To each his own. With this device, I don't have to press my thumb, click on an app, wait for the dashboard to be displayed. More importantly, anyone in the family can use it (especially if their phone is in another room)
3 Likes
I should probably mention, I don't want to use a smartphone, or tablet for my control. This is in my bedroom, and I just want simple hard button control. I don't want a bright screen in my face when I'm sleeping, and having to look at it to figure out which button to press. The stuff I want to do is really basic. I want to be able to turn on and off my bedroom/bathroom light, and a bedside fan, to begin with.
I'm sure I could find some wi-fi/proprietary devices to do this more easily, but I want to expand on Z-Wave, not lock myself into a exclusive/proprietary system.
2 Likes
Then a simple button controller should be good for you... Look at the Hue scene controller. Can also set multiple tap options
I'm not seeing that is Z-wave compatible though? I know that the Hubitat is supposed to be compatible with the Philips Hue stuff though. So I'm thinking you are suggesting, using this Hue controller to send commands to the Hubitat, that will translate into Z-wave commands, and essentially act as a bridge?
I'm willing to give that a try, but I was hoping to find a remote like this Hue controller, that was Z-wave specific, there just don't actually seem to be a lot on the market. I was hoping I was just missing something.
I failed to mention this in my previous post but the NX1000 is connected to the HE via Z-Wave.
1 Like
It's zigbee... Works just fine with HE. Doesn't matter that it's not z-wave, will talk to any device connected to hubitat
1 Like
Or if you really want to do it right. I use these on each of our night stands. The upper and bottom buttons are programmed for on/off of their respective table lamps, the center up/downs are dimmers, and the center button turns off the whole house. (You can program them to do what ever you want). Batteries last about 10 years (Seriously)
3 Likes
As @rlithgow1 mentions many of us use HE for home automation vs remote control. For instance I have a ceiling fan in my bedroom attached to a virtual thermostat. It comes on when the temperature is above a preset limit.
In those cases where I really do need remote control or I need to make it guest-proof I use either the Aeotec "mote" series or Lutron Picos. The Picos are part of the Caseta ecosystem and do require a separate hub though the HE integration is solid and simple. If you're not using the rest of the Lutron Caseta product line probably not worth it for you. The Aeotec devices are straightforward and zwave.
Here's another thought though - have you considered Alexa? Works great, and much easier at night when you can't see the remote either. I have recently even had some success with Alexa's snore detection algorithm. Not that I snore, of course... no, not me.
I'm not a fan of having everything put into the cloud, or having big corporations having access to my life 24/7, and listening to me all the time, so that's not really an option, not really a fan of voice control either. At least in this circumstance. I definitely do snore, but I also use a C-pap, but probably the fan noise + white noise generator would interfere with voice recognition routines, even if I wanted to use it.
That is one of the things that attracted me to Hubitat, was the local control, not being locked into proprietary system, not needing to be in the cloud.
1 Like
I saw the Lutron remotes, but don't those require another bridge to Lutron Caseta? Are the batteries replaceable? I hate throwaway tech.
Yes, requires the pro bridge 2 which directly integrates into Hubitat. Yes the batteries are replaceable (use 2032's) They last for about 10 years. All of my switches in my house are Lutron. I also have pico's mounted as switches... Oh and Pico's run about $15
2 Likes
Yup fair enough. And that certainly is one of the advantages of HE.
@rlithgow1 and I are both part of the Lutron mutual admiration society and we could go on forever. Pico also makes a really nice bed side table stand for the pico, and they can be mounted in the switch plate he is modeling for you. But yeah you do have to invest in a Lutron hub (PRO series). The integration is all telnet - 100% local. But the switches rock so once you've already made the investment the remotes are cheap and handy.
Welcome to the community!
I don't have any of these but the few mentions of Hank products I've seen have all been positive.
In addition to the NX1000 there's also the ZRC-90US (if you can find stock).
1 Like
Yeah, that's the problem, it seems either a lot of these controllers are either discontinued, or out of stock. I'm guessing part of it is the semiconductor shortage issue, and possibly low interest. I really hate that everything requires a smartphone these days. I don't want to have to use a damn app for everything.
Those ones that you posted, and I mentioned earlier, seem to be the only affordable ones around.
1 Like
That may be a direction I go in the future, but want to keep costs down initially, as I'm just trying to figure out if this is the way I want to go (it seems to be). Although it is frustrating that doing something that seems to me is fairly simple, is even this convoluted.
My X-10 system has been hobbling along for a while now, and it barely does what I want it to, but every time I looked at switching, there always seemed to be issues with compatibility, reliability/robustness, ease of use, and of course companies always trying to lock you into their system, and more more trying to get all sorts of information on you that I don't want them to have, since NONE of them are trustworthy, the bigger they are, the worse they are in that regard, but that is an argument for another time.
Lets lay this down in a couple of sections.
Nothing that HE or for that matter most any other platform will be compatible with x-10. Once you switch to whatever, that will be it.
HE is incredibly robust. It supports z-wave, zigbee natively and umpteen integrations natively. It supports umpteen integrations via community
It is very easy to use, especially with apps like Basic Rules, Button Controller, and Simple Motion and Lighting and as complex as you want to be with Rule Machine.
HE holds no information and everything is 100% local. They're top priority is not to collect any data. Infact, except for updates, you can completely block HE from the internet all together and everything will work fine.
Lastly, you have been given multiple options that are easy to implement above. The issue at hand is taking that first step away from what you know into something you don't 
When you are ready, I can confidently say that every single person here including the dev's is willing to help guide you through any thought process' you have
Oh I know nothing is compatible with X-10 these days, and quite frankly, I'm ok with that, X-10 has too many issues, too many limitations, not to mention the technology, though slightly updated throughout its lifetime, is still over 50 years old.
However the one sorta strength was in its simplicity which was just side effect of the technology, the simple device address, on/off command. I've been watching the home automation space for a while, and it always seemed that promising new stuff came around, Insteon, Z-wave, Zigbee, etc.. I was always really close to pulling the trigger on something, but there were always issues that came up, I have a bunch of Insteon/X-10 switches, but they turned out to be a bit fragile, both physically, and in the electronics, so never made the switch to Insteon, which looks to be a very good decision now, and makes me even more determined not to get locked into a single companies proprietary solution.
Yes, you are correct, taking a step away from what I know, and learning something new is always going to be a pivot point, but mostly I don't want to sink a bunch of money into something that ultimately doesn't work for me. I really don't think that's the issue here, more that there are a limited set of options for the specific way I want the system to work (i.e. hardbutton remote similar to X-10 palmpad), without having to add additional hardware and translation layers from one protocol to another.
Again, not sure why these solutions seemed to be available, but are now not very numerous, without having to add more bridges to different protocols/technologies. Part of it is the unfamiliarity of how HE actually works, since I won't know that until I actually get one, I just want to have as much understanding as I can get, before I buy a bunch of hardware.
My current needs are pretty basic, just remotely turning on and off lights, and fans, at least for now. Once I get that working reliably, then I might start looking at more fancy stuff, like HVAC control, fireplace, etc.
It does look like at least in the US, the hard button remotes, are for the most part limited to what I initially posted, and possibly a couple more, which I was hoping there were more but are either discontinued or a victim of the chip shortatge (like the Aeotec Nanomote Quad, the Wallmote Quad is to pricey), but it doesn't seem to be the case, I'll just have to pull the trigger on one, and hope it works.
Ehh, sorry for the long ramble..
1 Like
Well, You can stick to z-wave and zigbee easily enough. No need to add an additional bridge. I like Lutron because, well frankly they're tanks and they just work. You can go with the Hue button controller and it will pair directly with HE and you can set it to control anything else that is connected to HE eazy peazy... Again, goes back to making it as simple or as complicated as you want.
That is definitely a factor. I would start first with the Hubitat Compatibility List here... https://docs.hubitat.com/index.php?title=List_of_Compatible_Devices and then check what others are using and reccomending.
Hahahaha You're not rambling at all... Want rambling? Wait till I get a few beers in me! 
I don't mean this in an offensive way, but those X10 remotes to me look like something out of the 70s where they predict what the year 2000 will look like. (I am old enough to have lived that).
Most people now either automate things, a simple button, or more likely (not that I like it personally) a phone or tablet. There really isn't a strong (or any) market for these x10 form factor remote devices.
There is no such thing as "handling an appliance module" in Hubitat. You push a button on any remote, and it can do any action or number of actions you desire. You can use any generic button to open the garage door, or a plug-in outlet for a lamp, a smart bulb, or a light switch. The button protocol (Zigbee/Zwave/Lutron etc) and the controlled module are two independent things. "Rules" (as a generic term) tie a button to whatever. This is very powerful, and has very few if any limitations.
I really like the Pico buttons like everyone else has mentioned if you are in North America. The initial buy-in is fairly steep ($125 or so for a bridge) but the Picos low cost, reliability, and long battery life make up for the price of the bridge. If you were to purchase about 9-10 Pico, the bridge usually pays for itself over the price of a Zigbee or Zwave button that typically cost between $5 and $10 more than a Pico. No button out there will have a 10 year battery life like a Pico, so you probably save money with Picos over their lifetime.
I think you also need to consider automating things. There is very little need for all these buttons if you have things set up so your bathroom light automagically turns on to a very dim level at night and turns on normal during the day. I have dim lights in hallways come on for when I let the dog out in the middle of the night. The kitchen light comes on when I walk into the room. I hardly have to touch light switches anymore. I have motion sensors in every room and doors sensor on every door including the garage, closets, and basement.
Difficult to find Z-Wave multi-button remotes these days. I have this 6 button Zigbee remote and it's very good.
Most Aqara devices are problematic on Hubitat. They are Zigbee, but non-compliant Zigbee, so they tend to drop off the network eventually, no matter what you do in regard to compatible Zigbee repeaters, etc.
However, these are not made by the same company that makes most of the Aqara devices. They are made by Opple, and they are said by many that have them, to be very stable, but a bit difficult to get paired initially. I must tell you though, I do not have these joined directly to Hubitat. I use a different method for Aqara and other non-compatible Zigbee devices so that I have stable operation and no dropping off the network. Regardless, this is a good controller and very inexpensive.
What's very different from what you are used to with X-10, is the interconnectivity that is made possible by the hub. It really doesn't matter if you have Z-wave controllers and Zigbee devices, or vice versa. Same is true for the aforementioned Lutron remotes. I have Insteon dimmers in my home that are controllable via Lutron Pico remotes and could easily be controlled by my 6 button Aqara Opple controller if I wanted.
Each button of the Aqara Opple controller (and many others for that matter) can have multiple presses. I believe there's one community driver for the Aqara Opple 6 button controller that allows up to 24 different button presses. Personally, I only use 1 press per button for its current use case.
