Buying from the USA for use in the UK

[MickEP (Mick)]

Hi am based in the UK and I am off to Orlando in a couple of months, and was thinking of buying a few Smarthing Devices while over there, would they work with my UK Smarthings Hub.
Regards
Mick

[bobbles (Bob)]

The Z-Wave frequencies are different so US zwave devices will not work with a UK hub.
I believe I have read on the forum somewhere that although the US zigbee devices are compatible the frequency level may be too high and therefore illegal in Europe.
Not sure though.

[MickEP (Mick)]

Thanks for the reply Bob, that’s a pity, as they are a bit cheaper over there

[CSC]

SmartThings sensor will work, as they communicate via Zigbee

[JDRoberts]

As others have said, the Z wave devices will not work. Zigbee devices are OK if they are not “amplified” as the US allows a power transmission level of almost double that of the UK maximum, so amplified zigbee devices are not legal there.

SmartThings senior staff have confirmed that for 2016 The SmartThings branded zigbee multi-sensor and motion sensor should be OK, but the US version of the water leak sensor uses amplified Zigbee.

Cost effective door/window sensors (UK)

This is as of the most recent generation of devices. Amplified devices: US Hub US Outlet US Water Leak UK Hub Unamplified devices: US Presence UK Presence US Motion UK Motion US Multi UK Multi UK Outlet UK Water Leak And a note from our engineer: But the presence of an amplifier doesn’t necessarily mean that the signal is being transmitted at a higher strength. In the UK hub, for example, the amplifier helps with the RX side of the transmissions, but the TX stays within the lower UK limit.

All of that said, whenever you’re buying any electronics outside of the UK and the EU, check the label to see if they are certified “CE.” If not, they might be seized by customs on your way back in. This is rare, but can happen especially if you appear to have a large number that might be intended for resale.

More details:

FAQ: SmartThings international function

Hello all. I am fairly new to the HA field, and I have been extensively researching and settled upon smartthings as my number 1 choice for a smart hub. However, I live in the Caribbean and I am just curious about one thing in particular. I realise thst there are US, UK and other z-wave frequencies etc. so my question is : if I buy a US version of the smarthub and all US accessories (sensors etc), will it work even though I am outside of the US? I know that buying UK “Things” won’t work with a US hub, so I’m just curious. Do I need to be literally in the US or can I just buy all US components and expect the system to function as advertised. EDIT : Also where I am from, we have the same specs as the US (110-120 v 50-60 hz).

[MickEP (Mick)]

Thank you for your replies, I was thinking of getting the official Samsung Smartthings accessories, so as long as they are marked with the CE stamp, ( i won’t be buying loads,I probably will only get a couple of each accessory, so I should be ok with customs) the official Samsung ones should be ok with the U.K. Hub
Regards
Mick

[JDRoberts]

@MickEP

Thank you for your replies, I was thinking of getting the official Samsung Smartthings accessories, so as long as they are marked with the CE stamp, ( i won’t be buying loads,I probably will only get a couple of each accessory, so I should be ok with customs) the official Samsung ones should be ok with the U.K. Hub

Regards
Mick

The US version of the leak sensor is amplified. So stick with the U.K. version of that. See Tyler’s list linked to above.