New hubitat for Europe : US or Europe frequencies if no z-wave

Why Hubitat Elevation
1

I live in Canada but I plan to go to Europe (Belgium) in the summer to install a NEW automation system for my family.

Is it better (or mandatory) to buy a european hubitat or buying an american one is ok, too ?

I don't plan (at first) to use z-wave products, mostly zigbee, but who knows ?
I also purchase various zigbee products from Aliexpress.
I plan to manage (by importance) thermostats (gaz heating system with circulating water), water management, electricity management, light management, various relays, some google chromecast/sonos speakers (warnings), locks, etc.
@bobbyD : may I purchase a european hubitat (in case I need it) and obtain the delivery here in Canada (I leave the country in July) ?
Thank you for your argumented replies

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The C-7 and later have software-selectable Z-Wave region/frequency (though I believe they are set to the appropriate region by default), so no need to buy the European "model" specifically. The only differences are the included power supply and shipping.

I suspect you'll find it easier to buy the North American model in Canada and take it with you, though I can't speak to how taxes or duty requirements work in either region that may also play into your decision.

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For the PSU, not a real problem (will hook it to a POE system) and for the duties, I'm pretty sure that Canada is less expensive than Belgium (I know by experience that customs put taxes on everything, including gifts and whatever they can find on a bill).

Will wait for Hubitat sales staff answer about the frequencies and the various deliveries.
Update:
I checked my own C7, you're right, you can change the zwave frequencies !

C7 - Zwave frequencies
C7 - Zwave frequencies819×534 34.8 KB

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FWIW, be aware that this is not supported/recommended; there are many reports of z-wave not functioning as anticipated on PoE-powered hubs (C-8 and C-8 Pro).

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5

good to know.
I have very few zwave units on my actual system (C5 & C7, both POE powered) and never noticed such problems.

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Yes, to be clear, my statement above that this is how it works was not a question. :slight_smile:

FYI, people have had different experiences on the C-8 (which, among other differences, does use different Z-Wave ahrdware).

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FWIW the US LR band is not supported in Europe.

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Does C8 and C8 pro have built in PoE support?

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No.

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10

Thanks! I'm using my C7 with seperate adapter. Was hoping to get rid of that.

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As an aside, that's a lot of "mission critical" stuff to be controlled by the hub.

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The issue with certain PoE splitters is more prevalent in the C8 (may or may not impact the C7, not sure). So if you are determined to use PoE on a C8 and ANY Z-wave devices you need to make sure you get a good one. Check this thread for more info: PoE and the C8 (with extensive testing)

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What's the difference between US and US LR? Any reason not to use that?

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Here’s a recent thread that discusses some of the differences between z-wave and z-wave long-range:

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15

If you are asking about the region setting for Z-Wave, setting it to US-LR just enables Long Range mode on the radio (along with the normal mesh mode). I do not think it hurts anything to have it enabled. I believe all hubs that support LR already set to US were automatically switched to US-LR when updated to 2.3.9

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I'm on 2.3.9.136 and mine wasn't automatically switched. My zwave stuff seems to work ok so I may just leave things as there are. I don't think I have any devices that were long range anyway- yet.