Just FYI, since I know a number of people use ConBee sticks in here for various purposes.
I plan to grab one once available in the US (30 euro shipping from Germany to US if you want it 'now').
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Did you get one of these? I see that Amazon has them with Prime and wonder how you are using it and how well it works.
Nope, but thanks for the reminder!
I bought one to map my network instead of an xBee. The second software creates a nice map and it allows you to upgrade firmware on Zigbee devices. It is pain to set up since there is little documentation on using it as a router instead of a coordinator.
I was sort of successful in upgrading my Tradfri outlet while still on the Hubitat network. But I had to turn the Hubitat Zigbee network off, then plug the outlet in, then turn the hub network back on. Most Zigbee devices see the Hubitat as the update server so they don't see the Conbee as the update server but the above steps worked the one time I tried it. However, I still had to repair the outlet to the Hubitat after the upgrade. Not sure it saved any time but I didn't have to reconfigure the Conbee and I wanted to see if I could get a device to update it's firmware while still on the Hubitat's Zigbee network.
Also I have the deconz software running in Docker on a Linux server which has some issues with the USB implementation of the Conbee II. If you want to map your Zigbee network you might consider the xBee as I think a lot more people use that with Hubitat.
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Good info, thanks. I was mainly looking to get one for zigbee packet sniffing, not network mapping. I have a couple zigbee projects that I need a sniffer for, so I need to decide which device I'm going to get...
After looking some more, it seems like there isn't much reason to get the conbee 2 instead of the 1. Zshark, etc, don't support the 2 for sniffing, so I'll likely pick up a conbee 1 if I can find one in stock (not looking good).
EDIT: For my sniffing use I'm just ordering a TI CC2531 based board and moving on. $10.
Many thanks for the info. I'm not really interested in a visual map but would really like a more complete neighbor table and is better understanding of which devices route through which.
I recently added a natural gas detector and it immediately became the center of attention. It likely means I can move some of my other devices around to get better alternative routes home.
Thanks again.
Hi, just an info advice. I've ordered a cc2531 stick with router firmware.
Can I use it with XCTU to get the mesh map or a need to change the firmware (as coordinator)?
@Ryan780 has one of these, iirc. Do you have any thoughts on XCTU?
I've used mine to flash OTA firmwares to my OSRam bulbs---but that's still a work in progress. Although, I'm not sure if that's what the second part of your question was about...
THE CC2531 USB key firmware is Zigbee2mqtt. Do you think I can use it with XCTU?
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I just tried it to confirm....the Conbee is not compatible with XCTU. I believe the Conbee, Conbee II and Raspbee are only compatible with Deconz and XCTU is only compatible with Xbee's.
I have a Chinese knock-off Xbee on the way at the moment. It shipped December 15th but hasn't made it into the country yet. It has the same form factor as the Xbee. I'm waiting to see if it is compatible with XCTU as well. If so, it's a much cheaper alternative. (only $18).
I do not believe so. I believe that XCTU is only compatible with devices running the Xbee firmware. But you can certainly try it. XCTU is available for download from the Digi website for free.
