We’ve had some requests for Power over Ethernet support on Vero V.
We have developed some samples of a new adapter which splits a PoE connection in to Ethernet (1Gbps) and the barrel jack that Vero 4K / 4K+ and V use. The adapter provides 2.5A of power which gives a little more headroom for those using USB devices that consume a bit more power such as hard drives.
I’d like to gauge how much interest people would have in such a solution before considering a mass production run. If we do launch this product we would also make Wake on LAN supported on Vero V.
You use PoE where you don’t have a power outlet near by. That’s the whole point of it.
In case of Vero home use, there for sure power nearby. Also PoE switches cost way too much compared to the none PoE variant, consume significant more power (even if not powering anything) and come with active fans usually (unless they are crap). Though some have 'em at home, mainly if they run some devices like cameras where no power is nearby or some small devices with an PoE port. Yeah, one of my switches in PoE, that powers the APs at my house and some stuff nearby.
I would never ever run a long ass copper cable to the Vero just to have PoE there and save a wall wart. In fact just one cable is run to the the living room, where a cheap 1GbE switch is located so TV, Vero, PS5, XBOX, receiver have a wired connection. To power the Vero by PoE an additional cable would be needed or a way too expensive new 8-port PoE switch. Nah, I just can’t see this happening.
Also compact PoE splitter with barrel jacks are widely availble and cost around 10ish USD per pop (1GbE, 12v, 1.5A) or 20ish for 2.5A variants. Perfectly fine to power an USB hub. Don’t see why you should do an OEM order, not worth the hassle for the small margin. Everyone can get them easily from Amazon if needed. You can always stock some for sales though.
An USB-C power port in future iterations make more sense to me, so you can plug it into your USB-C power hub used for cell phones and other stuff and don’t need to deal with UK/GER/ITA/CH whatever power adapters.
I power my three Veros (4K, 4K+, V) already with an USB-C to barrel jack cable. That’s very concenient and don’t require any work. And the power hub was already there for cell phone/controller/head phone charging.
I rather see USB-C to barrel cables as an option then PoE splitters in store. But just my two cents…
I might do it just because I then can control the power from a PoE using Home Assistant (which makes remote hard reboots easier) and because It’s Cool (like bow tie cool). What’s the power draw of the Vero V? Because of how my house is setup, I have a PoE powered switch in my media cabinet which can provide PoE power, but the budget on the power is a little slim because I can only power it right now with PoE+. The switch can do more if I can at some point upgrade the power to it to PoE++.
As part of my occupation I sometimes have to install out of site video equipment for businesses (lobbies, gyms, etc.).
We place equipment behind wall mounted TVS, in remote telco rooms and then send HDMI over CAT6, in server racks, and all kinds of imaginable situations.
I have never scene a situation that would necessitate POE to power video equipment.
If there is a display, then there are usable outlets.
I subscribe to the “better to have and not need than to need and not have” philosophy so having the option would be nice, despite the fact that I can’t imagine a situation where it would be needed, but I can’t imagine it being a good business decision for OSMC to have such a device made.
The manufacturer will require a minimum purchase and I highly doubt that there’s a need to cover such a minimum.
I guess this thread will provide us the answer.
As far as people wanting to do remote hard boots, I actually have my Vero V plugged into a Wyze Plug for that very reason.
My power strip is not that easily accessible behind my entertainment center, so having it plugged into a Wyse Plug allows me to do cold boots by just using the Wyze app on my phone.
Those go for like $10 and many companies make “smart plugs”
Indeed. I’ve been running three RPi’s off $11-$15 POE adapters from Amazon for a couple years now, first RPi 3’s, then the RPi 4’s that replaced them. I’ve had at least four of them either stop working altogether, or fail to supply power under load on startup which makes them worthless for remote rebooting. When they are not broken it works great powering a SBC like this. I have my POE switch plugged into a UPS which in effect puts all of these RPi’s on a UPS as well. I’d purchased a barrel jack version from Amazon last year to power my Vero 4K but it showed up with that not powering up under load issue and I was too frustrated to try again with that one. I’m looking forward to see what Sam was able to source.
Cheers, feedback is most appreciated. I’ve noticed we have a large number of Pi users using POE HATs and have had a fair few requests, so thought this might be something worth exploring, but it may be niche.
I definitely agree.
The only time I actually needed a PoE was when putting an AP outside the walls on my house - to have WiFi for the kids at the pool. And I didn’t want to also put a power outlet on the outside of the wall 10m above ground.
I see PoE as a very convenient option to have on a Vero.
While it is true that there is usually a power outlet nearby, there are also many devices competing for this plug (TV, audio system, there can be a gaming console connected to this TV, other set-top boxes).
I have to use a power bar behind my TV stand, and anything to reduce the number of plugs is a plus in my book.
I also happen to already have a PoE switch - so while this may not be typical for other Vero users, it makes a lot of sense for me to power Vero over ethernet.
So far, so good. I’ve been 100% stable and it uses very little power to run the Vero by itself (less than my RPi 4). I’ve not had any of the power on issues I’ve seen with other adapters. Testing it under load this week.
I am also super interested in this, I just ordered three Vero V units and I was planning to test with a GB PoE adapter from Amazon, but I happened to find this thread and would certainly be interested in an “official” solution. Are these available to purchase / test? Happy to help.
I use PoE adapters for almost everything that needs Ethernet and has a 5V or 12V wall wart in my setup these days, including Hue Bridge, some older IP cameras, couple Raspberry Pi’s, and more. I can reboot individual ports remotely through my PoE switch.
Anyway, just another vote advocating for this solution, simple but easy way to tidy up your setup and free up outlets, would purchase.
Just a follow up to my testing, I pushed the power draw as far as I could get it to go which went up to 13 watts according to my switch. My Vero V stayed stable despite pushing the power draw from the USB above what should be done, as well as running all CPU cores full tilt for an extended time to push the load farther. I then plugged in one bus powered SSD, one bus powered 2.5" spinning rust drive, and a bus powered hub (this averaged continuous ~6.2 watts) and left them connected for a month on my primary Vero that gets used every day. There were no issues encountered with this setup at all.
