My parents house was my testing ground, and before I knew about Inovelli and Zooz, I installed Lutron Caseta smart switches, but never got the Pro Smart Bridge for Hubitat integration. This was mainly because the startup kit was readily available at Home Depot and the most most bang for your buck at the time.
In total there are only 5 switches; 4 Dimmer switches, 1 On/Off, and 1 Pico remote.
I've recenlty learned about the Zooz and Inovelli switches (I must have been living under a rock) and I'm wondering if it would be better to replace the Lutron switches with either of the two.
The Lutron switches have been amazing and have been rock solid since day one. Never had a single issue as they just simply work. Which, is rare from a technology standpoint. However, my thoughts on replacing the Lutron switches are such:
Money spent on replacing the switches to Zooz would be about the same if we purchased the Lutron Pro Smart Bridge.
Would be able to eliminate the need for another "hub."
Would be able to eliminate the need of another app and account to create.
Integration to Hubitat I imagine would be more simplified.
From a cost perspective, it seems it may only be worth switching to Zooz. However, Inovelli, while double the price, would still eliminate points 2 - 4. I suppose I could leave the current switches and just replace the other dumb switches with the aforementioned, but then I would still need to get the Lutron Pro Smart Bridge.
What do you all think, am I crazy for thinking about switching? I
Which Lutron switches and dimmers did you install? If you like the look and feel of their Caséta range, I’d recommend them over zwave or zigbee switches/dimmers.
@Shamwedge Keep the lutron, they're tanks and they just work. I've never had one go bad and haven't changed a battery in the Pico's for over 10 years (I love Pico's)
I own four Hubitat hubs across four buildings (three at one location, the fourth in my wife's shop in a nearby village). I had used Caseta switches in the past but decided to try z-wave switches from several manufacturers as we were installing the first two hubs because at the time they cost a bit less and my logic was similar to yours (i.e., why have two hubs?). Well, I'm now installing only Caseta switches and dimmers for any new things I decide to automate, and even replacing some of the z-wave switches originally installed. In my opinion, the Lutron switches are simply of higher quality than most z-wave switches and the Lutron signalling system is far superior in that it has much better range and is even more reliable than my solid z-wave system. You also gain the ability to use Pico remotes, which are remarkably handy for a variety of uses. So... If it were me, I'd go buy the Lutron Pro hub and call it a day. Just my two cents.
The only compelling reason to switch I can come up with is the scene control that Z-wave switches can do. I've found the notification bar to be less useful than I thought it would be.
Disclaimer: I only have Inovelli switches and dimmers.
I fall somewhere in the middle. I love the Pico and am indifferent on the Caseta.
The Pico is a very inexpensive way to get reliable button controllers, even if you have to buy a Bridge Pro.
I Love their little stands, and the ability to wall mount without an electrical box.
On the other hand...
I dislike the look and feel of the Caseta, no tactile feel.
I wish Caseta had scene capability like Z-wave.
The Caseta have become very expensive in the past couple years compared to Z-wave.
The Caseta no-neutral dimmers make an annoying buzzing noise with LED that is not there with the Zooz dimmers. (Identical bulbs) A Caseta dimmer with a neutral wire would likely get rid of that buzz, but the $130 cost of one is a ridiculous price increase over a standard Caseta, and frankly feels like they are price gouging.
I have literally never hear a buzzing from any of mine... That's really weird. Wonder if it's an issue with switch/bulb brand. I had a lot of issues with that eco crap from Home Depot but 0 issues with commercial electric.
Thank you all for the feedback and different reasonsings to stick with Lutron. I can't say I don't disagree. Lutron has been rock solid over the years. Though, as some have said, the price definitily reflects that. However, it's probably true more than ever in this case that you get what you pay for.
Additionally, I just learned about Matter and all it's crazyness stirring up the consumer pot. That said, to add to everyone's points, the fact that Lutron is apart of the same alliance that is creating Matter, porbably makes it even more worth it now to stick with Lutron. Compatability will probably never be an issue, and I like not having issues
How do you activate the switch with your elbow or the swipe of your hand as you walk into a room? That was one of our issues with it. You had to be so pointed with your actuation.
I mean I guess the obvious answer is by using automation silly!
But in a more practical sense - I agree and so does my wife (though I like to blame her mostly) - we are just not into the Caseta look/feel and the RA2/3 or Homeworks is far too pricey - unless doing new construction where you can hide the cost somewhat.
I do have a Lutron setup in my basement and like others have mentioned it definitely is robust. I also really like the picos when they are used as remotes and not hanging on the wall.
Some other very minor things...
I had a client have 2 Lutron switches fail not at the same time but over the course of a few months - Electrician was completely mystified at this.
Same client encountered an actual range issue where certain devices stopped responding (not related to the other issue) - probably due to the old house construction and very large layout. Was able to resolve by adding a repeater/outlet (but you only get 12!). Note: Everything has been working great since. Even though the range is usually much better than advertised you still might end up needing additional bridges etc.
I'm not sure I like being at the mercy of a single vendor or having a separate hub involved for the devices. At least with Zooz or Inovelli I can change if I really need to.
Again, minor stuff but good to bring up in a discussion like this.
You can actually use 2 Caseta repeaters these days. One being the first plug-in Caseta outlet added to teh network. The second being the dedicated Caseta Repeater device.
Cool - thanks for the correction, adjusted my prior comment!
Some other points:
For Caseta make sure you get the Smart Bridge Pro [L-BDGPRO2-WH] not the cheaper one.
With Caseta you can have up to 75 devices. If you need more and you are using HE you can have multiple bridges BUT you have to have separate Lutron accounts I think. RA2/Homeworks is much better in this regard but you pay for it.
Also a nice-ish feature is being able to connect have multiple HE hubs connect to the bridge(s) directly. One less layer of indirection but to be fair HubMesh works very well too.
I have 72 Caseta devices (74 counting the two hubs), and 27 of those are Picos. The biggest advantage is that the Picos pair directly with the dimmers and switches, so every wall switch and dimmer in my house works whether or not Hubitat or the internet are working, including the ones (almost 40%) that are picos and not actually wired. Also, you can control the brightness from any of them, unlike a typical 3 way installation that allows a dimmer at only one of the switch locations. And since I got most of my Picos bundled with dimmers for about $50 each (4 years ago), that lowered my per-switch-position cost to under $30, about the same as cheap Z-wave stuff (at the time).
The math has gotten a bit different with increased prices from Lutron and cheaper Zigbee/z-wave stuff than 4 years ago, but I don't regret the decision.
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