Best zigbee gateway?

I am new to zigbee, and want the the best futureproof and cross-brand solution. Since I also run my Home-Assistant on a virtual server a network-based gateway are prefferd.

For what I see a RaspBee add-on module for a Pi might be the best solution:
https://www.dresden-elektronik.de/funktechnik/products/boards/development-boards/raspbee/description/?L=1
And run the software “deCONZ” on this.

Am I right, or is there a better way? I have a unused pi I can use for this.

Maybe take a look at https://github.com/Koenkk/zigbee2mqtt

Hi there!

Yes, it is either deCONZ or zigbee2mqtt.

If you go with deCONZ and want to be really future proof you should get the Conbee stick.

Thanks.
I assume the Conbee stick can be used with both deCONZ and zigbee2mqtt?

Then I will connect the stick to a Pi.

If you have plan to also add zwave to your installation, you could considered GoControl HUSBZB-1 dongle. Otherwise I also zigbee2mqtt on a dongle CC2531 and it works very well except the range.

Well, I run z-wave now

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Ok so go with zigbee2mqtt

I started with zigbee2mqtt and found the range limited and was not very responsive. So I got the deCondz usb stick and never looked back well worth the money.

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No there is no support in zigbee2mqtt for Conbee

It’s not the add on that restricted your range. It will be the device you used.

I started with Zigate. It was running fine most of the times, however it was lacking support. All of the sudden I decided to buy Deconz dongle. It was pricey but at the end of the day totally worth it. I was surprised how easy it is to add new devices and integrate them into Home Assistant. And compared to Zigate it is very fast and stable. Totally worth it!

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What was the range you were getting with the cc2531?

The cc2531 Zigbee works on a mesh system and i only have a small house and the last bulb in my house is about 5 metres away, It worked 30% of the time.

How far away was your closest bulb?

For everything after that the signal should have been boosted by your other devices.

I did find the cc2531 lacking big time with signal strength. I’ve now moved to a cc2530+rfx2402 dongle that uses an external antenna. This works flawlessly for my home.

Which dongle did you get, please? Any brand or model?

http://www.gban.cn/en/product_show.asp?id=43

Thanks. Appreciate it.

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I’m using a HUSBZB-1 with good luck so far. ZigBee is still not well standardized so I don’t know what might be considered future proof.

https://www.amazon.com/GoControl-CECOMINOD016164-HUSBZB-1-USB-Hub/dp/B01GJ826F8

EDIT: Since I wrote this I have moved to a conbee on native ZHA and an aeotec to separate my zigbee and z-wave devices and it has performed exceptionally.

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How do you setup the GoControl with Home Assistant? I don’t see a component for it