This may not be the right place for this message, but if anyone has any contacts with Santa or at the device vendors like GE/Jasco it would be nice to get the message across along as whatever other devices people have thought of. I’m going through my house systematically replacing wall switches and outlets with smart devices. (and yes I’ve put them in on their support pages), but the more the merrier.
Here is what I’m finding.
Simple request for GE here, I need a switch for a fan in a toggle format (not paddle). Should just be replacing the face plate.
Smart CFGI outlet.
Smart outlet with USB ports for charging Phones, tablets, etc.
Color lights that remember the last state they were in, (not just a default state). I know they thing this is a safety issue. Personally I don’t see it.
smart lights in various bases. half of the fans in my house want those little candelabra lights instead of the standard size light bulbs.
smart motion sensor lights. I have lights in my pantry and laundry room on motion sensor switches. It would be nice if those were smart switches so I could put them additional places and get the benefit of a motion sensor if for no other reason that to show occupancy.
smart outdoor flood lights so that I can let HA or my hub of choice decide what to do with them. There are times when we are outside having a cold one watching the stars that we don’t want the flood lights to come on just because one of the dogs ran by.
Other than that, I’m looking for that killer app for Alexa. The smart home integration is great, but it still has a way to go when it comes to importing items and letting you manage what items you want and which ones you don’t want Alexa to control. The flash briefing is nice, but it isn’t really what I’m looking for. Most of the other stuff for Alexa just seems to be games or parlor tricks.
I JUST bought these adapters and they work well. I have a candelarba sconce outside in front of the house and used these adapters to put in a standard a19 Hue light. Works great. No issues AT ALL.
how much do they add to the height of the light? I can see the devices look like they are about 2 inches tall, but part of that is in the current base, so is it like an inch taller than normal?
I don’t have mine handy to measure. They didn’t work for me, so I gave them away. I was trying to fit a Hue into a wall sconce. The adapter added a bit of height, but the bigger bulb was the main problem in my case.
I went out to Amazon and looked these up. I tend to start reading at the 1 start reviews and go up. The 1 star reviews tend to fall into one of three categories.
I didn’t know what I was buying and got the wrong thing and I’m upset because I’m stupid
Shipping and packaging issues which aren’t the fault of the product
Real issues that should be a red flag to buying the item.
With these, a significant number of the 1 start reviews were about the tendency of these items to short out due to what they describe as a manufacturing flaw. So I think I’ll stay away from these.
Another couple of items for my list. I have to re-wire some bedside lamps for my wife this weekend. One turns on with a push switch in the light socket, the other uses a rotating switch in the light socket. It sure would be nice if there were a smart replacement for these. There are inserts that go between the light and the existing lamp socket, they allow for turning on/off the light from your phone/tablet. But its much more natural to reach up and push the button like we’ve been doing ever since we were born, than to pick up your phone to turn off the light. So I either want an insert with a way of physically turning off the light, or more ideally a lamp socket that can be replaced that has z-wave built in.
They honestly seem pretty well constructed. There aren’t really any moving parts… it’s just a screw base conducting electricity to another screw base.
Like @ih8gates said though, the biggest hurdle is the circumference of the new A19 bulb in sconces since they typically have a bar in the center of the cavity that can make the bulb go crooked. Mine was a big sconce though so it worked well for me.
Another issue is people trying to add incandescent A19 lights into the Candelabra socket and drawing WAY too much voltage. Not an issue for the efficient Hue lights.
