I’m trying to catch up with SmartThings by moving from our ancient V2 hub to the hub on our new Samsung TV. We have multiple Zigbee devices.
Do we NEED the Samsung dongle? Or will the automations on our existing Zigbee devices continue to run OK?
Further challenges - The dongle doesn’t seem to be available for sale anywhere! Plus, I see another post here saying that the dongle’s USB connection doesn’t actually work in any of the TV’s USB ports.
Thanks,
-Doug
my advice - stay with the V2 hub.
what is the model of the Samsung TV and what year? if before 2022 or 2023 (I believe) definitely stay with the V2 hub.
The purpose of the dongle was to add a Zigbee/Thread radio so TVs that worked as SmartThings hubs weren’t limited to just their built-in Ethernet/Wi-Fi. Samsung have now moved to having the ZigBee/Thread radio built-in to their more recent TVs. If you can already add your Zigbee devices to your TV hub then there is nothing more you need.
jkp, I got my Samsung Smart TV at Costco in February of this year, so I’m guessing it’s a 2024 model. I hope that’s good.
orangebucket, if I don’t have any new devices to add as a test, is there another easy way to check whether my Samsung TV has the built-in radios? I think it’s a 2024 model. The section of the user manual about SmartThings is really limited and lame.
Activate the hub under the TVs settings and then check the SmartThings app. The device card for the TV hub in the app will let you know if it needs a dongle.
Jimmy, thanks for that important piece of info. Unfortunately the device card for the TV hub shows that it needs the dongle for Zigbee devices.
FYI I decided NOT to upgrade from my v2 hub to the hub on my newer Samsung TV. I’m annoyed that:
I’ll wait until their appliances catch up with their vision.
Thanks for all your info and suggestions, including the wise suggestion to keep what I’ve got!
-Doug