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Posted on 9/12/18 at 8:11 am to ZoneLiftGMC
quote:
Locks - Schlage & Kwikset
Lights - Philips Hue, Sengled, Sylvania, GE Smart Switches
Temp Control - Nest & Ecobee
Garage door controlers - Linear & GoControl
Television/media - Harmony Hub Home
Security - Abode, Simplisafe, Nest, Ring
Home Audio - Sonos
I have the bolded options.
For the garage, I just have a Chamberlain garage door opener and I use their MyQ app. The only bad thing about that is when the Wifi goes out, I have to completely reset it.
For the light switches, my electrician recommended Lutron Caseta. I just got them in yesterday so I can't comment on them yet.
For Audio, I got the Bose SoundTouch 300 Wireless Soundbar System.
I use the Samsung Smartthings hub and the Echo Show.
I also have the Ring Pro doorbell -- BEST $200 I'VE EVER SPENT!
This post was edited on 9/12/18 at 11:37 am
Posted on 9/13/18 at 12:40 pm to MMauler
quote:
alarm
Look into konnected for an alarm if you have an old wired system. Its basically plug/play replacement of your current alarm board and connects to Smartthings. You can use the free smarthome monitor to monitor your home, and they have a new add-on for professional monitoring for just 10$/month.
I've been very satisfied thus far.
Posted on 9/15/18 at 2:58 pm to CAD703X
[/img] This is the garage door opener. Will it work with smart things? I see lift master has a hub as well. Will I need that too?
EDIT: seems I don’t need a hub but I’m not excited about what I’ve read so far regarding integration with either wink or Smart Things.
This post was edited on 9/15/18 at 8:20 pm
Posted on 9/16/18 at 8:31 am to CAD703X
quote:
Smartthings
Is there a quick comparison on Smart things VS Wink? Best applications for both?
Posted on 10/11/18 at 9:15 pm to CAD703X
quote:
no thanks, i'll stick with $50 lutron switches and a few hue bulbs.
Question.
I have a Nvidia Shield I just bought and could get the Smartthings dongle.
However, Leviton switches use Wifi and therefore don't need a bridge.
So there are two options: Get the Smartthings dongle and go all in with compatible devices.
OR
Buy devices that don't depend on bridges and can link with Google/Alaexa whatever directly.
Pros and cons?
This post was edited on 10/12/18 at 9:16 am
Posted on 10/12/18 at 7:36 am to Teddy Ruxpin
quote:
However, Levitron switches use Wifi and therefore don't need a bridge.
i have about 10 leviton switches and they are all zwave. can you post the switch model you're talking about?
Posted on 10/12/18 at 9:11 am to CAD703X
Leviton Decora Techhive Review
Thanks for checking this out.
Thanks for checking this out.
This post was edited on 10/12/18 at 9:16 am
Posted on 10/12/18 at 9:22 am to Teddy Ruxpin
quote:
Pros and cons?
"Hub/Bridge" zwave/zigbee Radio Pros
- local control means switches can respond instantly as opposed to a lag while the command passes from cloud to cloud before it gets back to your house to change the device state and also works even if your broadband connection is down
- zwave/zigbee have built-in meshing capabilities meaning you dont really have to worry about a switch being too far away from the hub because any device that uses that protocol can pass the signal along until it reaches the targe device
- there are thousands and thousands of zwave & zigbee products meaning you have lots to choose from
- no dependency on a poorly designed app or a poor API (the only way a wifi device can communicate with your shield) or lack of alexa support if you use voice commands.
- typically much cheaper than a full blown wifi device..you can pick up dimmable zigbee candelabra bulbs & A19 bulbs from IKEA for like $6 each
- much better battery life for door locks, sensors, etc. WIFI is an enormous energy-drag and is not designed for battery-operated devices. i have zwave sensors used on doors that open 50x a day for the last 3 years that i have yet to replace the battery on.
WIFI Pros
- easier for newbies. no hub, no pairing, no complicated zwave exclude/include/network reset, etc. required
- works great for hard-wired devices
- no hub required; no worries your favorite hub (wink COUGH) is going to go out of business because they don't know how to market it.
- most generally come with an open API and support Alexa so you can enjoy using voice control.
This post was edited on 10/12/18 at 9:23 am
Posted on 10/12/18 at 11:46 am to CAD703X
Thanks for the detailed post. 
Posted on 10/17/18 at 2:38 pm to CAD703X
Alright Cad, I'm going in circles here.
Looks like Lutron is the most dependable and will integrate with Smartthings, but uses it's own tech and bridge (no z-wave).
I feel like all I see is a bunch of complaining about Leviton/GE etc zwave switches being unreliable.
So, what's the fix here? Go Lutron and have the reliability, then for something like a zwave garage door opener use a Zwave plug to extend the network if necessary since I won't have switches working as repeaters...
OR
The whole reliability of these other z wave switches is overblown?
Thanks again
Looks like Lutron is the most dependable and will integrate with Smartthings, but uses it's own tech and bridge (no z-wave).
I feel like all I see is a bunch of complaining about Leviton/GE etc zwave switches being unreliable.
So, what's the fix here? Go Lutron and have the reliability, then for something like a zwave garage door opener use a Zwave plug to extend the network if necessary since I won't have switches working as repeaters...
OR
The whole reliability of these other z wave switches is overblown?
Thanks again
This post was edited on 10/17/18 at 2:39 pm
Posted on 10/17/18 at 3:17 pm to Teddy Ruxpin
Id hold off on buying any GE stuff for a lil while.
GE has been trying to sell its lighting business for a while. Who knows if the new owners will keep their stuff the same or make it obsolete.
GE has been trying to sell its lighting business for a while. Who knows if the new owners will keep their stuff the same or make it obsolete.
Posted on 10/17/18 at 4:41 pm to kengel2
Thanks for the heads up.
I'm thinking I'll go with Lutron and pay for performance. Having a smart home where I'm replacing switches all the time would suck. Having another hub isn't ideal but I'll survive. And if I need Z wave to reach some other device I can buy a cheap plug to repeat the signal if so from what I can tell.
I'm thinking I'll go with Lutron and pay for performance. Having a smart home where I'm replacing switches all the time would suck. Having another hub isn't ideal but I'll survive. And if I need Z wave to reach some other device I can buy a cheap plug to repeat the signal if so from what I can tell.
Posted on 10/17/18 at 4:48 pm to Teddy Ruxpin
quote:
I'm thinking I'll go with Lutron and pay for performance.
It’s hands down the best. But if you plan on ever having more than 50 devices go with RA2 Select not Caseta.
Posted on 10/17/18 at 5:13 pm to TigerWise
Good to know.
My house is about 2,750 square feet, so the 2,500 range of Caseta should work as I assume that's radiating out 2,500 feet in all directions from the hub.
If I'm just doing light switches what are the odds you think?
I suppose I should do a walk through and count them up and any lamp/plug opportunities that could arise.
ETA: I suppose outdoor lighting could play into it as well.
My house is about 2,750 square feet, so the 2,500 range of Caseta should work as I assume that's radiating out 2,500 feet in all directions from the hub.
If I'm just doing light switches what are the odds you think?
I suppose I should do a walk through and count them up and any lamp/plug opportunities that could arise.
ETA: I suppose outdoor lighting could play into it as well.
This post was edited on 10/17/18 at 5:15 pm
Posted on 10/17/18 at 5:21 pm to Teddy Ruxpin
The smart bridge counts as a device too
Posted on 10/17/18 at 5:22 pm to TigerWise
quote:
The smart bridge counts as a device too
Gotcha. Do you use RA2 Select?
Seems like it's a little more work to find the devices for purchase compared to Caseta.
I counted 45 switches in the house and 6 lamps. Not all switches will need to be done so I think I'm in a good spot.
This post was edited on 10/17/18 at 8:47 pm
Posted on 10/17/18 at 9:55 pm to Teddy Ruxpin
quote:
Seems like it's a little more work to find the devices for purchase compared to Caseta.
Yeah. I only brought it up just to make you aware of the device limits. If you do a couple devices first and it’s like crack you could easily start changing everything in your home gradually. You don’t want to hit that limit and still want more. Better to step up from the beginning.
Posted on 10/18/18 at 9:07 am to TigerWise
I went out to buy a lutron Caseta hub and switch last night.
Now I have control of my lights which didn't previously have a dimmer. I'm going to add a fan control soon. I'll probably total out around 10 devices, but this stuff does get quite addictive quickly.
Now I have control of my lights which didn't previously have a dimmer. I'm going to add a fan control soon. I'll probably total out around 10 devices, but this stuff does get quite addictive quickly.
Posted on 10/19/18 at 12:30 am to Hopeful Doc
I went ahead and bought a starter kit off eBay for $58. Probably my first eBay purchase in many years, but with the cost of these things it'll be nice if I can go this route.
Want to test the one and go from there.
Want to test the one and go from there.
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