Shellbee vs PiParent

Your Zigbee network, in your pocket and on your iPad. Shellbee is a native app for Zigbee2MQTT. It connects straight to your bridge and gives you a fast, Apple-native way to watch, control and configure every device, with no cloud in between. REQUIRES A ZIGBEE2MQTT SERVER Shellbee is a client app. You need your own running Zigbee2MQTT instance and an access token. Local and remote setups both work. SEE EVERYTHING AT A GLANCE • A Home screen built from cards you choose and order: Bridge Health, Network, Link Quality, Batteries, Vendors and Activity. • Needs attention shows offline devices, low batteries and weak signal before you go looking. • A live Network Map of your whole mesh, with scan progress, filters and quick look (iPad). • An Activity Center that shows what your devices are doing as it happens. CONTROL AND CONFIGURE • Controls are generated from each device's Zigbee2MQTT exposes: lights, switches, covers, fans, locks, climate and sensors. • Every setting is grouped the same way on every device, using Zigbee2MQTT's own names. • Groups and scenes: browse, edit members, rename, drag devices in. • Favorites, filters and one search across devices, groups and the device library. • Bridge settings for MQTT, serial, network, OTA, logging, availability, Home Assistant and more. PAIR AND UPDATE WITH CONFIDENCE • Permit join and a step-by-step pairing guide with live progress. • Firmware updates with progress in Live Activities on your Lock Screen and Dynamic Island. • Offline device documentation for how to pair and what each device can do. MORE THAN ONE BRIDGE Connect several bridges at once and see them side by side. Each has its own colour and initial, and single-bridge users see nothing extra. MADE FOR IPHONE AND IPAD • Full iPad workspace with a sidebar, details side by side and extra windows. • Six colour themes: Standard, Honey, Meadow, Harbor, Lavender and Ember. • Real-time WebSocket connection over ws:// or wss://, with Bonjour discovery for .local hosts. • Built in SwiftUI with Live Activities, so it feels fast and native, not like a wrapped web page. PRIVATE BY DESIGN • Talks only to the bridge you choose. No ads, no tracking, no analytics and no developer server. • Access tokens are stored in the iOS Keychain. • Crash reporting is optional and off by default. Nothing is sent unless you say so, and reports never include your bridge address, token or device names. OPEN SOURCE Shellbee is licensed under AGPL v3, with the source on GitHub.

PiParent gives you ultimate network oversight and effortless parental controls without compromising your family data. Built exclusively to orchestrate your Pi-hole server, PiParent turns raw network rules into seamless, schedule-driven family oversight directly from your iPhone. Take control of screen time, shut down adult content, and reclaim peace of mind-all while remaining 100 percent invisible to third-party analytics and advertisers. ZERO DATA, MAXIMUM PRIVACY Unlike standard parental control apps that track every app open, route your traffic through their servers, and build profiles on your kids, PiParent operates with a strict Zero-Data architecture. NO Servers: The app talks directly to your local Pi-hole. NO Accounts: All preferences stay secure on your phone. NO Analytics: We never track what you tap, see, or view. SECURE STORAGE: Credentials live safely in iOS Keychain. SMART FAMILY GROUPS Stop managing raw IP addresses. Instantly organize your network devices into simple family profiles. Tap Assign to link dynamic clients to specific children, gaming systems, or workspaces. EFFORTLESS SCHEDULES AND BEDTIMES Define healthy digital boundaries that enforce themselves. Set Bedtime windows for any group, and PiParent will automatically lock down internet access at night, re-enabling it only when the sun comes up. Reclaim nightly routines effortlessly. CONTENT CATEGORY BLOCKING Switch off the noisy web. PiParent allows you to activate targeted blocking for specific content profiles with one tap: Social Media and Doomscrolling Streaming Video Services Video Gaming Portals Explicit and Adult Content Gambling and Tracking PIPARENT PLUS (Premium Upgrade) Take command of advanced administration and real-time oversight. Try it free for 7 days! INSTANT DOWNTIME Hit the master override button. One tap instantly severs internet access to any group until you manually turn it back on. Perfect for dinner time, study sessions, or family nights. FAMILY INSIGHTS Discover exactly how your network is behaving. Unlock visual breakdowns of query trends and get a real-time leaderboard of the Top Allowed Domains used by devices in each family group. REWARD TIME Grant bonus screen time without wrecking your permanent schedule. Grant 15, 30, or 60 minutes of unrestricted access that automatically sunsets itself when the timer hits zero. PI-HOLE ADMIN TOOLS Update your Pi-hole Gravity blocklists, flush temporary logs, or restart your DNS resolver remotely directly from the dashboard. Requirements: An active Pi-hole instance running on your local network. Note: PiParent is a remote management dashboard utility that interacts with a user's self-hosted Pi-hole server via API calls over the local network. The app does not implement VPN technologies, does not route user traffic, and does not collect or share any user data. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/