Mat Smith of youtube built this device for Openhab and MQTT, but I think a similar device could be constructed for SmartThings. If ST built a device like this, you could just take my money. This is an awesome room controller. He spent a year going through different hardware and I think the final product is just killer.
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I do admire people who have audacity to take on a home-brew hardware project of this scale, but I wonder if it’s worth the effort when this same functionality (and much more) can be much easier accomplished with a dashboard software running on a $40 Android tablet.
I think so. Hardware is tactile. I have tried the dashboard on a tablet. It works but it’s not a great user experience. A purpose built device like this could open a lot of doors.
It’s true, the hardware knobs do have a nice feel (Apple Watch digital crown comes to mind). But I’m still not sure about the benefit vs. cost and effort ratio. Granted, the guy did an admirable job for a DIY, but comparing to a 7" tablet, his screen is tiny and monochrome, there’s no WiFi and you need to push a lot of buttons to navigate from one control to another. The reason I bring it up is because I considered building something along the same lines, but I’ve come to conclusion that the touch screen has more advantages. The iPhone did bury the Blackberry after all.
P.S. Now that I think about it, the combination of a touch screen and a single hardware rotational/push knob would probably be the best of both worlds. Think oversized digital crown. 
Consider what types of interfaces are being built into new cars… Not just touchscreens! Dial-knobs are pretty common, but dedicated buttons are a lot easier to hit without looking too.
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Exactly. It’s a combination of knobs and touchscreen. But the the use case is not exactly the same. I just can’t imagine myself standing in front of a wall switch and pushing a button 10 times just to get to the right menu. What if you missed it? Now you have to push ten more times.
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