Blog

Addressable Light Now Backed by a Color Accessor

Nov 18, 2026

Components that implement the AddressableLight interface must now provide an ESPColorAccessor to access the LED strip’s color and effect data instead of overriding AddressableLight::get_view_internal(). This change improves performance, prevents crashes, cleans up the API, and offers components more control over how their LED strip data is stored and how color correction is applied.

This is a developer breaking change for external components in ESPHome 2026.11.0 and later.

The user API remains backwards-compatible except that ESPColorSettable::set(ESPHSVColor) and ESPRangeView::set(ESPHSVColor) have been deprecated to remove ambiguity from the API. Use the already existing set_hsv(ESPHSVColor) method instead.

Entity Names Kept in Flash on ESP8266

Nov 18, 2026

J. Nick Koston

ESPHome Maintainer

Entity names are now stored in flash on ESP8266 instead of RAM. EntityBase::get_name() is deprecated on all platforms and replaced by get_name_to() for a copy of the name and get_log_name() for logging. It keeps working everywhere with a deprecation warning until it is removed in 2027.5.0. On ESP8266 the first call for an entity makes a RAM copy of its name and keeps it, so callers pay back the RAM this change saves for that entity.

This is a developer breaking change for external components in ESPHome 2026.11.0 and later.

http_request: Requests That Do Not Block the Loop

Oct 23, 2026

Clyde Stubbs

ESPHome Maintainer

ESPHome 2026.11.0 adds a way to run an HTTP request from a component without stopping the main loop while it waits for the server. HttpRequestComponent::begin() starts the request, HttpContainer::poll() moves it forward from loop(), and HttpContainer::read_available() reads the body without waiting for data that has not arrived. The http_request.get, post and send actions now use it.

This is a new developer-facing feature in ESPHome 2026.11.0 and later. Existing code does not need to change: start(), get() and post() still block until the response headers arrive, as before.

Display Pixel Blocks Drop the Color Order and Get a Driver Hook

Oct 16, 2026

Clyde Stubbs

ESPHome Maintainer

ESPHome 2026.11.0 removes the ColorOrder argument from Display::draw_pixels_at() and from the ColorUtil color conversions. Pixel blocks and packed colors are always RGB. draw_pixels_at() is no longer virtual: a display driver that copies blocks itself now overrides the protected draw_pixels_internal(). The forms that take a ColorOrder still work, with a deprecation warning, until 2027.5.0.

This is a developer breaking change for external display components in ESPHome 2026.11.0 and later, with a deprecation period until 2027.5.0.

remote_base Protocol Methods Are No Longer Virtual and Receiver Lists Are Sized From Codegen

Oct 14, 2026

J. Nick Koston

ESPHome Maintainer

RemoteProtocol<T> no longer declares encode(), decode() and dump() as virtual, the receiver’s listener and dumper lists are fixed size StaticVectors sized during code generation, and a protocol’s source file is only compiled when the configuration uses it. External components that derive from RemoteProtocol, that register listeners or dumpers from C++, or that use a protocol class from their own C++ need small changes.

This is a developer breaking change for external components in ESPHome 2026.10.0 and later.