Thinking about going with Homeseer????

[TCassio]

Hello all,
I am considering switching to Homeseer but have some concerns.

I am currently Using HCA as my HA software.
My Hardware:
Smarthome 1132 CU
Smarthome phase coupler/repeater
Smarthome Insteon Start kit with 2 additional Lamplice V2 mods
WGL W800
WGL Relay 8
A ton of X10 light switches, motion sensors, door/window sensors

I am also using TextAloud software with ATT natural voices for Announcements.

I plan to add more Insteon equipment as it becomes available.
I would like to have Web access to my system.
The RFID system is also under consideration.

I don't mind the $149 inital cost of HS. What I am concerened with are the additional costs of plugins and Pkgs to make my hardware work with HS.

I have not seen any mention of Insteon support. Any info.

Is the only way making things happen in HS is by way of scripting or is there built in logic to aide in setting up "programs or macros"

I see that HS is kind of in a transition stage, 1.7 to 2.0. I see that pricing is going to change when 2.0 is released. What impact on cost is this going to have.

Any help will be greatly appriciated.

Thanks,
Tony

 

[BraveSirRobbin]

Well, let me start here:

When do you want to do all of this? As you stated Homeseer is in a transition stage and it is going to take a few months to sort out their latest beta release of Homeseer 2.0, especially some important issues as the W800 plugin doesn't exist for that version yet.

If you can wait, I would do that. Or, maybe ask them what would happen if you purchase Homeseer today. Maybe you could purchase 2.0 and just use 1.7 until 2.0 officially is released. (I think this would be the best option if it exists).

Mark Colegrove is their marketing/sales person so drop him a line at [email protected].

As far as Insteon support, it is presently not supported, though their are plans to do so in the "future".

I think all of your other hardware should work with Homeseer. I also use the WGL Relay-8 for my sprinklers and really like it!

As far as your TextAloud software, not sure you will need it as Homeseer could probably do what you want, but again, I am not familiar with that software.

Homeseer has some great set up menus for creating events, so you really don't need to do any programming for most simple tasks such as turn on a light with a motion sensor, or announce when a door is opened.

Hmmm, come to think of it, I wonder if you can still download the trial Homeseer 1.7 version. Maybe do that to get a feel for Homeseer before you purchase it. Its (or at least use to be) a full working trial version for 30 days.

Peter Monahans of iAutomate, makers of RFID products that work with Homeseer, was on our chat session last night. A log of that chat session will be available soon for members to review. There is a dedicated forum for this product HERE. You may also want to review THIS CocoonTech post about people using this RFID product.

Any more questions, just ask.

Regards,

BSR

 

[TCassio]

Thanks BSR,
I sat in on the chat last night and found i very helpful. I thought I read a post here that someone had the plugin for the W800 from 1.7 working in 2.0. I would make the switch today if I knew that the w800 would work.

I downloaded Ver 2 of HS but have not installed it on my HA machine. As the W800 is needed to make a lot of sutff work for me. I also could not get the speaker app to work. Every time I try to run it, It troughs and exception and exits.

I know I wouldn't need TextAloud, but was wondering if my AT&T natural voices would work with HS.

As fay as the relay8 goes, I purchased it for setting up zoned announcements. However, the relay8 does not support group commands. So if I want to turn on 3 zones, there could be a 3 to five second delay befor the relays would make. I am using it to control my garage doors.

 

[BraveSirRobbin]

I am using the AT&T voices with my Homeseer 1.7 now (Crystal).

As far as the W800 RF receiver support, just a matter of time unitl OMAN gets that going. There is a beta out of that plugin that is being tested by some select users so it shouldn't be long!

 

[TonyNo]

Tony,

I recall seeing you back in April in the PowerHome forum having trouble setting up your PowerLinc.

Did you get that resolved by yourself? You didn't respond to Dave's post.

I just want to make sure that you got to try it out.

TonyNo

 

[TCassio]

Powerlinc has been running fine. Thanks for your thoughts. Just looking to expand my possibilities.

 

[TCassio]

Well, Ive downloaded HS 1.7 version and installed it on my HA server. I have a few questions. I am trying to set up DS10A. I am using them to turn closet lights on and off. When HS recieves an alert from a DS10A it takes 15 seconds to turn on the light and 30 secs to turn off a light when a normal message is recieved. I have the switch on the DS10A to Min, and I've tried 2 different units. I don't have any delays programmed. What am I doing wrong?

 

[BraveSirRobbin]

I think something may be wrong with your W800 setup or the way you setup the DS10A device.

Here are a couple of screen shots of the way I set my DS10A/W800. See how they compare to your setup.

Also, look at the Device Page Status and see if the DS10A itself is being delayed (watch its value as you open/close the door) or if its your Event that is causing the delay.

 

[TCassio]

BSR,
Thanks for the response. After Reading, I had to change from testing for a condition to testing for a device value change and now it works the way it is supposed to.

I am used to the logic from HCA so I guess there is a little bit of a learning curve to overcome.

Thanks.