What do you recommend to friends who want to get into automation?

upstatemike

upstatemike

Senior Member
I get a lot of requests from friends and family who visit my house and want to know what they should buy to get into home automation. I am always reticent to suggest anything because I don't want to become a free tech resource for somebody who is way over their head in a never ending automation install so I'm trying to identify some "safe" products that won't come back to haunt me.
 
Iris used to be a pretty safe choice but it is gone now. Hue is pretty much plug and play so that gets me part of the way there I but need a few more features than what Hue alone can offer. I hear Abode is a security based product that is brain dead simple and I imagine the Ring and Nest ecosystems should be safe. Things like Hubitat and Smartthings are clearly not a good choice if I want a true consumer product that will avoid calls for my assistance. Even ISY and Wink look like they could get too complex for some people.
 
Is there a best choice "go to" product for people who want a few automation features but who are even more technically challenged than I am and who have a short attention span for technical DIY projects?
 
I don't think an ISY 994 is simple enough to prevent them from calling on me to provide assistance and avoiding that is the whole point of the exercise. I'm looking for something as easy as Hue but with a few more features. Or maybe something simple in combination with Hue. I suspect Atmos might come close to what I am talking about (once it is actually released.)
 
IN that case, I doubt you will find any real HA where they won't call you. 
 
Some people were not meant to have HA. Helping them with the TV remote should be enough. :)
Stick with occupancy sensors for  wall switches.
 
Depends how much I like them :)
 
But mostly I just recommend something like Smartthings as  I don't want to end up having to support it.
 
I don't have Smartthings but from what i have read it doesn't look all that "plug and play". If you want to do something like make announcements through a Sonos ssytem the directions start out with "go to Github and download X and then edit the code and then download a second thing and then do something to deal with a cookie that expires every 2 weeks..." or something along those lines. 
 
I use Hue as a good example because it is simple to get core stuff working. "Add some bulbs, assign them to a room, add a motion sensor, assign it to a room, use a menu to select what the motion sensor does at various times of the day." . Simple. Adding voice control via Alexa is pretty much automatic once you have the accounts linked. No reason to call for help.
 
I am looking for the best combination of things to provide that level of simplicity. Currently I guess it would be Echo/Hue/Nest but am wondering if there are other products that "snap together" this easily that I should be considering.Main thing i would like to see is better options for voice announcements without getting into something as complex as Smartthings or Hubitat. Outdoor cameras would also need to get included somehow.
 
Hue might be easy but wifi components are easier without a hub to set up.

Receptacles may be a snag when it comes to Hue lights expansion.

Then their router starts acting up. :)

Sent using Tapatalk
 
upstatemike said:
I don't have Smartthings but from what i have read it doesn't look all that "plug and play". If you want to do something like make announcements through a Sonos ssytem the directions start out with "go to Github and download X and then edit the code and then download a second thing and then do something to deal with a cookie that expires every 2 weeks..." or something along those lines. 
 
I use Hue as a good example because it is simple to get core stuff working. "Add some bulbs, assign them to a room, add a motion sensor, assign it to a room, use a menu to select what the motion sensor does at various times of the day." . Simple. Adding voice control via Alexa is pretty much automatic once you have the accounts linked. No reason to call for help.
 
I am looking for the best combination of things to provide that level of simplicity. Currently I guess it would be Echo/Hue/Nest but am wondering if there are other products that "snap together" this easily that I should be considering.Main thing i would like to see is better options for voice announcements without getting into something as complex as Smartthings or Hubitat. Outdoor cameras would also need to get included somehow.
Click to expand...
 
Actually the simplest and keeping it mostly in the same family is a Google Home hub / Nest / Hue.  Google Home Hub is fantastic for displaying status of devices plus verbal feedback. For example "Hey Google what is the nest set to" gives you a verbal response as well as a graphical display which gives you the ability to adjust the settings.
 
I think that is the right approach. Instead of comparing individual solutions I should start evaluating different combinations. I'll start with a list of features and then compare GH/Nest/Hue against similar combinations to see where that takes me.
 
I agree that the ISY-994 might be too much for some.  
 
I was more impressed with apple homekit than I expected to be.  It has a bit more automation than I expected (and more than google home as far as I can tell).  If I had to recommend a simple automation system for those who should avoid the complexities of something more sophisticated, this is what I would recommend.  It is compatible with a pretty good selection of devices...it provides control away from home (requires ipad or apple TV at home to act as the 'hub") if you need it...it has some simple timers and triggers...and it seems pretty easy to use.
 
I have experienced some device communication failures at one location, but I believe it was related to the wifi system and all seems well at this point.  Also, I am unsure about scaleability, but for those wanting a simple system for a reasonable number of devices, I think you could do worse.
 
I'll have to research that. I own zero Apple products and don't know anything about Homekit.
Click to expand...
 
I have played around with google home hub and apple homekit.  Both have advantages over the other.  You may favor certain devices that work on google and not apple, or vice versa. Rokus seem to work better with google. If I want voice control, I am probably going for google home, though siri does pretty well.  The big thing that pushes apple ahead for me is the automation.  I have not seen any of this on google home.  Apple can turn devices on and off at certain times, at sunrise/sunset, when people come and go (requires apple geofencing, of course), or when another device is triggered.  While not especially sophisticated like the ISY-994, it might handle the basic stuff like turning lights on at night.
 
Google was miles ahead on remote control of devices originally, but lately I see Amazon products taking the lead with much more effort. Now, Amazon can do conditional events based on it's own vocals, ISY or other hardware triggers, and my guess is Amazon will soon enable multiple trigger logic based conditionals rivalling real HA boxes like ISY994.
 
Now I don't use or own any Apple devices, or intend to go that direction ever, with their cloud based methods, but Alexa Routines should be scaring many HA producers as they introduce new levels of logic every month. Despite about 5 GH boxes we just don't need them anymore with the teams of Amazon entry people surpassing what GH has done lately.
 
<p>Alexa is good also, but I find it less intuitive to set up.&nbsp; If I recall correctly, also, it has no automation ability.&nbsp; I would treat it only as a voice-based controller, perhaps equal to, or better than, the google home at this point.&nbsp; For home automation, I think I am still picking the homekit.&nbsp; I guess it depends on what you are looking to do.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>As far as cloud dependency, I find it hard to argue that the echo has an advantage over homekit.&nbsp; Do not both rely on the internet and the cloud?</p>
 
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