The Wink home automation thread

[IndyColtsFan]

Only ST has direct Harmony integration.

 

[jrlnc]

Wink has Harmony integration on their request list.
Both are supported by Amazon Echo/Alexa (which I have) so there are workarounds.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I'll believe it when I see it. I believe Wink's model is still having "partners" pay them to certify their devices on Wink, which is why Wink rarely adds devices people want. Who is going to pay them? They have no leverage and just need to bite the bullet and make it a subscription service IMO. I think SmartThings will eventually do the same but at least with ST, it is an open platform and the community adds devices.

 

[jrlnc]

I'm guess I've been too much of an optimist about Wink. They put out the new Wink Hub 2, which on paper looks great and has local control of lights, etc.

But they still have the same amateurish QA (if any) of their software updates. They pushed out a required hub firmware update this weekend (Saturday) which appeared to immediately break all Shortcuts. Of course Wink customer support is closed Sunday and Today (President's Day) is a holiday for them. I'm really close at this point to just throwing the damn hub in the trash and going with something else. At least I have purchased IOT devices that are (mostly) compatible with Apple Homekit. I would seriously consider ST hub, but I have too big an investment in Lutron Casetas (8 dimmers and 12 remotes).

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I'm guess I've been too much of an optimist about Wink. They put out the new Wink Hub 2, which on paper looks great and has local control of lights, etc.

But they still have the same amateurish QA (if any) of their software updates. They pushed out a required hub firmware update this weekend (Saturday) which appeared to immediately break all Shortcuts. Of course Wink customer support is closed Sunday and Today (President's Day) is a holiday for them. I'm really close at this point to just throwing the damn hub in the trash and going with something else. At least I have purchased IOT devices that are (mostly) compatible with Apple Homekit. I would seriously consider ST hub, but I have too big an investment in Lutron Casetas (8 dimmers and 12 remotes).

Lutron announced that ST will have official Lutron support early this year. It will likely require a Lutron hub for it to work, since I haven't heard of a plan to place a ClearConnect radio in a USB dongle for the ST hub (that would ROCK, however, and would definitely be game over for Wink IMO). There are also ST Community solutions for using Lutron devices which involve the Lutron hub and some python code running on a Raspberry Pi or, if you have another machine running 24/7, that can be used in place of the Pi. I have been strongly considering going this route as well, but the Lutron hub is another expense (I have a 24/7 server for the python code) and it may not make a ton of sense when I could just relegate the Wink Hub to Lutron control and save the money. I could even deploy my Wink Hub 2, but I've been debating selling it (never opened it) because I just don't see Wink recovering at this stage unless Flex gives up and sells Wink to Amazon. If not for the "Winkening," Amazon would like have acquired Wink and it would be in much better shape.

I have moved almost everything off of my Wink Hub 1 except for my two Casetas and some lights controlled by the Lutron Connected Bulb Remote. The LCBR can pair directly with the bulbs and there is a community solution for it as well (having troubles getting it to work right), so I may move those lights over to ST as well and just pair the remote to them directly. ST can still control those lights as well, those the status updates (at least with Cree Connected bulbs) don't seem to be in synch between the LCBR and ST.

I won't lie to you - ST isn't utopia. It has been pretty solid for me and more reliable than Wink, however. The great thing is that you can get almost anything to work with it due to its open nature, so you don't have to relay on SmartThings to add device support. The bad thing is that there is no way to back up your hub config so if your hub dies and you get a replacement, you have to re-add EVERYTHING. That is an additional reason I've toyed with going ahead and using my Wink 2 and splitting devices between them. I've got around 120 devices on my ST hub so far and if I deploy everything I have sitting in my closet still, that's going to probably be 150-160 total devices. That would be PAINFUL to have to reconfigure that.

 

[CAL7]

For ST backup, there is a (albeit, convoluted) way coming that will allow backup, but very non-standard and imperfect. Use webCoRE for your automations (when released). Then all the pistons can be backed-up.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

For ST backup, there is a (albeit, convoluted) way coming that will allow backup, but very non-standard and imperfect. Use webCoRE for your automations (when released). Then all the pistons can be backed-up.

Cool, thanks!

 

[Kaido]

Hah, if you have Alexa, this is great:

 

[Kaido]

Alexa is also adding Roomba support:

https://techcrunch.com/2017/03/14/roomba-connected-home/

Long overdue imo. Downside is that you need at least a 900-series Roomba, which runs an insane $700. What happened to the $99 Roombas on sale!? I've had several over the years & currently have an iLife A4 robot vacuum, which is a knockoff for $179 & does a great job (much quieter than my previous Roombas). I will say that the new iAdapt camera tech is pretty cool (no Lighthouses required for room-to-room navigation) & being able to control them natively through the wireless network is pretty slick. But for $700, ouch!

 

[dlock13]

Just got my Wink Hub 2. I have one Caseta dimmer installed in my dining room, and it works great. Reason I went with it is because I don't have a neutral wire in my dining room.

I'm planning on upgrading my front porch, but I'm not sure how I want to go about it. I do want to get a smart switch, but I'm not sure if a z wave switch will work because I don't believe I have a neutral. Can any of you guys take a look at the 2 gang switches? It is the switch on the left I would like to replace. Here are the photos.

Other than that, what other suggestions of things should I get? I would like to get a connected thermostat and smoke alarm, but I'm not sure what to get. I looked at Nest, Ecobee, GoControl, but I'm not sure which will work best. I don't believe I have a C wire connection, so I would need a power extender kit or use batteries. I've attached the photos in the previous Google album. As for smoke detectors, what is the best out there? I don't need ridiculously fancy features, but I would like one that is reliable and can alert me when away.

 

[Kaido]

Just got my Wink Hub 2. I have one Caseta dimmer installed in my dining room, and it works great. Reason I went with it is because I don't have a neutral wire in my dining room.

I'm planning on upgrading my front porch, but I'm not sure how I want to go about it. I do want to get a smart switch, but I'm not sure if a z wave switch will work because I don't believe I have a neutral. Can any of you guys take a look at the 2 gang switches? It is the switch on the left I would like to replace. Here are the photos.

Other than that, what other suggestions of things should I get? I would like to get a connected thermostat and smoke alarm, but I'm not sure what to get. I looked at Nest, Ecobee, GoControl, but I'm not sure which will work best. I don't believe I have a C wire connection, so I would need a power extender kit or use batteries. I've attached the photos in the previous Google album. As for smoke detectors, what is the best out there? I don't need ridiculously fancy features, but I would like one that is reliable and can alert me when away.

Congrats! Things to consider:

1. Ring Pro doorbell
2. Schlage deadbolt
3. More Caseta switches
4. Serena motorized shades
5. Nest or Kidde connected smoke alarms
6. Chamberlain garage door opener
7. Honeywell wi-fi thermostat
8. Amazon Echo to voice-control all your toys

Lots more stuff, but that's some of the basics!

 

[Termie]

Just got my Wink Hub 2. I have one Caseta dimmer installed in my dining room, and it works great. Reason I went with it is because I don't have a neutral wire in my dining room.

I'm planning on upgrading my front porch, but I'm not sure how I want to go about it. I do want to get a smart switch, but I'm not sure if a z wave switch will work because I don't believe I have a neutral. Can any of you guys take a look at the 2 gang switches? It is the switch on the left I would like to replace. Here are the photos.

Other than that, what other suggestions of things should I get? I would like to get a connected thermostat and smoke alarm, but I'm not sure what to get. I looked at Nest, Ecobee, GoControl, but I'm not sure which will work best. I don't believe I have a C wire connection, so I would need a power extender kit or use batteries. I've attached the photos in the previous Google album. As for smoke detectors, what is the best out there? I don't need ridiculously fancy features, but I would like one that is reliable and can alert me when away.

The bundle of white wires with a red wire nut appears to be the neutrals. In that case you can go with the Leviton Smart Switch. But there's no reason not to go with the Caseta, since you're already familiar with it and it's generally superior in terms of aesthetics and functionality (the Pico remote, for example).

I wouldn't bother with the Nest - I've used Ecobee and the Carrier Cor. Both are good, but Ecobee is one of the few with Echo integration. And yes, get an Echo Dot for sure.

 

[Kaido]

A bit OT, but I got a new wireless router:

https://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Everywhere-Tri-Band-Extenders-Compatible/dp/B01K4CZOBS/

Netgear Orbi, currently on sale for $349 (MSRP $399, usually goes for $379). What's special about it is that it has a pre-synced wireless repeater that uses a dedicated wireless band (separate from your wireless network) to give you pretty much equivalent wireless speeds off the AP as the primary router does. i.e. expands your wireless bubble effortlessly & actually works.

It's actually a pretty simple concept: most routers now are tri-band (2.4 + 5 + 5ghz). This unit adds a satellite that connects on the third 5hz band (dedicated 1.7gbps quad-stream wireless backhaul system), so you don't get any of the funny business that goes on with wireless repeaters (disconnects, slow speeds, etc.), plus it offers a unified SSID (instead of downstairs 2.4 + downstairs 5ghz + upstairs 2.4 + upstairs 5ghz, you just get one SSID everywhere in the house).

I get 5 bars everywhere in my house now, which I have never had before. Speed is also excellent, pulling down 65 megs on all devices, including on my iPhone 7. The guest network works the same, with the additional features of being able to (1) segregate guest traffic from your LAN, and (2) isolate guests from each other. I put all of my smarthome stuff on my guest network (Wink Hub, Honeywell thermostat, etc.). No snooping on my main network, no snooping on other devices.

It's a pricey investment, but I was sick of having to deal with deadspots, especially with everything being wireless now. I put both the router & satellite on those compact APC UPS batteries they sell for modems & small computers now. I sprung for the larger one for upstairs, which adds a couple of USB ports built-in, so I can charge my cell phones a few times in case the power goes out. Oh also, I bought a Tech Restarter for the router/modem & the upstairs satellite. It's basically a little alarm clock you set for a specific time & it reboots whatever it's plugged into. Mine is set for 3am every morning, so it power-cycles the modem, router, and satellite automatically:

https://www.amazon.com/Tech-Restarter-Digital-Outlet-Timer/dp/B01C66X6GU

Fairly large investment overall (Orbi 2-pack, two Tech Restarters, two battery backups), but so far all of my network problems have been 100% solved. Fast, full-bar wifi everywhere I use it now. Also, the satellite has Ethernet if you need to plug something in hardware, which is nice (ex. my Arlo "grill" cam has a wired base hub). I considered a bunch of the mesh networking stuff, but liked this the best overall. If you get one, make sure to update the firmware on both the router & the satellite before doing anything else. They do have a decent (yet basic) iOS app FYI.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Just got my Wink Hub 2. I have one Caseta dimmer installed in my dining room, and it works great. Reason I went with it is because I don't have a neutral wire in my dining room.

I'm planning on upgrading my front porch, but I'm not sure how I want to go about it. I do want to get a smart switch, but I'm not sure if a z wave switch will work because I don't believe I have a neutral. Can any of you guys take a look at the 2 gang switches? It is the switch on the left I would like to replace. Here are the photos.

Other than that, what other suggestions of things should I get? I would like to get a connected thermostat and smoke alarm, but I'm not sure what to get. I looked at Nest, Ecobee, GoControl, but I'm not sure which will work best. I don't believe I have a C wire connection, so I would need a power extender kit or use batteries. I've attached the photos in the previous Google album. As for smoke detectors, what is the best out there? I don't need ridiculously fancy features, but I would like one that is reliable and can alert me when away.

As Termie said, it looks like you do have neutrals so you can use just about anything. I only have deployed 2 Lutron Casetas and 2 in-wall relays in terms of smart switches - I did the Lutrons because at the time, I wasn't sure if I had neutral or not and I got one for free with my Winkening "We're sorry!" coupon. They're fine switches but I really need the feel of a toggle switch, so that's why I used the relays on the other 2 switches. I probably won't upgrade many more of my in-wall switches but if I do, I suspect I'm going to go the in-wall relay route so I can use standard toggle switches.

In terms of thermostat, I have an Ecobee (it comes with a power extender kit too). I like the look of Nest but I DON'T like that it uses "power stealing" to stay powered, so I went with Ecobee. A couple of tips:

1. Make sure you check with both your gas and electrical utilities for rebate options. I got a $100 rebate for buying my Ecobee and since I got it on sale during the holidays for $199, my total cost was $99 and you can't beat that.
2. I thought I saw a C terminal with a connection on your furnace control board. Are my old eyes failing me? At any rate, once you remove your existing thermostat, you may find unused wires bundled in the wall. In my case, I didn't have a C wire connected to my thermostat but when I pulled it off, there were some unused wires tucked into the wall so I was able to connect one of them to the Ecobee's C terminal and the other end to the furnace's C terminal and I didn't have to use the power extender kit. You might be in the same position.

I currently have two Nest smoke protectors to complement 2 non-smart Kidde detectors. Once the Kiddes "expire" in a few years, I'll replace them with smart alarms as well.

Now with all of that being said, I'll place this disclaimer - I recently moved EVERYTHING I had on Wink over to SmartThings and plan on selling my Wink Hub 1 and unopened Wink Hub 2 and perhaps some unopened older Wink sensors. Why? What you'll find is that if you want to do a lot of cool things with sensors, Wink is pretty much DOA and you'll want to move to a better platform such as SmartThings or Vera. Wink's claim is that they support "more devices than any other platform!", but that's a load of marketing spin crap. They may "officially" have a higher supported device count, but that's because other systems are open and the companies which make them officially support a core set of devices while their user communities add support for everything under the sun. Wink, on the other hand, is a closed system so you're completely at their mercy to add product support and let me tell you - they don't. Their model is to add support for "partner" companies, which means companies which pay them a fee to certify their devices on their platform. So, when they do add support for products, it is often for products no one even cares about. SmartThings, on the other hand, is an open platform so the community will often develop device handlers and smart apps to use with it; you'll often have device handlers within days of a device being released.

 

[Kaido]

It looks like GE has finally released the in-wall lightswitch I've been dreaming of...an actual, physical toggle with dimmer! Part # 12729, available for $35 on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/GE-Wireless-Lighting-Control-12729/dp/B00PYMGS3C

By Jasco:

https://byjasco.com/products/ge-z-wave-wall-smart-dimmer-toggle

 

[Kaido]

Only real catch is that you don't get the Pico remotes like you do with the Caseta switches, which are really handy.

I'm ordering a single unit to test tho. $35 is an awesome price compared to $60!

 

[Linflas]

I picked up a Ring Pro from Amazon Prime day and installed it this weekend. Hardest part of the install was figuring out why my original doorbell wasn't working which turned out to be a disconnected transformer wire. Kind of nice to be able to spot the clipboard guys without going to the door.

 

[Mike A.]

Wink has been acquired by lifestyle technology company i.am+.

Today marks an exciting new chapter for Wink and we wanted you to be the first to hear about it.

Wink has been acquired by lifestyle technology company i.am+.

If you’re not familiar, i.am+ was founded by innovator and music artist will.i.am and has already shaken up the wearables industry with BUTTONS – premium wireless Bluetooth headphones.

Our teams are in the process of coming together to shape our future roadmap and we can’t wait to share what we’re working on.

In the meantime, please know that your Wink app and Wink Hub will continue to operate just as they have. The acquisition doesn’t change anything with regards to the Wink user experience.

We know you depend on Wink to stay connected to your home and are as committed as ever to delivering the best-in-class smart home experience you expect.

We’ll be introducing a number of new in-app features and partner integrations in the coming months. Keep an eye out on our blog for more information (and for updates throughout this transition). If you have any questions, give us a call at 844-WINK-APP.

The Wink Team

https://techcrunch.com/2017/07/27/i-am-buys-wink-the-smart-home-hub-previously-owned-by-flextronics/

 

[tsupersonic]

I saw that email from wink yesterday...my initial reaction is that it's not good for consumers, but we'll see...

 

[IndyColtsFan]

lolWink - as if there were any doubts before, this should erase any doubts about them being done.

 

[MjnMixael]

Yeah... I was a bull for Wink for a long time. But support has been waning. Updates have been slow. The system I have setup is super solid, though. No issues for longer than I can remember now. But I am not enthused by this purchase. Good thing I just replaced my Relay with a mounted Android tablet. I'm not switching just yet.. but when I do, it's gonna suck. I'm gonna need at least 2 Smartthings hubs, a Lutron bridge, and a lot of patience. I have well over 100 devices to switch over if/when I do.

But for now, I'm in "Wait And See" mode.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Yeah... I was a bull for Wink for a long time. But support has been waning. Updates have been slow. The system I have setup is super solid, though. No issues for longer than I can remember now. But I am not enthused by this purchase. Good thing I just replaced my Relay with a mounted Android tablet. I'm not switching just yet.. but when I do, it's gonna suck. I'm gonna need at least 2 Smartthings hubs, a Lutron bridge, and a lot of patience. I have well over 100 devices to switch over if/when I do.

But for now, I'm in "Wait And See" mode.

Why two ST hubs?

You'll be amazed at ST compared to Wink. Glad I didn't open my Wink 2 and sold it at a nice profit.

 

[Kaido]

When I started this thread 3 years ago, I can honestly say that I had no idea that Wink would eventually be owned by Will.i.am. Let us not forgot his IAMAUTO project that turned $500k & a Delorean into...this:

 

[Kaido]

But for now, I'm in "Wait And See" mode.

I really wish that Wink didn't have such a bad go at things. I still think it's the best turnkey consumer system for DIY'ers on the market. STv2 is excellent as well, but requires a little bit more nerdery to really get things up & going, so if you're already a techie, great, but Wink is so easy my non-technical parents can use it, which is a big selling point. Plus, it covers nearly everything these days...lights, blinds, door locks, etc. It's like 90% perfect.

I don't know how it's going to fare at the new company, but their latest statements said things will continue along as normal, so...wait & see!

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Wink is done. You guys have had the "wait and see" attitude for what, 2 years now? I tried to give them another chance with Wink 2 but I was wise enough to keep it boxed until I saw evidence that they were going to follow through with some actually useful stuff and when they didn't, I sold it. It is interesting to see a Wink user buy ST, join the ST group, and express amazement at just how superior ST is.

The Wink FB group is hilarious - they're talking about how Wink's founder now works at Amazon and how he is going to "help them" build their own hub with his experience from Wink. What experience would that be exactly - would it be the crappy business model? Would it be overseeing a company who is on its third owner in 3 years? Another guy was trying to defend Wink's sale by saying "But SmartThings was bought too!" When I saw that, I did call him on it by pointing out the complete idiocy of comparing being bought by Samsung to being bought by a bad rapper with a dismal product record.

I feel bad for the rank and file employees, but Wink's management was arrogant and had no clue. It is a shame too because I do believe Wink 2 has great hardware.