I'm just getting started and I'm having trouble finding compatible devices. I'm looking for color light bulbs, dimmer switches, fan controllers, thermostats, doorbells, etc.
I've seen the hubitat compatible device lists but a lot of the items are obsolete and no longer sold. Everything available seems to be WiFi not ZigBee or Z-Wave. Is the move to WiFi a trend? Will Hubitat start supporting more WiFi devices?
Any suggestion on a good on-line store? I've ordered a few items through Amazon but what arrived was slightly different from the post and not compatible (wifi vs zigbee or different model).
Wifi is not ideal for home automation for many reasons, including power consumption, wifi congestion, and cloud dependence. But others can wax eloquently on that subject. There are a number of wifi devices that HE does support, usually ones with local (not cloud-dependent) integration.
Hue is the sort of gold standard for color light bulbs though many folks have had good luck with other brands. LIFX is also popular and that is an wifi integration but without a cloud dependency. For dimmers and fan controllers I use Lutron Caseta but there are lots of zwave and zigbee options. For thermostats I use ecobee (wifi integration that is cloud dependent) but there are lots of options in that space, as well. Honeywell makes a zwave thermostat that is very popular.
The "official" supported devices list just represents things HE has actually tested and are known to work. But many, many other zigbee and zwave devices will work just fine, especially if (unlike Aqara and some others) they actually conform to the zwave or zigbee standard. I usually do a search on these forums and see if anyone else is using them and what experiences they have. You'll also find many devices that work with community-supported drivers. I've had good luck with many of them.
If you are unfamiliar with Tasmota it is worth a look. A device loaded with Tasmota has it's own Web interface and operates entirely locally via WiFi but can be integrated with Hubitat.
A bulb looks like this for example:
If you are not too techy and just want to buy devices with Tasmota on them there is a list maintained here. Here is an online store with a decent number of devices pre-flashed with Tasmota, Athom. If you don't mind digging deeper there is a broad range of devices that can be flashed with Tasmota with varying levels of difficulty.
Tasmota devices are suited to devices that are permanently plugged in. In my house I have bulbs, switches, plugs, power monitoring, fan control and sensors all tied into Hubitat. For battery operated devices, mainly sensors, I use Zigbee.
Thanks, for all the suggestions. I've been able to find most of the items you have recommended on Amazon. Is that the best option or are there better sources?
