Zigbee n00b questions

Third party integrations
1

I am looking to get some Zigbee touch light switches and just looking at the best path to go down.

I have HA running on a PI, and would like to utilize the pi to its max advantage. My questions is, can I use the PI as a Zigbee hub to connect said light switch and future zigbee devices to? I am looking at a XBEE Pro S2B which can interface with the PI.

Im pretty new to this Zigbee stuff so, mainly just checking if it works on like some kind of open source standard or if it is very picky on using its own proprietary hardware.

Thanks in advance.

2

There are easier ways to use Zigbee then a XBEE Pro S2B, although I think it is supported by ZHA

Digi XBee Zigbee based radios (via the zigpy-xbee library for zigpy)

3

I run a lot of Zigbee devices, from several different manufacturers, using ZHA and a Zigbee USB hub (ā€œcoordinatorā€) in the RPi thatā€™s running HA.

Iā€™m finding this stuff just works, literally plug and play. Itā€™s much simpler than WiFi. No problems with vendors requiring cloud access or doing OTA updates which break the integration with HA. No need to set up static routes or worry about WiFi coverage. Virtually all mains-powered Zigbee devices work as routers and they build their own mesh network so itā€™s easy to cover your whole house. I even have some devices out at the far end of the barn.

That said, I have pretty simple needs; sensors, switches and plugs. Iā€™ve seen threads here about some Zigbee color-changing or dimming bulbs. I donā€™t use them so I canā€™t tell you whether thereā€™s a problem with those devices or itā€™s pilot error. Just do a search here to see if a product youā€™re interested in has given other users problems. And as mentioned above, there different ways to set up a Zigbee environment. Iā€™ll skip over threads where someone is reporting a problem with a Zigbee environment thatā€™s more complicated than mine (plain olā€™ ZHA and a USB coordinator.) Iā€™ve learned with HA itā€™s always best to keep things as simple as possible!

4

if you have a device in mind, you can check here :

if it is supported by your integration.

5

Thanks for the reply, could you share you setup. What device are you using as the Zigbee receiver?

Thanks for the info guys, very helpful.

6

Iā€™m a n00b as well so take this with a grain of salt, but I bought the Nortek HUSBZB-1 for $50, plugged it into my Raspberry Pi, and, like CaptTom said, it just worked with HA. I chose that one because it does both Zigbee and Z-Wave but there are other Zigbee-only USB sticks like the Phoscon ConBee II and ZigStar Stick that are also popular and well-supported.

1 Like
7

Same as @jrunning. I bought the HUSBZB-1, fired up ZHA and found it so reliable and simple that I never looked back. I know there are newer devices, but all I can offer is my own experience.

8

Great, thanks guys. Ill order one now and wait 2 years for it to ship. Yay!

9
10

wow thats cheap. Is this legit?

11

Yes. I have one of these. Excellent dongle.

See :