Thinking about buying "Smart Home" kit

[poosemon]

Good afternoon,

I am thinking about starting to build up smart capability into things in the house, i.e a few plug sockets, doorbell, lightbulbs etc.

Just starting to research and a bit lost on which direction to head, seems to be a very crowded market ranging from very cheap to very expensive, slightly confusing as to what can used with what.

I am happy to do config myself, not tied to brand and not fussed with it working with Alexa etc as dont have one.

Doesn't need to be Apple style plug and play but no flexibility as happy to configure if a benefit too that. Also our house has no apple kit so needs to be Android compatible.

Would be interested to hear of other peoples choice of kit/setups and how reliable they find it is. Many thanks....

 

[fergie128]

We've got Hue bulbs and LED strips all over the house now, controlled with Hue switches, motion sensors or Echo's. Can't fault it really, easy to set up and works consistently. Might be cheaper options to Hue nowadays, but we both really do like it and it works. Haven't had any issues with them over the past year, very reliable stuff.

 

[bobbarley]

We started down the smart home route at the end of next year when we moved into our new house. I bought a Hive for and have that connected to my router for controlling the heating and hot water. I also have a Hive plug which I use for controlling a lamp in the master bedroom. We also have Phillips Hue which we use for the living room and bedroom lights.

We have everything set up and controlled using Alexa's which we have positioned in the kitchen, living room and master bedroom.

Really pleased with it overall! Can control using Alexa, my Samsung S8 or my wife's iPhone. Plus I can additionally control the lights using my Gear S3 watch.

 

[mushtafa]

Currently looking into this myself. I think I'm going to get a Smartthings hub and use smart switches rather than smart bulbs. (The Smartthings starter kit is currently £140 on Amazon).

I need a single smart bulb for the bedroom to help me get up on the mornings, but still can't decide between Philips Hue and LIFX. I'm swaying towards LIFX at the moment though.

 

[Scottland]

I think before you take the plunge, decide what it is you want it to do for you. I opted for Nest over Hive as the learning capabilities seemed better suited for me (on paper at least). I have Hue bulbs in the lounge and the office and rate them, but they are expensive.

If I were looking to buy lighting again, I'd take a serious look at the Ikea Tradfri range as they're much cheaper and they seem to be willing to make them compatible with most things - they work with the Hue bridge as well as HomeKit and soon Google Assistant. The only advantage Hue has I think is the API which you can write things for yourself.

 

[GeX]

If I were looking to buy lighting again, I'd take a serious look at the Ikea Tradfri range as they're much cheaper and they seem to be willing to make them compatible with most things - they work with the Hue bridge as well as HomeKit and soon Google Assistant. The only advantage Hue has I think is the API which you can write things for yourself.

Worth mentioning here that they should all be using the Zigbee standard. The only reason the Ikea have publicly worked on making them compatible with Hue is that they weren't following the standard properly and so the Hue bridge wouldn't pair with them.

 

[poosemon]

Cheers for the suggestions, will look in the direction of Hue/Ikea to start off with!

 

[bobbarley]

The IKEA stuff looks quite good!

 

[mushtafa]

I've watched a lot of reviews and comparison videos and have opted for LIFX smart bulbs over hue. I only needed two smart bulbs, the rest of my lights will be controlled with switches/relays.

Amazon have a small sale on home automation stuff this week.

 

[ChroniC]

I have done this same. Looked into the abyss and now have a full setup planned with a Raspberry pi and Openhab2 software connecting a multitude of devices. Haven't obviously encountered the difficulties of coding the necessary connections between the devices yet as I haven't bought anything so I won't say it's easy. It doesn't look like it is....
Take a look at zwave, lightwave and IFTTT devices. For instance if your not bothered about colour changes, standard leds can be controlled by zwave dimmer switches for 40quid per switch.
You can add some colour with led strips around objects cabinets, backs of TV etc.
The obvious advantage to this is the level of communication between devices from openhab and the fact the Raspberry is the only hub you need rather than cluttering your house with different standards.

 

[CaptainComedy]

I am using a raspberry pi 3 and home assistant, works great - home-assistant.io/demo has a demo

 

[valve90210]

I am using a raspberry pi 3 and home assistant, works great - home-assistant.io/demo has a demo

What kit are you using it with for lights/dimmers etc etc and how does it control them, do you need any extra hardware? I'd love to see a write up of what you have and how it all works...

 

[poosemon]

Done some further reading today, thinking I will get the Philips hue starter kit and the add the ikea bulbs into it as they are now compatible.

Just need to read up to make sure when buying the IKEA ones that they are compatible out the box rather then having to use the gateway to upgrade their firmware....

Home Assistant does look interesting to bring all these devices together though, i.e Hue Bridge, Kodi, Sonos etc

 

[bobbarley]

Done some further reading today, thinking I will get the Philips hue starter kit and the add the ikea bulbs into it as they are now compatible.

Just need to read up to make sure when buying the IKEA ones that they are compatible out the box rather then having to use the gateway to upgrade their firmware....

Home Assistant does look interesting to bring all these devices together though, i.e Hue Bridge, Kodi, Sonos etc

I'd be interested to know if you need the IKEA hub, or whether they work straight of the Hue hub.

 

[Dwaindibbly]

So many options, its a minefield! I'll be following this thread for all your feedback

 

[ChroniC]

What kit are you using it with for lights/dimmers etc etc and how does it control them, do you need any extra hardware? I'd love to see a write up of what you have and how it all works...

Depends on what technology/standard the device runs. Wifi and IFTTT run over a cloud service/router, Zwave and Lightwave require a usb stick reciever to send commands.

 

[CaptainComedy]

What kit are you using it with for lights/dimmers etc etc and how does it control them, do you need any extra hardware? I'd love to see a write up of what you have and how it all works...

I have a raspberry pi 3 connected wirelessly to the network, it automatically pics up your devices (however not all and probably more flexibility if you manually add due to grouping and templating)
Connected to this (for now) is:
- Yale Keyfree connected door lock
- Chromecast
- TV (HDMI CEC)

I'm waiting on the lightwave RF 2nd generation kit for all lights and sockets - don't bother with anything just yet because these babies will give full feedback on the components (status / power usage) and more, they will be a lot better than most of the sockets / switches.

Home assistant has templating - not tried openhab2 but the videos look nice (not mine):

There are also themes for it one of its limitations however is lack of multi user support so whoever needs access - gets full access.

 

[Glaucus]

I'm waiting on the lightwave RF 2nd generation kit for all lights and sockets - .

have you got any links to what is changing and improved/ i see its on sale 3 or october but doesn't say much about it.

 

[CaptainComedy]

From this thread: LightwaveRF just called

So the offer is on starter kits - it's only £20 off, here are the infographics from the email:






On a side note, the lights on the items are now changeable so you can change the colour or turn them off.
I am ordering a load tomorrow, total comes to £1100 that will guarantee delivery for the 3rd (release day)

unfortunately they don't have 3 way dimmers until early next year so that rules out my hall way and landing light. no biggie.

I also noticed the link has jumped in price by £40...

 

[robj20]

Can someone explain what this Samsung Smartthings does over say Alexa. Currently have Evohome and a couple of nest protects, but looking to add some cameras.