As zigbee operates in the wifi band any easily available 6dB antenna should work fine.
True, but you want to avoid rubbish antennas with misleading specs. And you also don’t want a dual band antenna.
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Sure. Dual band antennas should be easy to avoid as they are usually advertised as such. Also I've recycled quite a few 2.4Ghz ones from old gear that I no longer use. The RP-SMA connectors themselves are available pretty much anywhere.
I’ve played with a bunch of cheap 2.4ghz antennas while experimenting with making a Zigbee range extender, and most are utter garbage with many having worse performance than the PCB antenna that came in the Zigbee plug.
Yes these are not dirt cheap, but they are from a manufacturer who tests their products and provides legit data sheets on the performance.
Fair points. 
By the same token I've converted quite a few Ikea repeaters using cheap rubber duckies and all have performed better (higher LQI/range) than stock, albeit whether a known high quality antenna would be an improvement again I honestly couldn't say. (As an aside I've now swapped out all the ikea stuff for the tiny Tuya repeaters and so far these are super rock solid).
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Nice! I just checked the price of the ZigBee Clipsal GPOs. They're $200 a piece! I think your idea is better. Although the zwave gear is pricey so if controlling a double GPO, it might work out about the same cost. I'm thinking Shelly gear might be good here.
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The Aeotec dual nano modules are only a few Bucks more than the standard nanos. I’ve found the dimmers to be good too and the Fibaro dimmers are great if you want the same switches to trigger scenes via a double press etc.
I just checked out the Clipsal Wiser GPO here. Apart from the expense, I don't really understand why they opted for toggle switches instead of momentary press. It seems the way it works with the switches is that you either turn the GPO off (with no ability to control it after that) or in 'smart' mode where you control it via Zigbee (or BLE if you change the firmware). No idea what state it adopts if you toggle off then to 'smart'. Presumably the last state it was in when in 'smart'?
Since a GPO is only ever going to be on or off, a momentary switch would have made more sense to me, so you can control it either via the switch or a hub. Am I missing something? Anyone else see any merit for having a toggle switch? Seems dumb to me.
Unless they are self articulated .... but there's nothing in the data sheet to suggest that is the case.
Personally, I used the Clipsal momentary switch mechs - they are still rockers, but always reset to the the "off"position.
The data sheet says "rocker on/off" rather than bell press or momentary.
Yep. So my question still stands. I don't get it. Seems dumb.
Seems dumb because it is.
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I counted up the lights in the latest electrical plan and I dropped down to 92 lights all up. I was over 100 in the first iteration of the plan.
No, the faceplates are all the same Clipsal Iconic although I have a box of Saturn switches I took out of the old house. With Clipsal, it's just the mechs behind the faceplate that change. Good gear but way overpriced.
I think the options for a double GPO are either:
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- Aeotec Dual Nano switch - about $99 per unit - Z-Wave https://www.aeotec.com.au/aeotec-dual-nano-switch.html
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- Fibaro Double Switch 2 - About $90 - $120 per switch - Z-Wave https://www.amazon.com.au/Fibaro-Double-Switch-remote-operated/dp/B07D1Q58HS/ref=asc_df_B07D1Q58HS?tag=bingshopdesk-22&linkCode=df0&hvadid=80882897341983&hvnetw=s&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4584482463948791&psc=1
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- ** Double GPO Power Point - Touch Wall Socket** $59.99 - WiFi. This is a cheaper option but does involve swapping out the switch completely. WAF depends on whether she is happy changing out the switches. They are glass and don't look bad IMHO. https://www.auselectronicsdirect.com.au/smart-wi-fi-white-double-power-point-sockets
- Shelly 2.5 WiFi Double Relay Switch $28.99. This is the cheapest option by far. Wi-Fi https://www.ozsmartthings.com.au/collections/shelly-wifi/products/shelly-2-5-double-relay-switch
Due to the number of switches in my house,, I'm probably looking at either the Shelly 2.5 or the Glass double switch. While you could have different switches controlled by different technologies in theory, in practice I think it's better to pick and stick as far as possible.
I have installed 7 TUYA GO Zigbee Extender across my 2-storey house after reading this discussion. And the results of the Zigbee mesh has improved a lot.
Not sure if this is the right place to ask - found some zigbee repeaters in storage (same as these telstra ones) Telstra Zigbee outlets ** Gone** - #7 by mattsebaymail and have an honest question because I don't really know. you have the on/off from the wall power and an on/off on the repeater. I'm assuming that the repeater has to be 'on' in order for it to repeat the signal... or is just having it turned on at the wall suffice and you can keep the repeater 'off'?
Usually having the outlet turned off will simply stop providing power to what you have plugged in to it, but other repeating features and communication with the outlet should all remain available, all requiring the power to be turned on at the wall. And if you plan to use it as a repeater, make sure you keep it turned on at the wall.
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Thanks mate - i thought it was straight forward but i second guessed myself haha
