With my ST hub I purchased a couple z-wave lights and switches, but was not able to get them connected to the app. ST support said they weren’t connecting because they were not on the compatibility list. Even though I went through the list of compatible devices before purchasing the hub, I still thought the hub would work with other z-wave things, and the list was just those Samsung recommended.
So, is this true - do only those devices listed function with ST hub?
Thanks.
What are the specific brands and models of the devices that don’t work? And are you using the UK version of the smartthings hub or the US version?
The basic compatibility rule for zwave
SmartThings is a certified Z wave controller, but that only means that you should be able to pair any certified zwave device to it that uses the same zwave frequency as the hub and smartthings should be able to send what is called a “basic” command to it, which is essentially an on/off.
going beyond basic
For any features above that, there needs to be a “device type handler” (DTH) which can send the specific commands that that device expects.
There will be one for the devices on the official compatibility list. And in many cases if the device is similar to one on the official list, you can just tell smart things to use that DTH and everything will work fine.
If the device has unique features, many community members have written DTHs that may work, or can help you write one that will work.
So I’m really surprised that support would have said that.
Frequency
The only time you can be certain that a Z wave device would not work with your smart things hub is if that device is on a different frequency. Zwave uses different frequencies for different regions so, for example, there are devices you can buy in the UK that would not work with a US hub and vice a versa.
Controllers
Also, it’s not always possible to put two controllers on the same network. They could confuse each other.
But other than those two issues (frequency and multiple controllers) most certified Z wave devices can be made to work with SmartThings.
So again, if you can let us know the brand and model, we can probably figure out what the issue was.
Most zigbee and z-wave devices will work with SmartThings, but there are some devices that only work with specific hubs, like the Gen 1 Iris Sensors. That’s becoming less common lately and the Gen 2 Iris Sensors do work with SmartThings.
Some devices work fine with SmartThings, but sometimes take multiple attempts to get them to connect. If you search the forum for the specific devices, you’ll most likely find additional information on them.
There’s also a list of devices that are unofficially supported, but I’m not sure how complete it is:
http://thingsthataresmart.wiki/index.php?title=Category:Unofficially_supported_devices
Edit: Considering that 5 of the devices I’ve written device type handlers for are not on that list, and I see a lot of other missing devices, that list isn’t very helpful.
It’s a wiki–add more. 
The more people who contribute, the more helpful it becomes.
You can just add a placeholder page with the name of the device and a link to your DTH topic in the forums if you want. Then other people can fill it in later.
I recently went through the process of getting access so I now have the ability to edit it, but I keep taking on new projects so I haven’t had a chance to get to it.
The tagging functionality you recently created also made it less of a priority.
I have version 2 of the hub (US).
I purchased the following 2 items:
Thanks for the replies. I appreciate the education.
Those both work with smartthings, a number of community members have them. The Aeotec smart switch can be a bear to get paired properly because it’s using security inclusion, so it can take a number of tries, but you should eventually be successful
The bulb just pairs as a generic Z wave dimmer.
Aeotec themselves have approved the DTH in the following thread. You have to install it as custom code, but that’s basically just cut-and-paste . If you haven’t use custom code before, see the following FAQ
After that, you’ll find the code discussed in the following thread:
@slagle it might be a good idea to look into why support told this new member that their devices could not work with SmartThings because they weren’t on the official compatibility list. Those models are just standard Z wave devices.
Well, I’ve already returned both to Amazon, but I may purchase the smartswitch again for the reasons I mentioned above.
I really appreciate your time in helping me (and others). It is possible I just really don’t know what I’m doing. Still trying to learn.
For the future, how do I add something as a “generic” device? Am I able to choose something from the list of items in the app?
Thanks again.
