no. You do not need to think about tit. No switches. Just plug in POE or type-C or both – and the device works. It distinguishes power sources and acts correspondingly. 

Yes, you can. Both main chips used in SLZB-MR1 (CC2652P, EFR32 and ESP32) can be updated distantly from the other global point. That makes the device suitable for installation in rare-visited locations or installation places.

Yes, it does. The device support POE standard IEEE 802.3af. That is the “basic” POE widely used standard. Just plug and use; you do not need any other additional power cables and plugs. 

That is for “Pro” users who want to flash SLZB-MR1 with the type-C connection. ESP32 Autoboot means that the device contains a built-in programmer and schematic that allows flashing ESP32 without any additional activities: you do not need to press buttons to make ESP32 in flash mode, and you do not need to plug in additional programmers. The only thing you need – just to plug in type-C and start flashing. Easy.

Yes. The device contains optoelectronic isolation between USB and Ethernet parts. So you can plug in SLZB-MR1 to both RJ45 and type-C at the same time.

The enclosure of the device contains vent holes, and when close to the ears, you can hear little noise from the POE transformer. The normal is if you can’t hear it more than 50 centimeters from the device.