UPB or Insteon
- Thread starter jimhannah
- Start date
AutomatedOutlet
Senior Member
FYI,
For those of you that might not know, the prior poster, Marshall Lester, is the founder of PCS and the inventor of UPB.
For those of you that might not know, the prior poster, Marshall Lester, is the founder of PCS and the inventor of UPB.
BraveSirRobbin
Moderator
Ya know, that does help! I had no idea what to make of the prior post till your clarification Martin! :blink:'
Perhaps Marshall could show this in his signature as this is good information to have!
Hi All
I am a little late to this thread...
I have been a big Insteon user and developer since the products initial release. After 4 years of having Insteon in my home, I am ready move on. The primary reason is reliability. The iterations of the devices over the last 4 years has still not resulted in reliable and robust products. In my home, I have 45 Insteon devices (ranging over most of the various devices). As of last week, I have now replaced 42 of the 45 original devices. Only 2 Switchlincs (the very first ones released) and 1 KeypadLinc are still working. I have had to replace many devices due to the infamous failure of the paddle design. Many more have have been replaced due other various hardware failures. Many existing switches (that I should replace) require you to press the paddle in the exact right spot to get light control.
Like many things in life, the cost of entry is only one part of the equation. SmartHome may be cheaper to get into but you will pay in the long run with the headache of constantly replacing devices and relinking/reprogramming your HA controller. I would not recommend their solution to anyone.
I am not sure where SH went wrong with their Insteon implementation of the Linc line. At one time, I had many of the old X10 Switchlincs and KeypadLincs which lasted for years and years with very few failures. I moved to Insteon with the promise of greater reliability and 'speed' and more sophisiticated lighting control. It has not been worth it.
I am a little late to this thread...
I have been a big Insteon user and developer since the products initial release. After 4 years of having Insteon in my home, I am ready move on. The primary reason is reliability. The iterations of the devices over the last 4 years has still not resulted in reliable and robust products. In my home, I have 45 Insteon devices (ranging over most of the various devices). As of last week, I have now replaced 42 of the 45 original devices. Only 2 Switchlincs (the very first ones released) and 1 KeypadLinc are still working. I have had to replace many devices due to the infamous failure of the paddle design. Many more have have been replaced due other various hardware failures. Many existing switches (that I should replace) require you to press the paddle in the exact right spot to get light control.
Like many things in life, the cost of entry is only one part of the equation. SmartHome may be cheaper to get into but you will pay in the long run with the headache of constantly replacing devices and relinking/reprogramming your HA controller. I would not recommend their solution to anyone.
I am not sure where SH went wrong with their Insteon implementation of the Linc line. At one time, I had many of the old X10 Switchlincs and KeypadLincs which lasted for years and years with very few failures. I moved to Insteon with the promise of greater reliability and 'speed' and more sophisiticated lighting control. It has not been worth it.
Looking back on your posts it looks like you got started in December 05 with Insteon. If that is accurate all of your non Icon products would have been (or still are under) warranty until last month. SH should have replaced them for you with the devices with the paddle fix etc.
I know some die for other reasons (power surges, static discharges, gremlins etc) but I would imagine if you didnt have the paddle issue the relability would not have been as bad. Suposedly this is now resolved (I have not had a newer switchlinc with the paddle fix have that problem (yet).
