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[BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash

ilengyel 7920 0

TL;DR

  • Teardown and OpenBK flashing of the CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, using the BK7231T/WB2L module.
  • A no-solder connector was built for the four pads on the WB2L module, avoiding de-soldering and re-soldering across multiple downlights.
  • The flasher used was BK7231GUIFlashTool with a CP2104 UART-USB adapter, and the module was powered at 3.3V while 5V stayed disconnected.
  • After flashing, the downlight joined the open access point, accepted Wi‑Fi setup at 192.168.4.1, and showed the RGB controller on the main page.
  • RED, GREEN, BLUE, C/W TEMP, and C/W BRIGHTNESS were mapped to PWM pins 26, 24, 6, 7, and 8, with Flag 8 enabled for alternate CW light mode.
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  • A while back I posted the teardown and OpenBK configuration of the Cool/Warm White only version which can be found here. Finally I gotten around to flash the RGB variety of these downlights.

    Starting with the pictures of the box:
    [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash

    [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash

    Pictures of the device:
    [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash

    Opening up:
    [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash

    Flashing:

    I dreaded the thought of having to de-solder the chip, soldering the flashing wires, re-soldering, and then multiply that 20 times!! So I attempted a no solder method which actually worked.

    First I built a connector for the 4 pads on the WB2L module corresponding to the 2 UART interfaces lined up at the top of the module. [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash
    [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash
    I took an 8 pin header left over from another ESP controller, and super-glued a piece of plastic to one side, and bent the pins of the header in such a way that it lined up with the appropriate pads, but also the springiness of the metal clamps the connector to the WB2L module.

    The UART-USB interface I used was CP2104, it is a good idea to leave the 5v pin disconnected, and can connect the ground pin and 3.3v to the convenient points located at the back of the board using a mini probe.
    [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash

    * The flasher I used was BK7231GUIFlashTool.
    * Before flashing it is a good idea to first hook up the UART-USB to UART2 and use Putty to confirm that the pins from the connector have good contact, and the UART interface is supplying enough current at 3.3v to power the WB2L module.

    Flash Sequence:
    1. Connect up the UART-USB interface to UART1 on the WB2L module, and the ground pin. Leave the 3.3v disconnected for now
    [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash
    2. Start the firmware write on the flasher tool and observe the "Getting bus..." message.
    [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash

    3. Connect the 3.3v to the WB2L module and observe flash write progressing.
    4. Once the flash completes, connect to the open access point, navigate to 192.168.4.1 and update the wifi credentials, as per previous instructions.

    Configuring:
    Here is the pin configuration:
    [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash
    RED - CH0: PIN26: PWM
    GREEN - CH1: PIN24: PWM
    BLUE - CH2: PIN6: PWM
    C/W TEMP - CH3: PIN7: PWM_n
    C/W BRIGHTNESS - CH4: PIN8: PWM

    As with the CW white downlight version, the PWM channels control the temperature and brightness directly. Therefore the "Flag 8 - [LED] Alternate CW light mode (first PWM for warm/cold slider, second for brightness)" should be enabled in the Configure General/Flags section.

    If all goes well you should see the RGB controller on the main page.
    [BK7231T/WB2L] CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight from ALDI Australia, Teardown & OpenBK Flash

    Added after 18 [minutes]:

    Where do I post the template:
    Code: JSON
    Log in, to see the code

    Cool? Ranking DIY
    About Author
    ilengyel
    Level 11  
    Offline 
    ilengyel wrote 20 posts with rating 9, helped 1 times. Live in city Australia. Been with us since 2009 year.
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FAQ

TL;DR: 5 GPIO pins and one firmware flag turn the CasaLife RGB Downlight into a full RGBCW lamp; “no-solder flashing works first time” [Elektroda, ilengyel, post #20534678] Provide step-by-step pin map, UART trick, and OpenBeken template below.

Why it matters: DIY flashing saves hours and avoids desoldering delicate WB2L modules.

Quick Facts

• Chipset: BK7231T on WB2L module, typical 120 MHz RISC core (BK7231T Datasheet). • Flash interface: 3.3 V UART1 @115 200 bps; CP2104 adapter recommended [Elektroda, ilengyel, post #20534678] • Pin map: 26-R, 24-G, 6-B, 7-C/W Temp, 8-C/W Brightness [Elektroda, ilengyel, post #20534678] • Required flag: 8 (value 256) enables alternate CW mode [Elektroda, ilengyel, post #20534678] • Firmware: OpenBeken image ≈512 kB flashed via BK7231GUIFlashTool [Elektroda, ilengyel, post #20534678]

What hardware is inside the CasaLife RGB Smart LED Downlight?

The lamp uses a WB2L module with a BK7231T Wi-Fi MCU. Five LED channels connect directly to the module’s PWM pins [Elektroda, ilengyel, post #20534678]

How do I flash OpenBeken without soldering?

Build an 8-pin header jig, press it onto the four exposed UART pads, and power the module through test points. This avoids any soldering [Elektroda, ilengyel, post #20534678]

Which UART pins should I connect?

Connect TX, RX, and GND on UART1, then apply 3.3 V after the flasher shows “Getting bus…”. Leave the 5 V USB pin unconnected [Elektroda, ilengyel, post #20534678]

What is the exact RGB-CCT pin configuration in OpenBeken?

Set PWM 0→PIN26 (Red), PWM 1→PIN24 (Green), PWM 2→PIN6 (Blue), PWM 3→PIN7 (C/W Temp, inverted), PWM 4→PIN8 (C/W Brightness) [Elektroda, ilengyel, post #20534678]

How do I enter Wi-Fi credentials after flashing?

Join the temporary AP, visit 192.168.4.1, and fill the SSID/password form. The light reboots onto your network within 10 s [Elektroda, ilengyel, post #20534678]

Why must I enable Flag 8?

Flag 8 activates alternate CW mode so one PWM controls colour temperature and another controls brightness; without it, white mixing acts incorrectly [Elektroda, ilengyel, post #20534678]

What common flashing failures should I watch for?

If the CP2104 cannot supply ≥90 mA, voltage may sag below 3 V and the write stalls at 2 % progress—restart with an external 3.3 V supply (CP2104 Datasheet).

Can I restore the original Tuya firmware later?

Not easily. The factory image is not publicly available, and flashing back requires a full backup before erasing. Most users therefore keep OpenBeken permanently.

Does the downlight support MQTT after conversion?

Yes. OpenBeken exposes MQTT, HTTP, and Home Assistant auto-discovery once Wi-Fi is configured. Enable MQTT in the WebUI under Configure → MQTT.

Quick 3-step flashing recap?

  1. Press jig onto UART1 pads and connect RX, TX, GND. 2. Start BK7231GUIFlashTool; when it waits for bus, apply 3.3 V. 3. After success, join AP and set Wi-Fi.
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