State of smart lighting in 2022?

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phrozenpenguin

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#298749 12-Jul-2022 23:13

Looking for some advice around what I have missed below, or experiences, in relation to smart lighting or switching that is legit in NZ and relevant in 2022.

By way of background we have a recent build, all 90mm LED downlights, accessible roofspace (generally) and Legrand Excel Life switch plates etc. I've run Home Assistant for years but haven't had time to tinker recently so am woefully out of date....so not keen for too much DIY. We are an Apple household so things working through Apple Home is important.

Looking for a combination of; dimming lights, colour lights, general control via Home Automation e.g. on when movement etc. Some related thoughts / questions:

- is Phillips Hue still(?) well regarded? I tested out some white downlights and they were fairly dim (500 odd lumens) compared to what I am used to. Now testing out some of their colour ones that claim 700 odd lumens.
- the Stitchy lights that tie in with Hue seem inexpensive if the dimming works (https://melec.co.nz) but not many seem to be available from NZ store.
- is Z-Wave still a thing? If so reccomended control? Home Assistant does not seem a solid choice for this as in my short time of experimentation they totally changed the Z-wave implementation and it seemed a bit of a mess.
- seems a bit of buz about wifi "shelly" devices. Are these now legal in NZ? Can they work with Apple home reliably?
- or e.g. to dim a bank of 4 LED lights, should I "just" get the standard non-smart Legrand dimmer?
- what am I missing?

Thanks for any input.

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1097 posts

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#2941402 13-Jul-2022 10:14

I'm not a fan of the Shelly dimmers, I found my lights significantly more flickery than without the Shelly, even if running at full brightness. But, I'd probably use them in rooms I didn't care about so much or with a whole lot of lights on one circuit.

I can recommend the Hue White Ambience downlights, being able to have the bulbs a warmer colour when they're dim is much more like dimming incandescent bulbs. I've also found it surprisingly useful to be able to control each light individually, have some of the lights on when watching TV but not all for example. Can pick them up for a reasonable price from Amazon AU from time to time. It's nice to have the HomeKit integration but also be able to control from Home Assistant.

I'd love to know if there are any other options for individually addressable, colour tunable downlights in NZ such as DALi or DMX based that work out more cost effective than the Hue.

phrozenpenguin

840 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2941992 14-Jul-2022 20:03

Thanks for the info.

Yes we are testing out Hue at the moment, another couple of bulbs just arrived and also the hub. Also would be interested in other options, but the few I have seen all seem to be "no-name" branded and very generic, with poor app etc. I think I would rather pay the premium for something supported (hopefully over the longer term).

gehenna

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#2941995 14-Jul-2022 20:11

I am mostly with Hue but mainly because I took advantage of some sales over the years. It is the most seamless of the networks I run at home. I also have some Yeelight LED strips and desk lamps, etc. It's all controlled from my Smartthings app, including Hue lights.

phrozenpenguin

840 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2941998 14-Jul-2022 20:20

I also have some Yeelight strips and desk and bedside lights, which we have been pleased with. We have had some of their bulbs as well, but don't think they do an LED downlight.

phrozenpenguin

840 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3016790 4-Jan-2023 12:59

An update on this. We invested in various Hue bulbs and have been pleased with them - lighting, usability, reliability. The colour downlight are brighter than the white only ones (in white mode) so we ended up swopping some out.

davidcole

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#3016942 4-Jan-2023 18:17

Zwave via home assistant is fine. I used to think openHAB had the edge. But Zwave2mqtt is quite good and very reliable.

If adding new relays now I’d be using a shellies instead. Though a houseful might stress out a WiFi network? Another advantage of zwave is it’s own network

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phrozenpenguin

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#3017036 4-Jan-2023 20:37

davidcole: Zwave via home assistant is fine. I used to think openHAB had the edge. But Zwave2mqtt is quite good and very reliable.

If adding new relays now I’d be using a shellies instead. Though a houseful might stress out a WiFi network? Another advantage of zwave is it’s own network

My Wave experience with Home Assistant (a while back) was not great, and then they changed the setup resulting in a new UI and having to reset all devices, which was a real pain and I only had a few devices. To be honest, I'm pretty happy to be reducing reliance on Home Assistant as I don't really have the time to maintain it any more.

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xor

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#3036480 14-Feb-2023 17:15

Would've thought you'd want to wait for a matter system using thread for connectivity

https://matter-smarthome.de/en/overview-products-compatible-with-matter/

richms

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#3036542 14-Feb-2023 18:18

xor: Would've thought you'd want to wait for a matter system using thread for connectivity https://matter-smarthome.de/en/overview-products-compatible-with-matter/

Not really, its unproven and if you look at zigbee that didnt get non crap till recently. Also you have apple doing their monopolistic BS if you want to involve an iphone in your matter you better hope that your devices are cool with multiple integrations if you have people on other platforms in the house.

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Handle9

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#3036575 14-Feb-2023 19:17

xor: Would've thought you'd want to wait for a matter system using thread for connectivity https://matter-smarthome.de/en/overview-products-compatible-with-matter/

Why would you wait? Matter doesn't exist at the lightbulb level for most devices, it'll be thread. Thread and Zigbee are functionally similar and it's going to take a while for thread to be work out the kinks.

Pretty much all hubs are going to be matter compliant so it won't make any real difference. For example the Ikea Dirigera hub is matter compliant but uses Zigbee for the bulbs and switches.

Mehrts

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#3036704 14-Feb-2023 22:17

For an Apple household, there are Zigbee hubs that convert to Homekit available. Currently I can only find them on Aliexpress, but there have been links to Amazon available in the past.

They seem like a legit product that allows for a much broader range of cheaper options via Zigbee support.

Handle9

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#3036705 14-Feb-2023 22:20

Mehrts:

For an Apple household, there are Zigbee hubs that convert to Homekit available. Currently I can only find them on Aliexpress, but there have been links to Amazon available in the past.

They seem like a legit product that allows for a much broader range of cheaper options via Zigbee support.

I use home assistant for this, it's very straightforward.

gehenna

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#3036722 15-Feb-2023 08:06

Used to be a service called Homebridge too, that linked up various ecosystems with Homekit. If you have a server it's easy enough, just run it in a container, but otherwise it might be a bit more complicated to set up. Been a while...

gehenna

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#3036724 15-Feb-2023 08:07

richms:

xor: Would've thought you'd want to wait for a matter system using thread for connectivity https://matter-smarthome.de/en/overview-products-compatible-with-matter/

Not really, its unproven and if you look at zigbee that didnt get non crap till recently. Also you have apple doing their monopolistic BS if you want to involve an iphone in your matter you better hope that your devices are cool with multiple integrations if you have people on other platforms in the house.

It's only just come out, of course it'll take a while for the players to adopt it fully. Then you've got to update all your firmware on your devices to be compatible....it's a bit of work but the end result will be awesome I expect.

Handle9

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#3036725 15-Feb-2023 08:10

gehenna:
Used to be a service called Homebridge too, that linked up various ecosystems with Homekit. If you have a server it's easy enough, just run it in a container, but otherwise it might be a bit more complicated to set up. Been a while...

It’s ok but it isn’t getting the same level of development as home assistant.

Some of the integrations in homebridge are better but generally home assistant is much easier now.

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