I’ve got an old SmartThings Multi Sensor (first gen) that I used years ago with SmartThings. It was actually a pretty decent little sensor, and one feature I particularly liked was the vibration detection — I used it to detect when mail had come through the letterbox.
I tried pairing it with Homey around five years ago and, at the time, there definitely wasn’t support for it.
Obviously Homey device support has expanded quite a bit since then, so I was wondering whether anyone here is currently using one of these with Homey, or knows if it’s supported now?
I’d give it another go myself, but I need to pick up a CR2450 battery first, hence I thought I’d ask before ordering one.
It’s not in the Samsung SmartThings app, the Aeotec app, the SmartThings Community app or the SmartThings Local app. So it seems unlikely, unfortunately. You can try to get your device added to one of these apps, but you’d be the only tester which makes development a bit of a challenge…
Thanks, @Paul_Nas. That confirms what I suspected, unfortunately.
When I last attempted to use this sensor with Homey around five years ago, Homey did not offer the generic Zigbee pairing option that is available now. I’ll therefore obtain a battery and try pairing it again as a generic Zigbee device.
My main interest is whether generic pairing can expose its basic open/closed contact state. Even if the additional vibration, temperature and battery capabilities are unavailable without a dedicated driver, reliable contact detection alone would still make the sensor useful to me. If it pairs, I’ll report what functionality Homey exposes, along with the manufacturer and device identifiers.
Given its age and the fact that I may be the only available tester, I understand that requesting dedicated app support may not be practical. I just wanted to explore the newer generic pairing route before consigning what was once a very useful sensor to the bin.
I’d give this sensor a very low success rate as a generic device. The only generic Zigbee devices that are supported are lights and sockets. Anything else can be added but it won’t actually do anything.
The problem is that Zigbee isn’t actually a standard except for the network-side. When it comes to capabilities, everyone does it a different way which makes generic support, such as with Matter, very hard.
You can try though.
I have some Aqara switch remotes which are not supported by the Aqara app. I can add them as generic Zigbee devices but I can’t read if a button was pressed. They are non-functioning devices that don’t expose any properties or capabilities. Which sucks, because they’re nice switches and they weren’t cheap.
Thanks, @Paul_Nas. That makes the limitation clear. I think it may finally be time to look for replacements.
I need to replace quite a few door and window sensors throughout the house. I previously used several Sensative Strips, which were excellent because they were extremely discreet and could be hidden inside the window frames. Unfortunately, their batteries did not last as long as I had hoped and, because they are sealed units, they effectively become disposable once depleted.
I also tested some inexpensive IKEA PARASOLL Zigbee sensors. These now appear to have been replaced by the narrower MYGGBETT sensors, but the new model uses Matter over Thread and therefore cannot connect directly to my Homey Pro Early 2019.
I’m currently considering the Aqara Door and Window Sensor T1 as a possible replacement. It is reasonably compact, uses a replaceable CR1632 battery and appears to have dedicated Homey support.
My essential requirement is reliable open/closed contact detection; additional capabilities are not particularly important. If anyone has deployed a reasonable number of Aqara T1 or other compact, replaceable-battery sensors with a Homey Pro Early 2019, I would appreciate hearing about their long-term reliability and battery life.
I would suggest you first try if you can pair your existing sensor as a generic Zigbee sensor.
I have several Aqara T1 and non-T1 door & window sensors in use. Battery life really depends on the brand of battery you use, is my experience. Batteries of the more established/more expensive brands actually last longer: between 1.5 - 2 years. Cheaper batteries tend to last for shorter periods. But normally you should be able to get a 1 year life time. And of course, the more you trigger the sensor, the shorter the battery life.
I have a Myggbett which accepts AAA rechargeable batteries, which is great. They are a bit larger than other Tuya contact sensors I have, but I don’t really care. It saves me replacing a lot of batteries, because the Tuya sensors only last a year or so. Since I have about 20 of them, I’m constantly replacing batteries. I’d much rather charge a battery instead.
I haven’t tried this, but all the Ikea matter stuff can be switched to Zigbee by pressing the button 12-15 times, apparently. The chip they use is dual protocol and I know that some people have reported that other Ikea devices can be switched to Zigbee this way.
Thanks, @SunBeech. Yes, I’ll try the existing SmartThings sensor as a generic Zigbee sensor first, once I have obtained a fresh battery. If Homey exposes the basic open/closed contact state, that alone would make it worth keeping; vibration and temperature would be bonuses.
Your experience with the Aqara sensors is also helpful. A battery life of around 1.5–2 years using a reputable CR1632 would be acceptable, particularly since the battery is replaceable.
Could I confirm whether your Aqara T1 door/window sensors are paired directly with a Homey Pro Early 2019, rather than through an Aqara hub or a newer Homey Pro? Have they remained reliable and consistently reported open/closed changes?
I ask because I have found a few reports of the T1 pairing successfully with an Early 2019 Homey but then failing to report contact-state changes. If yours work directly and reliably on that model, it would be reassuring before I purchase several of them.
I have paired the sensors directly to my Homey Pro. I currently have a 2026 model and prior to that they were connected to a 2023 model. I have no experience with older Homey Pro models.
I have been using Homey for approx. two and a half years now with various Aqara sensors (including the door & window sensors). For me, in general, they work reliably. Regarding the door & window sensor it is important that the magnet-part of the sensor is a close to the sensor unit as possible to prevent missed open/close actions.
A general remark regarding Aqara sensors: they have their own ‘peculiarities’: they don’t always automatically switch to a different Zigbee router in your Zigbee network. This means that you need to ensure that you have a stable Zigbee network (though that applies in general for all devices). Also, based on other user reports, Aqara sensors don’t like to play well with IKEA Zigbee router devices (like smart plugs) and might stop reporting updates. So it is best to avoid that combination.
Gave the old SmartThings sensor another try with some fresh batteries. Although I managed to pair it using the generic Zigbee option, it’s unfortunately non-functional in Homey — so in the bin it goes!
I have an older Homey Pro 2019 and currently use one of the older Aqara Door & Window SensorsMCCGQ11LM (lumi.sensor_magnet.aq2), which works fine.
However, from what I’ve been reading, it sounds like I need to be a bit careful about which Aqara version I buy as a replacement. The newer T1 / DW-S03D / MCCGQ12LM version identifies as lumi.magnet.agl02, and there seem to have been reports of issues on the Homey Pro 2019 — i.e. it pairs successfully, but the contact and battery status don’t update.
Can anyone with a Homey Pro 2019 confirm whether the T1 is now working properly for them?
