[OBSOLETE] FAQ: Sylvania battery-power dimming Switch (model 73743): why there are three different DTHs to choose from

Sylvania/Osram has a battery powered switch device which is popular and can work in one of three different ways with SmartThings depending on the device type handler would you choose. It’s important to understand the differences, because this will cause the device to work in very different ways.

The Device

This FAQ applies only to the Sylvania “dimming switch” model 73743. It does not apply to any of the other Sylvania switches, battery powered or not.

( please don’t ask questions about other models in this FAQ thread – – look for the other device threads under devices and integrations.)

This device can be used on a tabletop or on the wall, although it’s pretty big on the wall. But it will fit over the top of an existing switch, which makes it an excellent choice for when you want to use smart bulbs, have the bulbs always powered on, but still have a wall switch where you can turn the light on and off. You can also just put it on the wall anywhere you want to have a battery-operated switch. :sunglasses:

IMG_4320IMG_4398IMG_4395IMG_4319

https://www.amazon.com/SYLVANIA-Smart-Dimming-Switch-Formerly/dp/B0196M620Y

Using it with SmartThings

Here are three different ways to set it up.

  1. Fast, easy, and official. :sunglasses: It should pair straight out of the box as a two button controller. So most people just use it as one button for on and one button for off.

You will be able to use it with the official smart lights feature or a routine by choosing “when a button is pressed”

https://support.smartthings.com/hc/en-us/articles/115000236823-SYLVANIA-Dimming-Switch

  1. A little more complicated, but you get four button options instead of two.

There is a community – created device type handler which will let you use the long hold on both the top and bottom button, so you get four choices instead of two.

  1. A super fast option with dimming but will only work with a few specific lightbulbs.

OK, pay close attention, because this part is important to avoid getting frustrated. Option one and two above will allow you to use the Sylvania switch to control anything that SmartThings controls. You could use the buttons to run a routine that arms smarthome monitor, you could use them to turn on A zwave pocket socket or a Wi-Fi bulb, again, anything that smartthings can control. That’s because for option one and two the Sylvania device will send a message to the hub and then the Hub will use that based on the automations you set up.

One community member was frustrated because the Sylvania device was designed for use with their gateway and in that scenario it could also do dimming. And he really wanted dimming.

So he wrote a device type handler which will allow the device to be used on a SmartThings network in the same way as it was originally designed. But, it will only work with ZIgbee bulbs. You won’t be able to use it to run a routine or control a device of a different protocol or control devices further away than one hop. It will communicate to nearby zigbee devices directly, which is why it is so fast. But you are going to be very limited in the devices that it can work with. And the set up is much more complicated than for the other two options because you’re going to have to go in and actually find the network IDs of the bulbs that you want to control. But when you’re all done, you will have dimming from the device.

So there you have it. Three different options for setup of the Sylvania dimming Switch which will give you three different types of feature control when you are done.

For most people, just using the official DTH, option one above, will be fine. They’ll end up with a two button device that will work with the official smartlighting feature, routines, and webcore. It will be fast to setup and intuitive if you just want on and off, and it’s a nice option for some things like setting SHM to armed and disarming it.

If you want to get a little fancier, use option two, and now the long hold will also work. Some people use that to create a 50% dim setting, for example.

If you want the full dimmer functionality of the device, you can get it by using option three, but then you’ll be limited to what it can control, specifically other zigbee devices that are nearby. And setup is much more complicated.

All three of these are good options, but different ones will work for different use cases. :sunglasses:

5 Likes

I was wondering, does anyone have any info on how long the battery in this switch might last?

Cheers
J

Awhile. 4 of 3 are over a year. Just replaced my first one the other day.

2 Likes

Cheers mate. I appreciate the time you took to your comment

J