I am contemplating - but that means another hub in the house.....mmmm

Just looking for some advice on what options there are for well-priced Zigbee (or Z-Wave) 'smart plugs' (as well as light switches and bulbs) that are directly compatible with the SmartThings hub. 

I had been looking at Tuya-based plugs given they're one of the more affordable Zigbee-based options, but reading more I understand that these only connect to the SmartThings hub via integration with one of the Tuya apps, as opposed to a direct connection. My intention in buying the hub was to slowly transition our many wifi-based 'smart' things to be locally controlled (primarily for speed and solid connectivity), but I'm struggling to find the most suitable devices.

Thanks for any tips.

Aeotec is the way to go, if you can find them.  They're the most reliable devices I've used with my (original) Smartthings hub.  I've tried all sorts of brands and protocols, and yes some will work natively and some with workarounds, but I live within the Aeotec world as much as possible given the simplicity and compatibility.  

jonathan18:

 

Just looking for some advice on what options there are for well-priced Zigbee (or Z-Wave) 'smart plugs' (as well as light switches and bulbs) that are directly compatible with the SmartThings hub. 

 

I had been looking at Tuya-based plugs given they're one of the more affordable Zigbee-based options, but reading more I understand that these only connect to the SmartThings hub via integration with one of the Tuya apps, as opposed to a direct connection. My intention in buying the hub was to slowly transition our many wifi-based 'smart' things to be locally controlled (primarily for speed and solid connectivity), but I'm struggling to find the most suitable devices.

 

Thanks for any tips.

 

Are you using Home assistant? there is an integration called tuya local where you can control tuya wifi devices locally and dont need to go through the app.

https://www.athom.tech/blank-1/esphome-au-plug these should also work locally unless you looking for something specifically that will work with your hub?

Silvrav:

 

Are you using Home assistant?

 

It's a Smartthings thread...

Silvrav:

 

Are you using Home assistant? there is an integration called tuya local where you can control tuya wifi devices locally and dont need to go through the app.

 

Not at this stage, but I am thinking about it.

Many of the existing wifi devices we have are Tuya compatible (I think all bar a number of Mi bulbs), so I guess an alternative to replacing these with Zigbee/Z-Wave devices that work directly to the SmartThings hub is to not bother with the hub and go down the HA route, even though I imagine this will be a decent amount of work to set up. (Yep, this is potentially off-topic, but would help me make the call as to whether to bother using the SmartThings hub; happy to onsell it if it won't be useful.)

cshaun:

 

Just had a quick look out of interest for Home Assistant integration.

The API is via cloud, not local, so need an active internet connection. So not of interest to me.

"Integration of this device happens via the cloud and requires an active internet connection. Home Assistant will be notified as soon as a new state is available."

 

V2 used 1.4 watts, I assume pretty similar for V3.

 

Just trying to work out what this means in practice. Does this mean the hub pushes every local (i.e. Zigbee/zwave) device update out to Samsung's cloud and from there into Home Assistant?

I'd love to add Zwave to my install for $20 (the Aoetec USB stick is around $100) but that does seem far from ideal.

I'm about to set up Home Assistant at my place - any advantages of having this unit as well?