Zwave or Zigbee Cheap/Reliable In-Wall Switch

Hello All,

I am looking for a zwave or zigbee in wall switch that is reliable and not $40+. I currently use GE/Jasco zwave switches but those are a pain to pair or move to new hubs.

Thanks Again
Matt

Not cheap, but if you want ultimate reliability and performance, go with Lutron.

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I have 52 Lutron switches and they NEVER fail... great product

Which Lutron model do you recommend?

I like the Fibaro dimmer 2 because of the two inputs. I use one for the dimmer and the other for another light. I also like them because I can have my own switches on the front rather than the ugly ones you get with dedicated devices. There are also a few ZigBee ones out there now which are probably better but they don't have the extra Inputs.

All Lutron caseta switches and dimmers will work really well with hubitat as long as you have a caseta pro bridge, which has the telnet interface that hubitat requires.

Which exact switch/dimmer will work best for you depends on your application and house wiring. I use the switches and dimmers that don’t require a neutral wire, since my switch boxes lack neutrals, and I’ve been really happy with them.

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Zooz has a variety of in-wall switches and dimmers that are almost all able to be found for well under $40. I think most have a one-year warranty, and I haven't had any for long enough to speak to long-term behavior, but I haven't had any problems so far. (Their support is also fantastic.) Do note that there are sometimes subtle differences between switch/dimmer models, and they have a few of each (e.g., the ZEN27 leaks some current through the load when "off" to make the no-rewiring-required existing "dumb" switches work in a 3-way; others don't but may require something special in 3+-way setups).

Inovelli has, I think, cutoff preorders for their new switches and dimmers and it might be a while before you're able to get them if you haven't (and possibly even if you have...) preordered, but even at full price, the more expensive (scene-capable) option is under $40. Their support is also good, and like Zooz, they hang around these forums. (Don't have any of their old switches, but have some pre-ordered, and I have one of their old smart plugs.)

You can occasionally also find bigger brands like GE or Jasco (who I think white-labels these for GE) on sale for less than $40, and HomeSeer has a couple models that aren't usually cheap but can be found for less on sale. Pretty much everything I've mentioned is Z-Wave; if you want Zigbee, the GE (a different one) is the only one I'm aware of that's still being made and easily available. Like most, it's pricey, but you can sometimes find it on sale for less, and I think the Jasco (usually cheaper) is basically the same.

Caseta, as mentioned above, is reliable like most Lutron products, but you won't find much besides Pico remotes for under $40 on a regular basis, in my experience (and don't even think about that price point if you "upgrade" to RA2).

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For the price, and the outstanding support, I'd look at Zooz. I started with GE Jasco, and they're fine once you learn all the pairing tricks, but the Zooz have been just great in my house. They are priced well, and frequently go on sale as well.

As others have noted as well, you'd be hard pressed to do any better than the Lutron, but the initial buy in is a bit steep, and I (personally) prefer the simplicity of the more traditional paddle switch that Zooz and Jasco present over the typical Lutron switch. The real selling point for the Caseta/Lutron seems to be their reliability and the Picos.

I'm not in need of Picos and my Zooz have been rock solid, so....

YMMV.

S.

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Thanks for sharing your experience with Zooz @bertabcd1234 and @scottgu3!

@Quantumchaos, if you decide to give the switches a shot, they will be on sale at The Smartest House starting Monday :slight_smile:

Anyone try the GoControl z-wave switches from Nortek? I can get them pretty cheap but didn't want to go there unless they work well

Rick

Aww man.. I just bought 4 :frowning: maybe buy more? Hmmmmmm

There's always room for more smart switches :wink:

Sorry. No clue on those. I've used Zooz, GE/Jasco/Honeywell, one Eaton/Cooper, and I have a Qubino in one switch box. I've also got a pair of Inovelli's on Pre-Order.

So far my order of preference for in-wall switches (disregarding the Qubino):

  1. Zooz
  2. GE/JASCO/HONEYWELL (Zwave-Plus models or Zigbee models)
  3. Eaton/Cooper

Sadly I haven't any relevant experience with Lutron.

My Eaton/Cooper Zwave switch has been the only one I've owned that failed, so I can't recommend those. The GE/Honeywell/Jasco (all made by Jasco) have been OK, but pairing has always been "interesting", and I simply don't think their support is anywhere near as good as that provided by Zooz. Zooz continually improves both their hardware and firmware, and every time I've e-mailed support, I've gotten a response, even over weekends. Usually very very quickly.

They've helped me (more than once) to figure out the bizarre wiring in my some of my multiway light switches, so that's another plus!

As @bertabcd1234 pointed out, the lack of a need for "add-on" switches in 3+ way configs is nice too, although to be fair, the dumb switches only provide on-off control (not dimming functionality, only the Zooz switch provides that), so if you need dimming control for a set of lights from multiple locations, I think the GE or Lutron solutions are probably your only option (GE with "Add-on Switches" and Lutron with PICOs).

S.

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Ohhhh.....a sale...I better budget for that lol :slight_smile:

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