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re: Official WINK HUB Home Automation thread

Posted on 2/1/17 at 7:28 am to
Posted by CAD703X
Liberty Island
Member since Jul 2008
78036 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 7:28 am to
quote:

want a switch that I can program to a specific schedule. Any recommendations?
lutron is bulletproof. However it will set you back $60. It's worth it. I only have one lutron switch but it's never given me any trouble. Look back in this thread where I compared various switches. In the beginning they all seemed about the same. 2 years later lutron is the clear winner.

Eta I should say lutron is the winner if you want dimming as well. If you just want on/off style I think the eBay levitons can be found used around $20 and they work great.
This post was edited on 2/1/17 at 7:31 am
Posted by notbilly
alter
Member since Sep 2015
4465 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 8:33 am to
quote:

Eta I should say lutron is the winner if you want dimming as well. If you just want on/off style I think the eBay levitons can be found used around $20 and they work great.


I really only need the on/off for the outside lighting. But I want to put some interior lighting on dimmers. Do the different brands match in style and color? My lighting trim is all 'ivory'. And will the lighting work the same from the wink app (or smartthings app)? If I go this route, I need it to all look/work the same to my wife.
Posted by bbap
Baton Rouge, LA
Member since Feb 2006
96012 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 8:35 am to
quote:

Do the different brands match in style and color?


No

quote:

And will the lighting work the same from the wink app (or smartthings app)? If I go this route, I need it to all look/work the same to my wife.


Yes
Posted by CAD703X
Liberty Island
Member since Jul 2008
78036 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 8:45 am to
quote:

Do the different brands match in style and color?
color yes. GE, leviton and lutron all have extra switch buttons in 3 of the most common switch colors.

The UI of the switch varies by model.. The GE for instance doesn't have a true rocker, you push on the bottom to turn it on and off which is weird. They also have different placements and colors of LEDs on the light switch itself.
Posted by TigerWise
Front Seat of an Uber
Member since Sep 2010
35113 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 8:56 am to
quote:

Do the different brands match in style and color? My lighting trim is all 'ivory'.


Color can be different especially with ivory and the different almonds. Might not notice it room to room but if they are on the same wall you might notice it. Same with your other wall plates. Can be a real pain in the arse if that type of thing bothers you.
Posted by notbilly
alter
Member since Sep 2015
4465 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 9:13 am to
quote:

Color can be different especially with ivory and the different almonds. Might not notice it room to room but if they are on the same wall you might notice it. Same with your other wall plates. Can be a real pain in the arse if that type of thing bothers you.


It definitely will bother me. Most of my switch boxes have multiple switches. So I will probably need to pick one brand and stick with it.
Posted by CAD703X
Liberty Island
Member since Jul 2008
78036 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 9:20 am to
quote:

So I will probably need to pick one brand and stick with it


to be clear; if you don't plan on making ALL SWITCHES on that plate smart, you need to make sure the one you're buying matches the color of your existing ones.
Posted by TigerWise
Front Seat of an Uber
Member since Sep 2010
35113 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 10:13 am to
Leviton might be a good choice than if you don't go Lutron. Leviton has all the other type wall plates you might need. FWIW talked to my Leviton rep last week and they are pushing SmartThings. They are bundling their products with it.
Posted by bbap
Baton Rouge, LA
Member since Feb 2006
96012 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 10:28 am to
quote:

. The GE for instance doesn't have a true rocker, you push on the bottom to turn it on and off which is weird.


I would never buy a GE push rocker. All of my GE's are paddle.

Paddle over toggle anyway in my opinion.
Posted by CAD703X
Liberty Island
Member since Jul 2008
78036 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 11:31 am to
which one did you buy? i didnt realize ge made a smart dimmer that had a paddle.
Posted by bbap
Baton Rouge, LA
Member since Feb 2006
96012 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 12:10 pm to
what? Of course they do. It's not new either. Been on the market.

LINK

eta: they're getting more expensive though. Making them less appealing.
This post was edited on 2/1/17 at 12:12 pm
Posted by CAD703X
Liberty Island
Member since Jul 2008
78036 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 12:24 pm to
well shite. my bad.

i'm confusing leviton and GE.

its LEVITON that you only tap the bottom of the switch.

the GE one has the annoying blue light and if you don't 'crisply' click it, it will simply dim the lights instead of turning them off.

both UIs are annoying to me.
Posted by bbap
Baton Rouge, LA
Member since Feb 2006
96012 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 1:05 pm to
quote:

the GE one has the annoying blue light


i don't find it annoying at all. i like it. so thats a matter of opinion. but you can turn it off anyway. so it's a non issue.


quote:

and if you don't 'crisply' click it, it will simply dim the lights instead of turning them off.


never once had that problem.

Not sure what you are talking about regarding UI, I use smartthings for my switches. I wasn't even aware GE had a UI or why you would want to use it if you have a smart hub.
This post was edited on 2/1/17 at 1:07 pm
Posted by CaptainsWafer
TD Platinum Member
Member since Feb 2006
58333 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 1:09 pm to
All of this.

I leave the blue lights on when the switches are off so they can be found at night.

Although it may be unnecessaey bc I could just tell the echo to turn on the lights too.
Posted by CAD703X
Liberty Island
Member since Jul 2008
78036 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 1:14 pm to
quote:


Not sure what you are talking about regarding UI, I use smartthings for my switches. I wasn't even aware GE had a UI or why you would want to use it if you have a smart hub.


sorry i'm talking about the PHYSICAL UI of the switch itself.

its confusing that you have to hit the bottom of the leviton (since it looks like an ordinary toggle) and if you hit the top you might accidently 'open' the switch and reset it.

same with GE, if you touch it, the lights don't appear to have reacted (because of the slow fade out) so the tendancy is to touch it again which actually freezes the lights halfway turned off.

again, ymmv but whenever someone in my house tries to use the GE switch they end up halfway dimmed.

there are 6 people that live in my house (4 are children) so i shouldn't have to conduct a 'how to turn off the floodlights' lesson for each of them to use a switch.

its annoying.
This post was edited on 2/1/17 at 1:15 pm
Posted by bryso
Member since Dec 2006
27130 posts
Posted on 2/1/17 at 10:55 pm to
That $60 Lutron sounds better and better.


I want my "wake up" shortcut to turn on my living room TV to the news and have it turn off when I leave the house. How do I go about that? My first thought was a harmony remote but I don't think they work with wink
Posted by bbap
Baton Rouge, LA
Member since Feb 2006
96012 posts
Posted on 2/2/17 at 7:17 am to
A harmony remote won't do it but a harmony hub could.

My TV turns off when either i tell the google home its bedtime or my good night routine runs at a specific time.

I use smartthings but i'd be surprised if harmony wasnt compatible with wink.
This post was edited on 2/2/17 at 7:18 am
Posted by GreatBrandino
Somewhere
Member since Nov 2008
561 posts
Posted on 2/2/17 at 8:20 am to
The Harmony elite (I think) remote came with a hub, I cannot find how to connect the wink and harmony hub together. But, it connects to the Amazon Echo and that ties everything together. When I tell Alexa to turn on the living room the TV, surround sound and lights come on. You can even set the channel you want the TV to turn to.
This post was edited on 2/2/17 at 8:22 am
Posted by bbap
Baton Rouge, LA
Member since Feb 2006
96012 posts
Posted on 2/2/17 at 8:40 am to
Yeah i have it to where i can do everything by voice now. Hell i can turn on the closed caption by voice. It's a great tool.
Posted by CarRamrod
Spurbury, VT
Member since Dec 2006
57438 posts
Posted on 2/2/17 at 9:12 am to
quote:

That $60 Lutron sounds better and better.
buy lutron on ebay. best price is 42.99 shipped. but everything recent has be in the upper 40 range.
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