Who else wishes Lutron caseta made just normal looking rocker switches?

That is the question, to be or not to be?
I've had clients tell me that Lutron Caseta dimmers don't bother them, and some tell me they would never get something that looks like that!
Nonetheless, as everyone says, they are completely reliable and dependable. Always.
So far, I've never had one fail.
(I'm not sure I've even heard of ANYONE here say that they've had one fail.)

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It seems that Lutron's engineering prowess and the patents they hold, plus the fact that they're still a small, privately held company, gives them a lot of freedom to set their own agenda.

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At first, my wife was agnostic about home automation. No interest for her. For years.
She even refused our caseta switches in our bedroom (X10 bad experience with sudden lights On at 3 AM...)
She likes to go to bed with relaxation sounds (sea, trains, waves, wind, etc).

One day, I installed a pico programmed to choose between several tunes on a Google home speaker placed under the bed and allow her to change them if needed, lower or increase the sound volume. After 1 hour, the music stops (she's sleeping).

My wife is no longer agnostic now. Not a real fan but now finds some advantages in what I have been building for years :grinning:

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I get the impression that I’m in the minority, but I kind of like the look of the Lutron Casseta switches and remotes. I also like that they allow a good control over the light - easy to open at max level when necessary or dim up to a low level. And they are so reliable!!!

I really like their Pico remotes with Hubitat. We must have more than 20 in the house. Having 5 button options are especially nice with color bulbs! I typically use the center button to turn on and cycle through the Colors and the top one to turn on and cycle through the whites.

I’m lucky that my wife is also pretty agnostic when it comes to these switches. We have a lot of automation now anyway, so rarely have to touch most switches...

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For me function is what matters most and what I have noticed is that to date not a single person has asked me how to operate any of my Caseta devices. The one comment I do get from visitors is that they love the fact that the switches are lit so they can see them in the dark.

I originally was also put off by the look, but have now gone full Caseta including fans as they just work.

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I've never liked the Lutron design. I do use some two button Pico remotes in locations where I can't use a normal switch. My Lutron switches were out of control - particularly for guests.

Next to that there was another triple gang box with a Wink Relay. I have replaced all six with paddle switches. Now guests can see what they do.

The camera distorts the angles. They don't look so badly out of alignment in person. They are off a bit but that's the price of having a house that has been renovated a few times.

I'll be changing the GEs on the right to match the Invellis on the left. It just hasn't been a priority yet.

As far as switches go I haven't touched them in ages. The lights are motion control and change based on mode. The switches are now there mostly for guests. Just a feel good UI element. :wink:

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To your point have Caseta switches in my basement - when I go into the utility room and it's dark I have to fumble around due to the flatness of the design. It's not immediately intuitive by feel like a paddle or toggle switch.

Maybe, but we like the look of them too along with the clario plates, it is pretty much an all or nothing situation in my opinion aesthetics wise.
I don't like the 4 button control on the two wire caseta dimmer, much prefer the 5 button that's part of the pro and elv neutral dimmers. The favorite button is super easy to find in the dark.

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Automate the lighting, and you won't need to even know where the switch is located. :slight_smile:

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Until you have guests in your house that WANT to do it manually.... :confused:

Try to show an 80 year old with poor eyesight how to use one of the complicated Lutron switch/dimmer panels with a ton of buttons, light colored text, and small writing. Good luck.

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THIS is the correct answer of course!!! But then I don't really need Lutron... My utility lights are controlled by an Iris smart outlet.

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My 82 year old mother-in-law has no problems whatsoever using our Caseta switches. She's never even asked us for assistance in how to operate them. It's not that difficult...push the top button, the light turns on; push the bottom bottom, the light turns off.

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Why are any of you making people turn lights ON with a button? If they are having trouble, automation is the answer.

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Well... Out of the 4 people that are 75+ that come in my house, 0 out of 4 accepted anything other than a straight decora or toggle switch. Bitched and bitched until my wife made me change the switches out to something simpler.

They kept hitting the wrong button, holding when they meant to press, etc, etc.

:man_shrugging:

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Just program every button to turn on the light. Don’t let them turn it off. :joy:

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I had to make the guest bedroom a straight switch with no dimmer. Even dimmers were too much for them. :roll_eyes:

Next step = lights always on, with no OFF. Good idea.

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Have you considered just installing some of these?

image

Sounds like they'd be most comfortable with some old-school technology. :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

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Leave these on the pillows and they should be all set:

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Or just every button is a toggle. So if the lights are off then no matter what button they mash it will turn off the lights. Similarly, if the lights are on and they mash a button it turns them off.

You could even take it a step further and setup a guest mode. When in guest mode the switches work in mash mode, otherwise the work the way you want them to. :slight_smile:

I use smart switches and smart bulbs. The switches don't locally control the load but I can turn them on and off through software if I need the actual power off for some reason. Everything is run through motion sensors and contact switches. The paddles allow for temporary overrides for that guest UI experience.

The most used would be the bathroom lights. These are the ones that a guest would most often feel they need to turn off. The switch will turn off the lights but not interrupt the automation. I also add a contact switch to the door so the light doesn't turn off even if the motion sensor goes inactive. It works well.

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NOW we're talkin' - Cloth wrapped "Knob and Tube" FTW!!!!! :fire: :fire_engine:

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