Hi! I hope this post is on-topic enough. I've just moved into a flat in Germany and its thermostat has an incredibly loud clock ticking every second. My landlord allows me to replace it, so I looked for options and learned it uses a proprietary interface (Vaillant 7-8-9) and my only real option is from the brand Tado. I e-mailed them and confirmed their V3+ wired model is compatible... but costs 220€; way above my budget. However, if I set the site to Germany the price drops to 100€.

Before spending so much on a device (100€ is still a lot!), I'd love to check whether I can use it with Home Assistant. I recently installed it on a spare SBC and got the zbdongle-e working, ready to start connecting things. I found (cw: AI image) this blog post that says it works by having HA emulate Apple's HomeKit, does this mean it should work fine, regardless of the zbdongle-e? Should I be aware of any caveats to this approach, or to the Tado thermostat itself?

Thanks :)