Got some basic questions, until now i use my alexa connected via Wifi to smart devices lile light switch, dimmer, thermostats, led and so on.
I now build my house ( lucky guy now) and want to handle all my smart stuff locally by homey, cause wirhout internet alexa is not working, and i think it is more safty to be offline connected.
I just start trying using homey and got to borders, here my questions:
Is it possible to connect simple and cheap wifi devices like dimmer, smart plug, contact sensors without a well known brand to the homey, or do i always need the brand’s app installed to get it work, because most of wifi devices are compatible to tuya/smartlife… but i cant connect them to homey, were not found?
Whats better to use, z-wave or Zigbee as an alternate to wifi.
Is it possible to design a simple dashboard that i can run on a touchscreen panel for control my devices, mounted on a wall as home control panel ?
I read a lot things about homey the last days but sitll i think its better to get direct answers.
No.
I’d like to advice to stay away from Tuya (-based) (wifi) devices. And they’re cloud based as well.
You’d go for Shelly for instance, which has the option to disable cloud connectivity. It’s also very budget friendly.
App-less devices: in theory all Matter devices;
Zigbee and Z-wave: (basic) lights & switch units
If you really, really want / need to use them, you’ll first need them to be paired with the mobile phone’s Tuya Smart or Smart Life app; connect them with Homey by adding them using the Tuya Cloud community app
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That’s a hard question. I don’t use z-wave solely because of the costs, because every device comes with a paid z-wave licence.
I like zigbee very much, but it’s not plug&play: you’ll have to do some homework and tuning.
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It’s work in process:
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Although this is an Athom (the Homey company) runned forum, you can read very honest user experiences and opinions, whether they’re negative or positive.
But, in common, often only negative experiences are posted.
Hy, and thx for your fast answer.
When i use tuya cloud to connect, the devices are not qith homey connected, right? They re by internet with tuya cloud and if i have no internet they wont response ?
Yeah, i saw dashboard and start trying a little bit wann get a homescreen on my wall to easily control groups of lights, ac’s, thermostat, rollos. …
I already baught a smart control panel with an extra knob to control but i couldnt connect to homey, only conect via tuya… so without internet it wont work, right ?
Thats why i asked if there are custom solutions that easily work.
To connectivity, if i understand it correctly:
Wifi/Wlan and BLE only with fitting homey app to the devices brand ?
Z-Wave / Zigbee without app, just connevt because standard ?
I don’t have devices with matter compatibility, maybe later ill get them
