Living in Fear as a SmartThings User (Jan 2019)

Glad to hear you’ve found something that works for your needs. However, the above statement might a bit of a stretch. The ST V3 hub retails for $70. Your RPi (with case, power supply, and SD card) is at least $45… plus another ~$22 for the Zigbee devices from your link above, puts you at ~$67. That’s a $3 savings… :wink:

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What software are you using on the pi? Hass.io?

I personally love it when ST users say Smartthings sucks or all they have problems when they arent using devices that Smartthings says will work with Smartthings. It’s like saying my toaster sucks cause it won’t make coffee, all it does is melt K Cups. Just like K cups, your Xiaomi devices were purposely built to not work with your SmartThings Toaster, err um hub. And just like K cups Xiaomi devices barely pass for coffee… err um Zigbee.

I’m glad you found a solution that works for your requirements, so why are you still trolling around over here?

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It’s very interesting there isa big discussion about these Xiaomi devices on the HE forum as well. Whole threads about how even though the devices aren’t compliant they should be supported. Why the push for these devices recently? It’s as if it’s an obsession with getting them to work no matter the facts.

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:point_up: I have been wondering the exact same thing. I have avoided Xiaomi devices since they are not Zigbee HA 1.2 compliant devices. Keeping everything running smoothly is challenging enough already. Why add a device that is known to have issues, due to its own design, not ST’s or Hubitat’s design, to one’s home?

I get it that some people, like myself, just enjoy the challenge of making something work and saving some money in the process. For me, Xiaomi sensors are not something I feel like taking on. With all of the recent clearance pricing at Lowes on Iris devices, I am pretty well stocked up for now! :wink:

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Probably because they are cheap (the devices I mean).

I won’t go near them myself. Seems like too much futzing needed.

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LOL! Thanks for the laugh!

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The good news is their new models are zigbee 3.0 compliant, so hopefully everybody can have their cake and eat it too…in about 2-3 years :stuck_out_tongue:

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They’re very cheap, the build quality seems good, the feature selection is very good for the price point, and aesthetically they’re quite nice looking. So it’s easy to see why people would be attracted to them.

The downside is that they are really only designed to work with their own Gateway, which leads to a lot of trial and error effort to get them to work with smartthings or anything else.

I don’t use them because of the idiosyncrasies, but I certainly understand the appeal. :sunglasses:

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Price is one aspect and may be the reason, but I’m a suspicious type and think other things are at play. Even if price is the reason, if HE Staff says flat out in plain english “We do not support this device. It’s not supported” don’t blame the hub/system, which is what some people are doing. I don’t really care, but I find it interesting to watch.

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Not to mention that if people had just sat back and said things are not worth the effort to get them to work, SmartThings would not be where it is today – although I’m not quite sure I know where that is.

There’s a good deal of devices that work out of the box today, but you can sit on that and Google / Apple / whomever will come and eat your lunch.

Alot said here. This is why I love this forum and my love/hate relationship with SmartThings. I’m absolutely 100% committed to the SmartThings platform. I really don’t consider myself as a “Power User” although I have some pretty intricate automations going on. I was the average Joe just trying to save some bucks by having the lights turn off when not in use. This turned into me learning more and more on how to integrate other aspects of my home into the SmartThings ecosystem. The envelope is constantly being pushed here on this forum and l love the Custom App and DTHs that people have created. If it wasn’t for this, I would not be a SmartThings user because the platform would be too limited for my likings.

This is why I am now still in fear of loosing all of this flexibility and being pushed into a more simple platform which would devastate what I have built over the years.

Instead of poo pooing on your “Small” group of more advanced users, why not embrace what has been accomplished with this platform and expand on those capabilities.

MSGA!

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I’m only saying in this instance that blaming the platform when a non-supported device doesn’r work properly is not useful. “I hate you and I’m going home to mother” speeches about platform hubs always give me a giggle.

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My “Things” Tab is now back working. There was absolutely nothing I did on my end. I haven’t added any devices in about a month or so.

Well…now thinking about it, I did update the Echo Speaks App…:thinking:


Was there an update recently?

@Brad_ST must have used his magic

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MSGA - LOL!!

My system is working very well at this point. I did some construction on my home and added Hue lights to all of it, and the ST automations are working exactly as I’d wish. Wife walks into the kitchen around dinner time, and the lights all come on exactly the way she wants them for cooking…

Like you, I would hate to see this all wiped off the slate in favor of some ‘simple’ system.

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