Anyone into home automation/smart homes with integration to Alexa, Google Home, Siri, etc.?

[jut703]

Looking to control my light switches via app and Google Assistant.

So far I'm reading that Xiaomi's Aqara light switch paired with the Mi Smart Gateway could work. 1.3k for the gateway and 1.3k for each switch.

Are there other cheaper options?

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

[oj88]

Looking to control my light switches via app and Google Assistant.

So far I'm reading that Xiaomi's Aqara light switch paired with the Mi Smart Gateway could work. 1.3k for the gateway and 1.3k for each switch.

Are there other cheaper options?

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

About the only Xiaomi smart product I have right now is one Yeelight Gen1 Color smart bulb and two Mijia Xiaomi-Philips white smart bulbs. I've only read up about the Aqara line and I personally have no experience with them.

Yeelight, Mijia and Aqara are all subsidiaries of Xiaomi that carry smart home devices. However, their respective products are very different from each other and some are only available for certain markets. Yeelight has the most international support and natively works with GH and Alexa, no hub required. The Mijia bulbs also doesn't need a hub but requires you to use the Mainland China server for them to work with the Mi Home app. The only big problem is, those Chinese servers don't have integration with GH or Alexa. I was able to make the Mijia bulbs work with Alexa but the undertaking requires a bit of coding on a Raspberry Pi. But essentially, outside of China, they're not consumer-friendly.

Aqara is sort of a mixed bag... I wouldn't consider them for use in the PH either. First of all, they only have square wall plates for light switches and power outlets. We typically use the rectangular, US-standard wall plates so unless you're designing your walls around these square plates, they probably won't fit. Aqara is more popular with UK customers as they use the same square wall plates. Anyway, if you choose to use Aqara products here, expect the UI to be "weird" at best, as they're "Chinese-first". Be ready to see unexpected Chinese characters or spoken language anywhere within the UI. Besides, Aqara-Google Home integration is still sketchy.

I'd choose SmartThings before I'd consider Aqara, IMO. SmartThings has more community support as well as 3rd-party product support. They are on the expensive side, though. For a budget smart home, I'd still go with Broadlink (for IR/RF control including wall switches) and smart switches and/or plugs that use the Smart Life, eWeLink, and Magic Home Pro cloud services. They're bang for the buck if you don't care much on the not-so-simple setup process (as compared to the Apple-like SmartThings setup).

Good luck on whatever poison you choose.

[jut703]

About the only Xiaomi smart product I have right now is one Yeelight Gen1 Color smart bulb and two Mijia Xiaomi-Philips white smart bulbs. I've only read up about the Aqara line and I personally have no experience with them.

Yeelight, Mijia and Aqara are all subsidiaries of Xiaomi that carry smart home devices. However, their respective products are very different from each other and some are only available for certain markets. Yeelight has the most international support and natively works with GH and Alexa, no hub required. The Mijia bulbs also doesn't need a hub but requires you to use the Mainland China server for them to work with the Mi Home app. The only big problem is, those Chinese servers don't have integration with GH or Alexa. I was able to make the Mijia bulbs work with Alexa but the undertaking requires a bit of coding on a Raspberry Pi. But essentially, outside of China, they're not consumer-friendly.

Aqara is sort of a mixed bag... I wouldn't consider them for use in the PH either. First of all, they only have square wall plates for light switches and power outlets. We typically use the rectangular, US-standard wall plates so unless you're designing your walls around these square plates, they probably won't fit. Aqara is more popular with UK customers as they use the same square wall plates. Anyway, if you choose to use Aqara products here, expect the UI to be "weird" at best, as they're "Chinese-first". Be ready to see unexpected Chinese characters or spoken language anywhere within the UI. Besides, Aqara-Google Home integration is still sketchy.

I'd choose SmartThings before I'd consider Aqara, IMO. SmartThings has more community support as well as 3rd-party product support. They are on the expensive side, though. For a budget smart home, I'd still go with Broadlink (for IR/RF control including wall switches) and smart switches and/or plugs that use the Smart Life, eWeLink, and Magic Home Pro cloud services. They're bang for the buck if you don't care much on the not-so-simple setup process (as compared to the Apple-like SmartThings setup).

Good luck on whatever poison you choose.

Thanks for shedding light on the topic. I initially brought up Xiaomi because it was the only brand I recognized among the stuff for sale on Lazada when I searched "smart light switch".

I guess I'll take a step back here and ask what the necessary stuff are for controlling your lights via app and voice control (similar to my aircon query previously).

My setup has pin lights, cove lights, and general lighting in the living room/kitchen, plus general lighting in the bedrooms. These are all already wired to the wall switches, which I'd like to convert to smart switches to be able to control remotely.

My end goals are:
1. Turn of all the lights via voice command or app so I don't have to get up when I'm already lying down in bed
2. Create presets (i.e. only some lights are on when I'm watching TV) that I can activate via app/voice command
3. Turn lights on/off even when I'm not home

What needs to be true for these goals to become a reality, and what's the most cost-effective but safe (don't wanna burn down the house with low-quality switches) way to do it?

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

[oj88]

Thanks for shedding light on the topic. I initially brought up Xiaomi because it was the only brand I recognized among the stuff for sale on Lazada when I searched "smart light switch".

I guess I'll take a step back here and ask what the necessary stuff are for controlling your lights via app and voice control (similar to my aircon query previously).

My setup has pin lights, cove lights, and general lighting in the living room/kitchen, plus general lighting in the bedrooms. These are all already wired to the wall switches, which I'd like to convert to smart switches to be able to control remotely.

Let me put a few things out of the way first.... pardon the rather long read.

There are several ways to make your lights, smart:

1. Replace standard bulbs with smart bulbs - This is the fastest and easiest option. Most smart bulbs can be turned on/off, dimmed, or change color and/or scenes (dancing lights, etc.), via the app or a digital assistant (Alexa or GH). The downside is cost. The cheapest quality smart bulbs are from Yeelight. "Cheap" is of course relative and they still cost around P1k a pop from online shops like Shopee. If money is no object, there's also the Philips HUE system.... can't go wrong with those. Another disadvantage is the bulb needs continuous power. Therefore, you will need to keep the physical light switch turned on for every smart bulb it's connected to. If somehow, a family member or visitor turned off the physical switch, the smart bulb will lose power and you will no longer be able to operate it remotely.

2. Keep your standard bulbs/light fixtures and use a smart switch - There are two sub-categories of smart switches:

a. WiFi Smart Switch - These switches can be controlled manually, through the app, or digital assistants. As these switches are active switches, you will be able to see the realtime status of the switch (whether it's on or off) in the app. You can even ask GH the status of the switch and it will tell you if it's on or off. The downside is, the switch will very likely require a Neutral wire to keep itself powered up. The Neutral wire is an electrician-speak for having 220V supply available on every smart switch location in your home. To put things into perspective, houses made in the last century does not have a Neutral wire available on light switches as they're not needed. So it stands to reason that some wiring modifications are required in your house electrical to use this type of smart switch.

b. Neutral-less RF Smart Switch - Similar capabilities as above but does not require a Neutral wire. It works off the residual electricity available on the light circuit for its own power. These are passive switches and are usually controlled via 315 or 433MHz RF (not WiFi) and requires a hub. The downside is, as these are passive, there's no way to remotely determine if the switch is on or off through the app or GH.

These smart switches are on/off only. They are not capable of dimming the light. But just to be complete, there are expensive ones available on Amazon or eBay that can dim. They also work via RF, but uses a different protocol such as Z-Wave or Zigbee. These too, requires a hub.

Now, on to your questions:

My end goals are:
1. Turn of all the lights via voice command or app so I don't have to get up when I'm already lying down in bed

Any of the approach I mentioned above will work. Further, you can also set timers or schedules. I believe a random setting is available that will randomly turn on/off your lights while no one's around to give your home the effect that somebody's home. You can also use a 3rd party cloud service such as "If This Then That" (IFTTT) to create conditions and triggers to do things like turn on your lamp shades whenever your GH or Alexa alarm goes off or turn your colored bulbs purple when it's about to rain... things like that.

2. Create presets (i.e. only some lights are on when I'm watching TV) that I can activate via app/voice command

There are two ways you can do this; Create a Scene or a Routine (in GH or Alexa).

3. Turn lights on/off even when I'm not home

Same response as your #1 question. This can be done, and more, using the respective apps.

What needs to be true for these goals to become a reality, and what's the most cost-effective but safe (don't wanna burn down the house with low-quality switches) way to do it?

As always, I can only speak based on my own preference and experience. That said, I can never recommend enough Broadlink products for replacing the standard light switches and Yeelight Color v2 for smart bulbs.

My plan is to use Broadlink TC2 light switches for the MAIN lights in ALL rooms (the lights you typically turn on when entering the room). I then use smart colored bulbs for accent lighting, lamp shades or where a colored bulb is desirable (ie. corner lighting). Right now, I mostly only have the cheap Chinese knock-off smart bulbs but I might replace them with Yeelights in the future for reasons of safety.

To start you off, you only need the following:
1. GH or Echo (Alexa)
2. Smart bulbs of your choice (as many as required)
3. Broadlink TC2 switches (as many as required) and one (1) Broadlink RM Pro hub to control them
4. A mobile device to install, run, and configure the necessary apps
5. WiFi and internet

That's it.

[oj88]

Just added these puppies to control the lights in my children's bedrooms. These are the Broadlink TC2 RF switches. They're literally drop-in replacements for the old switch.




Wiring is simple. As mentioned earlier, these don't require a Neutral wire. It may say so on the labeling ("N") but if you look closely, there's actually no terminal behind the hole.




This is how it is wired... remove the old switch, connect the L terminal to the Live wire, and the L1, L2, or L3 to the wire(s) going to the bulb(s). I did all the swap myself (after turning off the breaker, of course). If you're not sure how to do it, please hire an electrician.

[jut703]

Let me put a few things out of the way first.... pardon the rather long read.

There are several ways to make your lights, smart:

1. Replace standard bulbs with smart bulbs - This is the fastest and easiest option. Most smart bulbs can be turned on/off, dimmed, or change color and/or scenes (dancing lights, etc.), via the app or a digital assistant (Alexa or GH). The downside is cost. The cheapest quality smart bulbs are from Yeelight. "Cheap" is of course relative and they still cost around P1k a pop from online shops like Shopee. If money is no object, there's also the Philips HUE system.... can't go wrong with those. Another disadvantage is the bulb needs continuous power. Therefore, you will need to keep the physical light switch turned on for every smart bulb it's connected to. If somehow, a family member or visitor turned off the physical switch, the smart bulb will lose power and you will no longer be able to operate it remotely.

2. Keep your standard bulbs/light fixtures and use a smart switch - There are two sub-categories of smart switches:

a. WiFi Smart Switch - These switches can be controlled manually, through the app, or digital assistants. As these switches are active switches, you will be able to see the realtime status of the switch (whether it's on or off) in the app. You can even ask GH the status of the switch and it will tell you if it's on or off. The downside is, the switch will very likely require a Neutral wire to keep itself powered up. The Neutral wire is an electrician-speak for having 220V supply available on every smart switch location in your home. To put things into perspective, houses made in the last century does not have a Neutral wire available on light switches as they're not needed. So it stands to reason that some wiring modifications are required in your house electrical to use this type of smart switch.

b. Neutral-less RF Smart Switch - Similar capabilities as above but does not require a Neutral wire. It works off the residual electricity available on the light circuit for its own power. These are passive switches and are usually controlled via 315 or 433MHz RF (not WiFi) and requires a hub. The downside is, as these are passive, there's no way to remotely determine if the switch is on or off through the app or GH.

These smart switches are on/off only. They are not capable of dimming the light. But just to be complete, there are expensive ones available on Amazon or eBay that can dim. They also work via RF, but uses a different protocol such as Z-Wave or Zigbee. These too, requires a hub.

Now, on to your questions:


Any of the approach I mentioned above will work. Further, you can also set timers or schedules. I believe a random setting is available that will randomly turn on/off your lights while no one's around to give your home the effect that somebody's home. You can also use a 3rd party cloud service such as "If This Then That" (IFTTT) to create conditions and triggers to do things like turn on your lamp shades whenever your GH or Alexa alarm goes off or turn your colored bulbs purple when it's about to rain... things like that.


There are two ways you can do this; Create a Scene or a Routine (in GH or Alexa).


Same response as your #1 question. This can be done, and more, using the respective apps.



As always, I can only speak based on my own preference and experience. That said, I can never recommend enough Broadlink products for replacing the standard light switches and Yeelight Color v2 for smart bulbs.

My plan is to use Broadlink TC2 light switches for the MAIN lights in ALL rooms (the lights you typically turn on when entering the room). I then use smart colored bulbs for accent lighting, lamp shades or where a colored bulb is desirable (ie. corner lighting). Right now, I mostly only have the cheap Chinese knock-off smart bulbs but I might replace them with Yeelights in the future for reasons of safety.

To start you off, you only need the following:
1. GH or Echo (Alexa)
2. Smart bulbs of your choice (as many as required)
3. Broadlink TC2 switches (as many as required) and one (1) Broadlink RM Pro hub to control them
4. A mobile device to install, run, and configure the necessary apps
5. WiFi and internet

That's it.

Bro, thanks a lot for the primer. This really helps a lot.

Since I don't have neutral wires for my light switches, that leaves me with option B. My worry though is that you said that you won't know if the lights are on or off if you use an app. How do you know then whether the lights are on when you're not at home?

Also, unfortunately my lights are already installed and they're all pinlights that don't use the regular lightbulb socket that the Yeelight uses. So I'm really stuck with the smart light switch route.

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[WallyWest]

How about smart light bulb sockets - The one you screw onto conventional bulb sockets to make a "dumb" bulb smart? Would you say they're a good alternative to smart bulbs (assuming you don't need the dimmer, color change functions)?

And how much parasitic current do smart devices typically draw since they're powered up 24/7?

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[oj88]

How about smart light bulb sockets - The one you screw onto conventional bulb sockets to make a "dumb" bulb smart? Would you say they're a good alternative to smart bulbs (assuming you don't need the dimmer, color change functions)?

And how much parasitic current do smart devices typically draw since they're powered up 24/7?

Sent from my ASUS_T00J using Tapatalk

Treat them like a smart bulb, as you also need to make sure that the light switch is left on so the smart socket will always have power.

Each device consumes around 0.3-0.8W each.

So, if you have 20 such devices and each averages 0.7W, all combined would've have consumed 10kWh in a month.... that's going to be around P120 added to your bill (assuming a rate of P12/kWh).

[fleas2016]

Got our bedroom voice-enabled with broadlink solutions and some different brands of smart home stuff, i.e. switches and lights. With broadlink IHC it's easier than expected.

I have both a GH and an Echo. I have to say, the Google Assistant is ahead on this one. I love the routines and of course, the timer options in GH which I'm surprised its not supported by Alexa.

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[oj88]

Got our bedroom voice-enabled with broadlink solutions and some different brands of smart home stuff, i.e. switches and lights. With broadlink IHC it's easier than expected.

I have both a GH and an Echo. I have to say, the Google Assistant is ahead on this one. I love the routines and of course, the timer options in GH which I'm surprised its not supported by Alexa.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

Can you elaborate on the timers? I've got my GHM boxed up at the moment. Alexa can also do routines and currently, only Alexa can integrate with the RM Plugin for really customized IR and RF codes.

[oj88]

Here's an LOL of a mod that packs some tangible benefits for people with too much time on their hands. ;)

Putting new meaning to the word "Automatic" in Glade's Automatic Spray....

I wanted a way to schedule its operation. This being in the living room, I typically don't need it working 24/7, while we're out on vacation or when everyone's asleep in the bedrooms.

It's actually a simple mod that does three things:

1. Allows me to program schedules... like time-of-day or day-of-the-week when it needs to be on or off
2. Integrate with Alexa and have ad-hoc voice control over it
3. Run Alexa Routines and/or IFTTT to shut it off whenever nobody's at home (ie. Vacation Mode)

Benefits:
1. Each cartridge can potentially last 40% longer
2. No more batteries to maintain or replace

Materials:
1. AC Adapter with a barrel plug (3V, 1A )
2. DC Barrel Power Jack (sourced from a dead gadget)
3. Smart WIFi power plug (GeekBes)
4. Tools: Small drill, glue gun, soldering iron

And voila!

[dr. d]

interesting.
rube goldberg-esque,
but as in all rube goldberg,
very interesting.

[fleas2016]

Can you elaborate on the timers? I've got my GHM boxed up at the moment. Alexa can also do routines and currently, only Alexa can integrate with the RM Plugin for really customized IR and RF codes.

Sorry man, super late reply.. just came to see this. I'll give you an example. With GH, you can say "play music for 4 hours".

Hmm, now I don't remember if you can schedule with Alexa. You can definitely set alarms on both systems.

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[attyallanlatras]

Mga sir, just bought an Alexa echo and trying to set an account, would a VPN help since di ko ma setup dito sa amin?

[AITNIMRA]

Mga sir, just bought an Alexa echo and trying to set an account, would a VPN help since di ko ma setup dito sa amin?

di ka ba maka access sa account registration or di ka makapag create ng account sa Alexa using your Philippines address?

if your problem is the latter, just use a dummy US address then add your current location sa settings afterwards.

[Rey Nocum]

Mga sir, just bought an Alexa echo and trying to set an account, would a VPN help since di ko ma setup dito sa amin?

Na set-up mo na ba?
1. Mag-register ka sa amazon.com.
2. Punta ka sa alexa.amazon.com.

Mapapagana mo na yung alexa mo kahit walang app. Pero mas maganda kung makapaginstall ka later.

[WallyWest]

*oj88

Maybe you've experienced something like this.

I have these smart bulb sockets which I have already set up and works fine when I need to automate lights on/off via timer when the family's away. Normally, we just flip the wall switch to turn it on and off.

However, there have a few times when, upon flipping the light switch, it would go into "detection" mode wherein the light blinks continuously. It stops only when I turn on my Smart Home app. Any idea what causes that?

It happens whether our wifi router is on or off.

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[Vodka]

just got a sonoff 4ch pro. any good?

[oj88]

*oj88

Maybe you've experienced something like this.

I have these smart bulb sockets which I have already set up and works fine when I need to automate lights on/off via timer when the family's away. Normally, we just flip the wall switch to turn it on and off.

However, there have a few times when, upon flipping the light switch, it would go into "detection" mode wherein the light blinks continuously. It stops only when I turn on my Smart Home app. Any idea what causes that?

It happens whether our wifi router is on or off.

Sent from my ASUS_T00J using Tapatalk

In all the smart bulbs that I have, it goes into pairing mode (blinking) whenever I quickly switch them on/off a few times. It's weird that yours seemingly go into that mode when you simply turn on the switch. I don't think it's normal. A smart bulb should default to its last setting when power to it is interrupted and then restored.

[WallyWest]

In all the smart bulbs that I have, it goes into pairing mode (blinking) whenever I quickly switch them on/off a few times. It's weird that yours seemingly go into that mode when you simply turn on the switch. I don't think it's normal. A smart bulb should default to its last setting when power to it is interrupted and then restored.

I'll check. It doesn't happen often though. One thing I do recall is that it happened when the bulb was turned on via timer then switched off via the wall switch. The next time I turned on the wall switch, nag-pairing mode na.

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