The Wink home automation thread

[poofyhairguy]

Well reading on Reddit and in the Google documentation there is no difference between the Ecobee controls with smartthings and the Nest controls on the home. So lock in doesn't exist! Let me know how it works for you, I might get two.

Thank you for the advice on bulbs, gonna go get a Cree connected today for a lamp as my official starting point.

A question on the Harmony part- so you have to make activities for Volume Up, Volume Down and Mute? What about everything off?

Thank you in advance, I am getting excited.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Well reading on Reddit and in the Google documentation there is no difference between the Ecobee controls with smartthings and the Nest controls on the home. So lock in doesn't exist! Let me know how it works for you, I might get two.

Thank you for the advice on bulbs, gonna go get a Cree connected today for a lamp as my official starting point.

A question on the Harmony part- so you have to make activities for Volume Up, Volume Down and Mute? What about everything off?

Thank you in advance, I am getting excited.

If you want to do voice control for those things, you have to make activities. However, I remembered something that I forgot to originally mention - I think that there is a special way you have to make those particular activities because by default, an activity will start by powering on devices and end with powering off. I'd consult the ST Community for more details on how to do that - I've seen a few people mention how they did it. For my part, I just use voice control for powering things on and off and use my tablets for controlling volume, channels, etc. In terms of voice control, here are some examples:

"Alexa, turn Netflix on." - this turns on my TV, receiver, ensures inputs on the TV and receiver are correct, and then launches Netflix on the Roku.

"Alexa, turn Netflix off." - this turns off my TV and receiver.

"Alexa, turn Office Netflix on." - this turns on my office TV, sets inputs, and then launches Netflix on my office Roku.

Once you get into these things, you will find it is very addicting. I think I have around 100 physical and virtual devices in my HA environment with about a 70/30 split on ST vs Wink and my wife is encouraging me to move more lights over to smart lights. I also recently (about a month ago) deployed Osram Lightify RGBW mini garden lights along our willow's flower bed and they're spectacular.

EDIT: Regarding the Ecobee, Yves Racine makes the best Ecobee app for SmartThings. I believe it is $30 but people swear by it. I believe it also integrates with Keen Smart Vents to form a whole-house climate control solution.

 

[daveloud]

Anyone experience an issue with a Cree bulb? Mine has been working fine for almost a year, came home last night and it was offline. Tried to re-add it, reset it four times, but it just won't link. Nothing changed from Sunday to Monday. My Hues drop all the time, but that is cured by a Hue hub reset. I also own one GELink bulb that never wanted to connect, but I had a GELink hub so I was able to monkey around it.

Not sure at this time whether to replace the bulb or go with a switch, as I use this bulb for the porch light. Thanks!

 

[poofyhairguy]

I am not using Wink but this seems like the smarthome thread so:

I bought two thermostats from Lowes this weekend after I learned that the Google Home doesn't do anything special for them vs say a Nest and the Lowes ones would easily run off batteries. They were easy to install and configure. No fancying learning of course but just having remote controls when away from the house was good enough.

So far the Google Home has been a big hit with the wife. She is using it to control lights and the thermostats but is so-so on the Smarthings app. Makes me glad I waited until I got a Google Home to get into all of this.

One interesting thing about the Google Home is just like Alexa it bleeps out curse words, but it is pretty easy to fool by leaving out letters (we named our upstairs thermostat the "fuctard AC" and it works fine). It is childish but my wife is getting great enjoyment out of it and her approval is 90% of the battle for me outfitting the rest of my house.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I still need to install my Ecobee. I also got a Wink 2 for $69.99 from Jet.com but I am thinking of eBaying it and maybe getting a VeraPlus to play with instead.

 

[poofyhairguy]

Yeah I saw the VeraPlus during Black Friday deal hunting. Any key advantage? The reviews say the software is crap.

I am still excited to hear about your Ecobee. I got these Lowes Thermostats so cheap and on one of them an air freshener ate the plastic after I got it so it's already ugly to my wife (long story).

The sensors are what makes the Ecobee seem awesome. I still doubt the whole learning and doing it better than you thing.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

VeraPlus is 100% local. The software is apparently still a work in progress and I think Zigbee support is still coming along, but it is supposed to be very fast and works with no internet connection at all.

I got a great deal on Wink 2 but the complaints keep coming and they're not adding new hardware support fast enough. I want Wink to succeed and love their hub hardware, but ST is just way more powerful IMO and I don't think that is going to change. If I have to put my eggs in a basket, I'll put them in the ST community basket over the Wink company basket every day of the week and twice on Sunday.

 

[poofyhairguy]

VeraPlus is 100% local. The software is apparently still a work in progress and I think Zigbee support is still coming along, but it is supposed to be very fast and works with no internet connection at all.

Oh nice. I could see the appeal of that once you get in deep and you depend on certain essential hardware daily. I know ST apparently does somethings local but none of my stuff. The Vera has scripting too right? That does seem cool.

Honestly I can just see how the ST list gets too big and you wouldn't mind something else taking off the stuff you won't need to change or mess with often. Just alphabetical could easily get kinda nuts. I already added periods to the front of the Thermostats to put them at the top of the list.

I got a great deal on Wink 2 but the complaints keep coming and they're not adding new hardware support fast enough.

If I remember correctly you already have a Wink (v1?) for certain devices? How is it with two hubs? Do you have to force them to different channels like routers to avoid overlap or is it pretty seamless?

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Oh nice. I could see the appeal of that once you get in deep and you depend on certain essential hardware daily. I know ST apparently does somethings local but none of my stuff. The Vera has scripting too right? That does seem cool.

Honestly I can just see how the ST list gets too big and you wouldn't mind something else taking off the stuff you won't need to change or mess with often. Just alphabetical could easily get kinda nuts. I already added periods to the front of the Thermostats to put them at the top of the list.

Check out SmartTiles from the SmartThings community - you can build 5 web-based dashboards and order the devices as you please. The next version of SmartTiles will be called ActionTiles and will have some sort of payment required, but SmartTiles is free.

If I remember correctly you already have a Wink (v1?) for certain devices? How is it with two hubs? Do you have to force them to different channels like routers to avoid overlap or is it pretty seamless?

Wink makes a migration tool to move devices from Wink 1 to Wink 2 and then factory resets the Wink 1 according to what I've been told. I'm not exactly sure how you could use Hub 1 and Hub 2 together - I thought you had to have a second account but I'm not sure that's correct. I'm assuming you could add the second hub to your account and just move certain devices to it (someone can confirm or correct me if I'm wrong). I know a couple of users in the Wink forum are using their Wink 1 at the other side of the house for devices over there, but that's the extent of my knowledge.

Wink 2 is a great piece of hardware, but people are still seeing many issues and with Wink's lack of device support, I may just sell it and give up on Wink except for Lutron use.

 

[lupi]

Can get the smartthings kit for $125, how good is it?

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Can get the smartthings kit for $125, how good is it?

If you want to dabble in HA, the kit is a good place to start at that price.

 

[poofyhairguy]

Anyone have any advice on carbon monoxide detectors? Thinking of getting the First Alarm ones.

 

[Wink22]

So,
I live in Canada and i guess smart bulbs dont come here anymore?

All jokes aside, is anyone away of a place where i can get smart bulbs that are compatible with Wink?
My local home depot only has Phillips Hue,
I have 4 GE Link Bulbs and i wanted to add more. Home Depot had none and dont seem to be getting any back.. They dont sell the CREE bulbs here so.. without going online and waiting and waiting.. i am disappointed and mostly confused as to why i cant find them here in Canada (Ottawa, Ontario)

 

[poofyhairguy]

I now have my kitchen controllable by Google Home, the rest of my house is next!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2d7mmUgD3s

I kinda wish I would have gotten into all this earlier lol. So cool.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I now have my kitchen controllable by Google Home, the rest of my house is next!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2d7mmUgD3s

I kinda wish I would have gotten into all this earlier lol. So cool.

It is addictive, that's for sure.

 

[RodolfoDLV]

I kinda wish I would have gotten into all this earlier

All I can say is you WILL end up buying more stuff, connecting more stuff, trying to figure out HOW to connect stuff and more. I can only say, plan wisely. You will need good Zigbee or Z-wave or WiFi coverage all around. If not, you'll start running into issues.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Finally got my ecobee installed. Fortunately, there were extra wires in the wall so I didn't have to use the power extender kit. I haven't linked it to SmartThings or Wink yet; I figure I'll let it run a few days and make sure everything works as expected before I do that. If I choose to integrate it with an HA platform, it will likely be ST. I've had a ton of Wink issues lately and I am probably moving everything off of Wink except the Lutron stuff at this stage. Anyone want to buy an unopened Wink Hub 2?

 

[poofyhairguy]

All I can say is you WILL end up buying more stuff, connecting more stuff, trying to figure out HOW to connect stuff and more. I can only say, plan wisely. You will need good Zigbee or Z-wave or WiFi coverage all around. If not, you'll start running into issues.

Yeah I have caught the bug. So far so good though with haphazard planning, I assume eventually I will need to get both types of repeaters and put them around my house.

The only issue I currently have is my GE fan switch thinks its a light dimmer on my ST hub. Its cool being able to control fan speeds by percentages, but then the Google Home calls the speeds "brightness."

Finally got my ecobee installed. Fortunately, there were extra wires in the wall so I didn't have to use the power extender kit. I haven't linked it to SmartThings or Wink yet; I figure I'll let it run a few days and make sure everything works as expected before I do that. If I choose to integrate it with an HA platform, it will likely be ST. I've had a ton of Wink issues lately and I am probably moving everything off of Wink except the Lutron stuff at this stage. Anyone want to buy an unopened Wink Hub 2?

Seems like Wink needs a big boy to buy them out like ST got so they have more resources.

Do the ecobee sensors work well?

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Seems like Wink needs a big boy to buy them out like ST got so they have more resources.

Wink just doesn't get it - they have good hub hardware but are completely incapable of putting together a complete package. They still don't support a single multisensor. It took them MONTHS to add support for the temperature sensor in the GoControl motion detector. Prior to that, the only supported temp sensor which was actually available was the LeakSmart water sensor, which 1) was $70 on release and 2) has a TON of connectivity issues. I really thought that maybe with Hub 2, they turned that corner and got a clue but so far, it looks like my optimism may have been misplaced. I heard a rumor that they're announcing something in January, but over the last couple of months, I have had a TON of issues with Wink and judging from the Wink FB group, I'm not alone. So whatever they announce (if true) had better be big, as I'm pretty sure I'm going to end up selling my Hub 2 and some boxed Wink sensors I bought on clearance last year if they don't have something big in store. I can't imagine they will announce anything that will convince me to keep supporting them to be honest.

I'll read these posts in the Wink FB and I genuinely feel sorry for a lot of these people because the things they request are so easy to do on SmartThings but very hard, if not impossible, to do with Wink. A smart home hub is only as good as the products it supports and Wink keeps falling on their faces due to lack of support.

Do the ecobee sensors work well?

I only have the one sensor that came with it and put it in our master bedroom. It is a cool concept but I'm not sure how I can really leverage it yet other than the "smart home/away" feature, which I don't have enabled.

 

[Dave Haynie]

I'm curious about the fairly uncomfortable mix of smart lights and smart switches, and any suggestions on where to go with a Wink network.

So I have a number of smart LED bulbs, and that's working great. I expect I'll be adding voice control at some point, but it's still handy to have conventional switches. Here's the thing... I don't see much out there really designed for forward-thinking network setups. There are 100 ways to drop a couple of Z-Wave switches as direct replacements for dumb switches. But they're designed to control dumb lighting, and if you're lucky, they work probably with LED lights. Many don't.

What I have a use for is some replacement walll switches that control anything in the network, based on the setup in the Wink app. Sure, dropping into an existing switch location might be nice, but I'd like to keep the light socket powered at all times to keep the smart builb smart, and let my setup determine what happens to one or more lights, based on the switch as just another system event. I have one room with three light switches, two on smart lights, and one of those lights pretty much always controlled by the time of day. So I'd like that switch assigned to a lamp on the other side of the room. And in another room, the switch is hard wired to an outlet with a TV on it.. I'd like to keep that TV active, but switch the lamp.

It seems extremely shot-sighted that something like this doesn't really exist. I found the Quirky TAPT switch could support what I need here, but they have a bad reputation and the product, like Quirky, is discontinued. So I'm guessing there's not much fixing it, at least on their end. But does anyone else make a switch that's actually tuned to making a real smarthouse, not just a retrofit with physically wired switches? No need for stand-along control, this needs to be integratable with the Wink system, of course.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I'm curious about the fairly uncomfortable mix of smart lights and smart switches, and any suggestions on where to go with a Wink network.

My suggestion is if you're serious about HA, ditch Wink and look at SmartThings, Vera, or something else. All kidding aside, as an owner of both ST and Wink, there is no comparison between them - ST is far, far ahead and that lead is only increasing.

So I have a number of smart LED bulbs, and that's working great. I expect I'll be adding voice control at some point, but it's still handy to have conventional switches. Here's the thing... I don't see much out there really designed for forward-thinking network setups. There are 100 ways to drop a couple of Z-Wave switches as direct replacements for dumb switches. But they're designed to control dumb lighting, and if you're lucky, they work probably with LED lights. Many don't.

What I have a use for is some replacement walll switches that control anything in the network, based on the setup in the Wink app. Sure, dropping into an existing switch location might be nice, but I'd like to keep the light socket powered at all times to keep the smart builb smart, and let my setup determine what happens to one or more lights, based on the switch as just another system event. I have one room with three light switches, two on smart lights, and one of those lights pretty much always controlled by the time of day. So I'd like that switch assigned to a lamp on the other side of the room. And in another room, the switch is hard wired to an outlet with a TV on it.. I'd like to keep that TV active, but switch the lamp.

You can use Lutron Connected Remotes to control smart bulbs anywhere in the house. I believe they're compatible with Cree, Osram, and possibly the GE link bulbs. You can mount them on the wall as well using the pico remote bracket and a Decora switch plate. You connect them to the Wink hub and then you can associate them to a bulb in the Wink app.

I don't use smart bulbs in lights controlled by switches, and I make that recommendation to just about anyone who asks. The exception would be if you needed RGBW lights in cans or other switch-controlled fixtures. In those cases, what you probably should do is remove the conventional switch, hardwire the fixture to be powered on at all times, and then use a smart button of some sort to turn the light off/on. I know there are wall-mounted z-wave scene controllers that would probably do the trick. You could even probably wire a smart switch to power in the gangbox as well just to use the button pushes to turn the lights on/off via rules in the app, but I'm not 100% sure about that and would need to think it through a little more - I think many (all?) require loads to operate correctly, so you might need to slap a properly rated resistor on the load terminal as well. At any rate, I have something similar to the above scenario with our nightstand lamps - they have smart bulbs, are powered on all the time, and I used an Iris smart button (with ST) to control my light and my wife has a Lutron Connected Remote to control hers. It works great.

Otherwise, I only use smart bulbs in lamps where it is easier to keep them powered on.

 

[slag]

I'm looking at the GE link BR30 lights as I can get some locally for $10.00 apiece (or cheaper in bulk). I'll use them with a smart things hub and google home. My concern is that they will be used in recessed can lighting which my house has everywhere and I've read that in places, recessed can lights might not work due to wifi interference with the can. How prevalent is this? I've seen it mentioned in a place or two, but nothing really in depth about this being an issue with many people. Is this a real concern?

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I'm looking at the GE link BR30 lights as I can get some locally for $10.00 apiece (or cheaper in bulk). I'll use them with a smart things hub and google home. My concern is that they will be used in recessed can lighting which my house has everywhere and I've read that in places, recessed can lights might not work due to wifi interference with the can. How prevalent is this? I've seen it mentioned in a place or two, but nothing really in depth about this being an issue with many people. Is this a real concern?

So, I'm assuming the cans are controlled by a light switch. If that's the case, why not just use dumb bulbs and a smart switch instead?

 

[slag]

So, I'm assuming the cans are controlled by a light switch. If that's the case, why not just use dumb bulbs and a smart switch instead?

That is another option. I want to set up a few zones that don't currently exist in my theater room area so I thought crontrolling the bulbs independently would be the best option. Maybe not.

What switches would you recommend?

 

[IndyColtsFan]

That is another option. I want to set up a few zones that don't currently exist in my theater room area so I thought crontrolling the bulbs independently would be the best option. Maybe not.

I figured you were probably after something like zones, and you can definitely do that. The issue you'll run into is that smart bulbs require constant power in order to remain connected to their hub. So if someone forgets and accidentally flips the light switch off, those bulbs are now disconnected from your hub. To get around this, you can hardwire the cans to always receive power and maybe get something like a z-wave scene controller to mount where your light switch currently is. For a theater room, I'd be tempted to get some RGB BR30s though.

What switches would you recommend?

The only smart switches I have are Lutron Casetas, which aren't compatible with SmartThings unless you implement some additional hardware (I have them connected to Wink). For SmartThings, I've used in-wall relays to connect to existing switches. I don't really like the aesthetics of most smart switches and the relays make a "dumb" switch smart and are often cheaper than smart switches - a good smart switch is $30-$50 depending on features, whereas a relay is $30-$40 and is often a dual relay, meaning it can control two separate switches. I have a dual relay in my garage gangbox and switch the interior and exterior garage lights on/off using SmartThings, rules, etc.