Update Nov 20 2020: I needed to add an additional sensor yesterday, and was in a hurry. My ISY experience was that I had to grab a laptop (which at the time was nowhere near me), open the Java-based admin console, fiddle with getting that to work, and then add my device. With HE, I realized that I could add the sensor with just my phone. In less than the two minutes it would have taken me to go get the laptop and fire it up, I had the sensor added. Sweeeeeet. Also loving that I can just create a shortcut on my phone to a dashboard. I was going to add my third HE over Thanksgiving, but now I think I might just do it this weekend. So far, really liking this controller.
Update Nov 18 2020: The HE is definitely much faster than the ISY in terms of how quickly z-wave sensors register. The ISY would sometimes take 2-4 seconds to register, e.g., a door closing while the HE does so almost instantly (as quickly as the wired alarm panel). The biggest improvement, though, is that I don't need to use a Java-based console to access the device for edits to programs, etc. Browser-based access is a real help. What we won't know for months is whether the HE is as reliable. I never had an ISY "lock up", in 5 devices across three properties. That was its sole claim to fame for me, frankly. But so far, so good with the HEs.
Original post: I've been using some form of home automation for about 15 years, starting with Homeseer then moving to the ISY (first the 99, then the later 994). X10 in the early days, then a long period of Insteon with the ISYs, then Z-wave for the past year. Homeseer would periodically lock up on me, while I can honestly say I never had an ISY do so, over 5 devices in various homes. But I absolutely hated the user interface of the ISY and I grew increasingly frustrated with their Java-based admin console, which locked up OFTEN, sometimes requiring multiple restarts in a single session of adding or removing devices or editing events. Third-party mobile interfaces were required to see devices on my phone because the company that offers the ISY never cared much about that, and I never really loved any of those that I tried, especially after I moved to Z-wave in a new property we bought. The final straw came when they announced that they had decided to make v3 of their polyglot software, which makes integration with third-party solutions such as weather info possible, available only via their "Polisy" device. "One box for the price of two" sounded like a bad idea to me, and my protests were met with an attitude of "If you don't like it, find another device". So, I started searching for a replacement. And I think I may have found it, with the HE!
Based on my first few weeks, I am definitely imoressed! I bought my first HE to automate the heating in a remote building on our property, and it has worked flawlessly for about a month now. I decided to order two more, one for each of two other buildings on our property, and I spent a few minutes setting one of those up over the weekend. It was, by far, the easiest home automation install I've ever done. It took me far longer to exclude and remove Z-wave devices from the ISY (using that clunky Java-based admin console) than it took to add those same devices to the HE, each of which "took" the first time. In fact, my only "concerning" point was when I accidentally logged into the first HE and added two devices to that device (almost 100' away in another building!) which took two attempts before they actually added. I didn't even think that was possible, but the C7 Z-wave radio in the HE did it. I did have to go down to that building to exclude and remove them, but still, that's impressive. I also decided to add my two Aeon repeaters last, just to see how the system performed without them. It was flawless. I added them anyway as I already had them, but neither my Homeseer nor ISY could function without them. And I set up my Dashboard in about an hour for that building, which is a fraction of the time it took to get something half as good with either of those other two solutions. So finally, a home automation company that cares at least a little bit about user interface. Also, I did all this while the ISP that serves our remote property (an island on a lake in rural Maine) was having yet another round of problems. So, local control has its advantages once again. I plan to set up the other building over the Thanksgiving holiday.
Admittedly, this installation is still new, so I can't yet speak to reliability, which was the core benefit of the ISY. And, I still need to figure out a way to have my local CumulusMX running on a RPi feed weather data into the HE without the need for Weather Underground, given the problems of our ISP (I know of the Weewx driver but really like CumulusMX). I would also like to figure out an easy way to switch between my different HEs and their dashboards on my phone (takes several steps for me now), so advice on either of those things would be welcome. But based on my initial setup and use, this old-timer home automation user has found a new device in the HE. Thanks for offering it!
