Can anyone enlighten me? Do these buttons show up in HomeKit if you join them to an IKEA bridge? Or do they need to be joined to a bulb in the IKEA bridge? I think I tried these a long time ago, but cannot remember the result.
If they do and you're an iOS/HomeKit user, then you could map them back to HE with Homebridge and HomeKit Automations. Yeah, it also requires an Apple hub like an Apple TV 4 or a HomePod Mini, but it's a fast and reliable way to get HomeKit capable input devices back into HE. I do it for Xiaomi buttons, motion, and contact sensors that are joined to an Aqara HomeKit hub. Works great.
I think there is a way to get the buttons working on the Hubitat network but it doesn't exist right now. I think you could create a Zigbee device that the buttons are paired to. Then the firmware could update a cluster that is bound to Hubitat.
Nothing exists to do this now but I think something like the sonoff Zigbee bridge could be used. Probably the Tasmota to Zigbee firmware could be reworked . You could get back to the Hubitat over the zigbee network or over WiFi.
I have been playing with Zigbee2mqtt lately as I think the Hubitat zigbee implementation is falling behind (no inbound groups messages, no OTA updates). Also I think Zigbee2mqtt supports the join codes so I think you could have a fully zb 3.0 network if you have devices that support that for the added security (if someone wants that).
I guess it depends on what you're looking for, there's not a lot of point implementing ZigBee 3.0 stuff while the HE radio isn't ZigBee 3.0 itself.
Similarly "inbound groups messages" is something of a hack IMO ..... devices that use that are really designed for direct device-to-device communication. The fact that other hubs / software support it is nice, but it's not what it was designed for.
OTA updates would be useful ..... I've used that in deCONZ, but the reality is most manufacturers still don't officially release their firmware to third parties.
I'm sure HE will get there with some of these things eventually ..... but there's probably more important priorities on their todo list currently.
I'm not sure that is entirely true. You can update the SOC in the stick used in the C4 to a zb3.0 stack
I would guess the C5 and C7 can update their firmware (if they don't already run a zb3.0 capable version) also.
Just because it is a hack doesn't negate the need to implement it in order to stay competitive. Ikea tradfri is a entry level home automation system that has worldwide availability. At some point people may want to migrate to something better. Smartthings, Phoscon, and home assistant all support inbound groups. I would consider Hubitat to a competitor to these products.
My guess is Hubitat could get access to more since it would be a B2B relationship. Several vendors are active on the forum. It is in their best interest to provide firmware to Hubitat if it makes their customer's issues go away.
I agree, in the end it is up to Hubitat to prioritize what they feel will lead to more revenue.
Just to add one more comment. Im comming from Homey, where quite a time was stated that Ikea remotes integration is not possible. But recently after FW update, all remotes were supported. Just to not give up from this dream.
BTW, there is quite usable solution if you have IKEA bulbs. You can pair them with HE and with remote as well. This way, IKEA remote can be used to controll those devices directly (but nothing else) and devices can be controlled by HE.
It's not technically impossible, but it would require a change to Hubitat's Zigbee implementation (by staff, something users cannot do). They haven't said that it will never happen, just that it's not a priority right now. So, I wouldn't hold my breath, but in the meantime, there are workarounds like the one you describe--a good idea if that works for you! There are also alternatives, like pairing them to a DeCONZ network and using a community integration for that.
You can pair the remotes with other Zigbee devices if they support touchlink. I paired an Ikea remote with an inner plug and it worked.
Actually you can pair a remote to non touch link Zigbee devices also but it's kind of a pain. I did it from the Conbee that I have paired to the HE network to map. I think in theory you could write some driver's to add add any Zigbee device to the group of the remote but I don't think anyone has done that. That should be possible with the current implementation in HE.
Admittedly I am struggling with a firmware update on this as we speak, but I have mine, relatively successfully connected via my Raspberry Pi, using the DeConz community drivers.
Not sure whether you can use it to sniff an existing network or not, if that is what you are intending to do.... Maybe there is other software you can use to achieve that, I am using it to achieve adding IKEA devices to my HE setup that either cannot connect to HE natively or have limited capabilities...
Cool, didn't realise there was a Deconz driver. I was only using the ikea buttons in HA and they weren't supported by the HA bridge yet. Good to be able to use the button controller app in HE rather than HA
Anyway, just for my own curiosity, I was trying to see if it can sniff the HE network and map it out. I seem to hear snippets of it being done but haven't been able to find the proper steps. I just managed to 'join' the conbee HE (it sees in in device discovery but never really finished initializing). It managed to discover 3 of my repeaters, but that's about it. Maybe I didn't get the security settings right as I could only get it to join under the 'no security' setting.
Also, not sure if I explained it, but the conbee is installed on my rpi and then it is an api call between the HE drivers and the deConz / Phoscon software on the rpi.
Yea the xbee is something on the to do (later) list for now. I just got the conbee last week so am just experimenting and pushing the limits of what it can do. I got it for the main purpose of going OTA firmware updates to some of my devices and now that's done I'm just seeing what else I can put it to use now. Looks like its gonna be useful to breathe new life into my old ikea buttons. Even the non-battery hue tap switches works.
The Ikea smart ecosystem uses Zigbee groups for integration between switches and devices. This is convenient for users because switches and devices can be linked (and used) without a hub, Groups are a core part of the Zigbee standard.
Ikea gives away its switches with many of its devices, is hugely popular in much of the world, and is an active part of the Zigbee alliance.
The fundamental issue is that HE platform is not fully group aware currently so cannot integrate with Ikea Zigbee ecosystem. Other platforms that support Ikea smart devices can do so because of their more complete support for Zigbee groups.
Instead of telling people who want to integrate their existing, functional, devices with HE, “toss them in the landfill and buy new devices using the limited parts of the Zigbee standard HE supports” it would be more helpful if HE platform grew, and supported devices that are Zigbee group oriented.
