Smart switch/dimmer recommendations

Hardware
1

I am looking for smart switches / dimmers and wanted to see if anyone has some recommendations.
I prefer these to be of type ‘local push’ if not then I’m okay with ‘local pull’, not being dependent on account / internet is big plus.

I’m currently looking at Lutron Caseta and they seem good options but wanted to know few things:

  1. Is it must to create Lutron account?
  2. Is it must to use Lutron app?
  3. If yes to either or both of above, is it possible to use app / account only once for hub? Or do I need continuous use of account to use devices? Integration mentions ‘local push’ but also mentions account is needed to pull some info (like certificates)
2

You can go with zigbee, z-wave or wifi. Don’t know about Lutron. I use z-wave and shelly. You can also use sonoff. I will not start a flame war on which is best. There are +/- for all IOT devices. I like shelly because they are small, reliable and are versatile(24v to 240v). I have Z-wave because I came from a platform that was built for z-wave. I like z-wave switches/dimmers for N-way switches; not as fussy about wiring requirements as shelly. Zigbee works at 2.4Ghz same as wifi. May cause problems. Z-wave can be a PITA getting all things to talk together and they are more expensive. I have battery z-wave but communicates on a schedule and is not ‘live’ unless triggered or communicates on schedule.

Hope this helps with your decision

3

zwave is generally my first option (due to local access), however I’m planning to install about 15 dimmers and I’m not having good time with existing z wave network when it breaks (only 2 locks, thermostat and a repeater).

I’m bit hesitant on zigbee but using Lutron with hub sounds similar to using zigbee, I’ll have a bit of a look around for zigbee (matter)

Are you using shelly Wall switch for smart relays - Shelly Cloud with that?

4

What protocol are you wanting to use? Depending on the number of switches you need, Lutron could get real expensive, REAL fast…

5

I don’t really have protocol requirement.
Main requirement is: being able to access through home assistant without any cloud / internet involved.

I generally count expense towards one-time expense if things are robust I don’t mind spending once.
I’m considering trying Amazon.com with zigbee.

6

TP-Link Kasa have worked quite well for me. Require cloud app for setup and firmware patching (they don’t directly talk to the internet on their own for updates, you do it through the app) but once they are installed, HA can control them locally. Cheap, too, and look very similar to regular decora rocker switches.

They use 2.4ghz wifi

1 Like
7

No I don’t use the wall switch. I have installed shelly 1, shelly 1pm, shelly 2.5 and shelly motion sensors. 10 in total. I have a total of 89 z-wave devices about 50 powered and that adds repeaters at each powered device. Did you put your controller on a usb extension. If not this can really help. I have a 10’ to get it out from behind equipment.

8

Thanks.
I actually like z-wave powered devices as repeaters, that and local access is why I started with ZWave. I may try few solutions and see which works best.

9

To close the loop on this. I went with Amazon.com and have been using it for almost 8 months now, these have been working well.