Cavius RF smoke alarms end-of-life'd?

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neb

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#270576 15-May-2020 19:40

Based on recommendations here I've been trying to get two of the 65mm RF smoke alarms but it seems that every place that stocks them is out of stock, and someone at the local Mitre 10 told me it had a stock code that indicated it was discontinued. It's still listed on the main Cavius page but not on the NZ distributor, does anyone know if the 65mm been discontinued, or is it just in short stock in NZ at the moment? The alternative 78mm one is a lot more expensive for what seems to be the same thing.

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#2485334 17-May-2020 20:45

This one: https://www.mitre10.co.nz/shop/cavius-photoelectric-smoke-alarm-65mm-white/p/305294

If so, some mitre10 stores seem to have it in stock. (Doesnt look like delivery is an option though sorry)

neb

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#2485337 17-May-2020 20:50

wazzageek: This one: https://www.mitre10.co.nz/shop/cavius-photoelectric-smoke-alarm-65mm-white/p/305294

If so, some mitre10 stores seem to have it in stock. (Doesnt look like delivery is an option though sorry)

It's leftover stock, that's the one where I'm trying to find out of it's discontinued or not, i.e. whether it's safe to buy a few remaining ones I can find.

wazzageek

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#2485340 17-May-2020 20:58

Sorry didnt read properly. The cavius.com.au seems to make mention of the 78mm being the new tech, and only listing the 65mm in the heat detector - nit sure otherwise. I suspect they’re no longer shipping/importing them here to Australasia. (5y battery vs 10yr)

might need improve my google fu ...

michaelmurfy

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#2485344 17-May-2020 21:05

If you can't find these smoke alarms I seriously recommend the Nest Protect Smoke alarms also - this is what I have in our house.

Yes, they're expensive (how I see it is you can't put a price on human life) but they're also the top rated smoke alarms from the NZ Fire Service. They create a mesh network with one another (like the Cavius) and connect to WiFi too. They warn you verbally before the smoke alarm sounds to give you the chance to hush them, they test themselves, provide a nightlight at night (when you walk under them they light up) and also monitor more than Smoke (C02 + Carbon Monoxide).

The thing that was the game changer for me was if I burn something in the kitchen I get an alert "Smoke detected in the kitchen" and can simply jump up and press the button on the unit (or grab my phone) to prevent all the smoke alarms in the house from screaming. As we have indoor cats also, it means they're less freaked out by such events.

https://store.google.com/nz/product/nest_protect_2nd_gen (can be purchased from the likes of Noel Leemings + PBTech also).

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neb

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#2485371 17-May-2020 23:40

michaelmurfy:
If you can't find these smoke alarms I seriously recommend the Nest Protect Smoke alarms also - this is what I have in our house.

It's not just the high price that makes the Nest a bit of a no-no, it's the fact that Google can cripple or orphan it at any moment with little to no notice like they have with so many other of their products. It's just too risky buying a Google product that they could pull out from under you at any minute, at least with Cavius they'll still work as in-house networked smoke alarms even in the unlikely event that Cavius' external service shuts down.

michaelmurfy

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#2485372 17-May-2020 23:50

Given it is a safety device I highly doubt that Google will pull the plug on this anytime soon - their Nest product line is still very strong. Yes, you have a good point but if I assumed Google would deactivate my 5 smoke alarms with little warning, I wouldn't have bought them. I'd say if they were to deactivate them, they'll do so by just simply not issuing any more units and letting the current ones expire (as being a safety device, they're only good for 10 years).

They also still work offline totally fine. The only time they connect to the WiFi is when an alarm goes off, or when a self check happens. Don't rule it out because of this.

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fearandloathing

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#2485401 18-May-2020 09:06

neb:
It's leftover stock, that's the one where I'm trying to find out of it's discontinued or not, i.e. whether it's safe to buy a few remaining ones I can find.

I wonder if the lack of stock relates that a recessed mount is available. Maybe a new SKU is coming that includes the recessed mount.

fearandloathing

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#2485412 18-May-2020 09:17

That said their website only shows the wireless 10 year battery life model, it probably is discontinued.

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#2485478 18-May-2020 10:18

We really like our Nest units too. Would highly recommend but understand they aren't in every households budget right now.

I like the monthly reports and much prefer the spoken alarm to screech which I am sensitive to.

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#2485516 18-May-2020 11:45

fearandloathing: That said their website only shows the wireless 10 year battery life model, it probably is discontinued.

Just got a reply from the NZ Cavius dealer, they're EOL'd. A somewhat local M10 apparently still has a few in stock, will see if I can grab them later today, their web site stock status doesn't match the actual in-store stock status as I found out at the more local M10.

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#2485563 18-May-2020 13:01

I heard back from them as well to say that the https://www.mitre10.co.nz/shop/cavius-10-year-photoelectric-smoke-alarm-78mm-white/p/349295 ten-year smoke alarm is the replacement for the five-year smoke alarm.

They are also sending me free recess kits for my existing five-year smoke and heat alarms.

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neb

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#2485565 18-May-2020 13:05

fearandloathing:
I heard back from them as well to say that the https://www.mitre10.co.nz/shop/cavius-10-year-photoelectric-smoke-alarm-78mm-white/p/349295 ten-year smoke alarm is the replacement for the five-year smoke alarm.

Yeah, problem is that 78mm is a third more expensive than the 65mm, and more than twice the price if you use their price-match with Noel Leeming, so I'm getting what's left of the 65's. Also, if you read Consumer there are lots of complaints about ten-year alarms not getting anywhere near ten years of lifetime, so I'd prefer one where I can swap out a cheap CR123 to one that I have to throw away.

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#2485989 18-May-2020 22:54

You're a bad influence @michaelmurfy, just bought 6 nest protects to replace all existing detectors

Some of them are cavius' but I'm a sucker for smarts at the moment

Also like that they can double as a night light which will be useful for our 2yo daughter

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#2485992 18-May-2020 22:59

You can also purchase a Cavius gateway that plugs into the back of your switch or router and gives you smarts via their free app for all their new detectors. The app works great and performs self test and you can even add their wireless motion and window sensors for easy cheap security alarm system.

Do whatever you want to do man.

neb

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#2485998 18-May-2020 23:20

It may be easy but it sure ain't cheap, $200 for the Internet gateway and $100 for each smoke alarm once the small remaining stock of 65mm ones is sold out. And you can't use price match on the remaining 65mm ones to get them a bit cheaper, the Noel Leeming deal is online-but-not-online, click-and-collect from a store in Queenstown so it doesn't qualify for the price-match.

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