[2021] Ikea Battery Powered Devices Roundup

@Geoffs I have been going nuts thinking it was me and i’ve just had dud batteries, thanks for confiming i’m not crazy.

I am also using the ikea (5 button in Australia) when over the last 6 months battery life went from months, weeks to now days. Love the speed and functionality but not when battery only lasts a few days to < 1 week.

My firmware details are

  • Current Version: 0x23014631
  • Target Version: 0x23014631

I have tired checking the firmware update via ST IDE with no luck.

@JDRoberts Thanks in advance if you could help me understand how a device falls into this continous fireware update cycle? Is it time based? or would the hub send a command to the device causing it to continuously broadcast the firmware update message??

My basic understanding is to overcome I would purchase Ikea hub, unpair from ST, then pair with the ikea hub, then update firmware then repair with ST? :neutral_face:

I’m having the same problem with the battery going flat very quickly on the Tradfri rocker switch. I’ll pick up an Ikea hub this week and see if I can update the firmware.

I’ll report back if it makes any difference.

2 Likes

Great! Look forward to your findings :slightly_smiling_face:

@JDRoberts, you might want to update the OP and add the Styrbar. I still haven’t had a chance to try any of them. IKEA offers ridiculously overpriced shipping.

In the US and UK it shows up as only in a kit. But in Europe, there is just the remote. It has a brushed stainless steel and white colors as options.

As those who frequent the beta firmware threads might know, I am a recent victim of bonkers battery life on the E1743 on/off switch (aka wireless dimmer).

With the 2.9.0 Zigbee stack the buttons are fine but as part of the latest beta (for me) the stack was upgraded to 5.2.1 (and then to 5.2.2). Every single button stopped working in inside 24-48 hours. Same with replacement batteries.

Switching back to 2.9.0 and the buttons are fine. Back to 5.2.1/5.2.2 and they are toast within a day or two.

Note I am not claiming causation, only correlation.

I’ve also seen issues with battery reporting. I am told the hub logs showed comms problems which were fixed by power cycling Tradfri outlets acting as repeaters.

Update: The version numbers should have read 5.1.2 and 5.2.1.

2 Likes

I have several of the mini buttons and in my set up I can only get them to work consistently using automations, which is a PIA, but stable. Using the assignments in the actual device is major hit and miss… Mostly miss.

Firmware * Current Version: 0x22008631

  • Target Version: 0x22008631
  • Last Updated: N/A
  • Last Checked: 2021-04-10 6:26 PM
1 Like

So I picked up an Ikea Gateway yesterday and set it up this morning. I paired the button that was having battery drain issues and there was no firmware update for it. It is showing as 2.2.010 in the Ikea Home app. In IDE it shows as * Current Version: 0x22010631.

FWIW, I’m in Australia.

I have 2 other Ikea buttons that are working just fine and don’t seem to have the drain. They also have the same firmware.

I’m beginning to suspect there is a quality control issue. Of the three buttons I have, 2 are working as I would expect and stay connected, and 1 just doesn’t. Clearly, given others experiences, it isn’t an isolated instance.

I think I’ll return the button and replace it with a new one and see if that’s any better.

I am also in Aussie. As noted further back, I have now retired 9 of these. The fireware is the current listed on the Ikea site quoted in another post. There were bought in several purchases starting, I think, early last year and ALL started with adequate (not brilliant) battery life, BUT all slowly down to a fortnight or less, independent of how far from the hub they were.
I am currently still using the 5 button version, currnt battery installed 14/2/21 and still showing 87% [although as noted elsewhere the % shown in ST for ikea is not always accurate].

Looks like the IKEA buttons really don’t like us down under.:pensive:


Mine also get stuck on the magic 87%.

Was hoping it was the fireware, but it seems it may not be related. I also have several IKEA buttons, some showing the drain issue others that do not, all purchased at the same time…

Looks like I’m going back to ST buttons (when they are available again)

Smarthome SmartHome - Aeotec Smart Button still says Coming in April, although some items have already arrived.
For not much more cost I am now using the Hue dimmer (original) connected direct to ST - so far have 3 running, 2 since mid December '20 and 1 somewhat earlier - with no issues yet. They are same price at ST but 4 buttons to play with.

1 Like

Having the same battery drain issue with the IKEA dimmer switch and the 5 button switch. How do you switch the Zigbee stack?

One of the ST Engineering team switched it back (twice) while investigating the issue. It was never reverted to the current one and as yet hasn’t picked up the new version from the latest beta (5.3.0).

Curiously I have one button that hasn’t played up since 5.2.1 went into production. It had problems previously but not this time around.

Any update?

I’m also start having similar issues which only last less than a week with the 5-button puck remotes as well as tradfri buttons (the one that come with the blind)

However, I have no battery drainage problem with the following button:

That square button is the one I problems with (have about 9 hidden away till fixed), but no problem with round 5 button !?!?
I am on the ST wifi hub, which are you on?

1 Like

So I have the square Ikea button that comes with the blinds and was able to connect it to Smartthings and make an automation to have the blinds open/close when the corresponding button is pressed. But, when I actually press the button nothing happens. I’m not sure what I could be missing. Any advice?

I’m sure that’s very frustrating. :disappointed_relieved: Please ask your question in a new thread in the automation section of the forum and someone will help you there. Also, if you can post a screenshot of the automation you created, that would help a lot.

I have a mix of IKEA buttons that I’ve had for several months:

Two 5 way buttons, a the two way switch, a dial and a shortcut button.

These run various tasks in my house and get about 5 presses a day on average.

Only the one 5 way switches is reporting a battery issue. (But still works).

Happy to track the individual battery levels if you’d like?

this is the way Smartthings made.
The current system does not support Zigbee binding, so it does not bind the Ikea button to blinds as Ikea intended (button=>blind).
There is a way to made it via automations, but it is a manual process and it will work slower (signal goes from button to hub => server in internet => back to the hub => to blinds.

1 Like

Any updates on the battery drain issue?
I have both the 2 button and 5 button IKEA remotes and they only last a week on a battery. I’ve given up on them but really wish I could use them if the draining issue could be fixed.