Hi - I’m just taking my first steps into Home Assistant, which I have running with Home Assistant OS on a Raspberry Pi 4 Model B (1GB RAM).
My biggest set of smart home devices prior to this were quite a few Philips Hue bulbs and associated hub.
I also have a SkyConnect dongle and have paired one of the bulbs directly using this as a test.
Is there any advantage to pairing directly to HA rather than going through the Philips Hue integration (which I have not activated yet)? Does it cause problems down the line if some are directly paired versus going via the Hue hub? I’m happy enough to add them all again to HA using Zigbee, but I’m wondering if there are feature differences between the two.
(My ultimate goal for lighting down the line is twofold: Firstly, I’d like to be able to use non-Hue bulbs where they have a form factor that better suits and also install Zigbee wall switches for fittings with many or small bulbs (e.g. kitchen cabinets). Secondly, I want to be able to push some lights into Homekit using HomeKit bridge (without worrying about whether they are directly HomeKit capable, as I already had some which are not), so my partner can just use the iOS app to control some things.)
Hello Jim,
I’ve been on a similar journey via Smarthings (rather than Hue) but I’ve used Hue bulbs direct to HA.
1st thing I learned is that each Zigbee network is isolated to the controller / hub, e.g if use a hub and pair devices they are in a network associated with that hub. Once in a network you need to use an integration between the hub and HA to access the devices.
2nd thing I learned is that the support for a device is dependent on the software in the hub to support it, so you can have a 3rd party lamp in Smarthings that it doesn’t understand fully e.g. on an off work but motion and sensitivity perhaps don’t.
3rd thing I learned is that there are some amazing people out there who create device handlers / blueprints and integrations which can help out a lot.
I’ve got a hue hub that I haven’t deployed yet because Hue isn’t in my future purchasing plans and the dimers work well with the lights under local control. What I’m looking to do next is try and pair the dimmers into HA or see if i can pair the bulbs back into HA and use them with local dimmers … not sure yet.
in summary, if you are really into IT and tech and want to fiddle about with stuff then you’ll probably get a reasonable result going direct into HA if you have the time to try and test stuff. If you want it to more or less just work then you’ll probably be best using the manufacturers hub and integrating to HA. I can see all my Smarthings devices in HA and control them from a single source.
In terms of 3rd party bulbs I have been pleased with INNR bulbs and Hue / Wiz bulbs so far in HA. I have just purchased a Sunricher 4 channel colour controller to test and it has NO integration directly available in HA although I successfully paired it and read events from it already this morning. The value of this story is that you need to check for integrations before you jump into a vendors products or be prepared to do a lot of script level investigating and programming to get good functionality.
Thank you, that’s all very helpful. I have a few Innr bulbs kicking around, so also good to know.
It seems it’s probably best for me to experiment with going via the hue bridge versus direct pairing and see what works best for me, while I still have the luxury of an experimentation phase (we’re between houses right now so I’m not sinking huge time into setting up where we are now with automations etc.)
A couple comments from reading your post as your start your Home Assistant adventures:
I would leave your Hue system running with the majority of your bulbs as you learn. As I have ‘learned’, number 1 priority in order to allow you to explore and learn is to keep a home state where your your ‘significant other’ can turn the lights on and off
Add the Home Assistant Hue integration, from my experience it is a solid add on for HA. Don’t get caught up in all the ‘yack yack’ going on currently about Hue requiring you to send all of your data to their cloud. Yes, moving your setup to as much 100% all local control is a goal you should keep, however there are many other priorities you have first as you get going with HA. At pace where you can judge trade offs, move some of your Hue hub based light to your new zigbee network and see how their operation and reliability is. IHMO, do NOT do a ‘rip and replace’, back to your #1 priority
It has been a long while since I ran my HA setup on a RPI 3 with 1 GB ram, but even with a RPI4, having only 1 GB ram might be a constraint for you advancing your software options. All the hype is around the RPI5, however a RPI4 with 8GB at a good price is a solid long term home automation server.
I do not have any first hand experience with the SkyConnect device, so take my comments with that proviso. That said, from my reading, I would ‘run not walk’ away from the SkyConnect device for a least a while. I use the TI26xx (and in past TI25xx ) based zigbee coordinator devices with very good success. I would invest in a TI26xx based device for your coordinator (put it on a USB2 NOT USB3 cable 0.5 to 1 meter away from your RPI.)
As you explore, you can have both the Hue based Zigbee system and the ZHA (or I would recommend the Zigbee2MQTT over the ZHA) system both running with your HA setup. I do this, it gives you the solid stability of the Hue closed garden devices, and allows you to add the very large universe of new (non walled) devices to Zigbee2MQTT or ZHA.
There are a couple options for exposing Zigbee (and HA in general) devices to HomeKit: HA’s HomeKit abilities, HomeBridge (I use this) and now the emerging Matter bridging (this is probably where you want to end up, however it is still birthing, so tread lightly).
Good hunting and much success in your Home Assistant adventures in 2024 and beyond!
