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Satisfied with fibaro ?


john1312143

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I just thinking about purchase Fibaro HCL or HC2 which one is better?

In general are you satisfied with fibaro ? (read a lot of negative feedbacks here on forum)

I want to integrate my home with alarm sirene - unlock home to 30 seconds then run alarm if unlock scene is not run. Want to add roller shutters, some sensors , which one is better lite or hc2.

Thanks

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I suggest first to go on opensource solutions. most of them are free, open and they have integrate every known device out of the box.

I did it and I was happy with the simplicity of adding new devices. The reason I moved on HC2 was the UI on mobile devices and the stability. All the others (integration, complexity of scenarios, support) it does not exist on fibaro  ecosystem.

In conclusion: In your case I would buy HC2 if I can get it very cheap and if all my smart things are fibaro z-wave devices. 

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5 hours ago, korniza said:

the stabilit

Ha-ha! You are kidding me? ;)

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I don't know to answer that question. If this was the forum of a car manufacturer, your question would sound like:

 

 

Which car should I buy? Do I need a van or a bus? I would like to go shopping with it and maybe go on a road trip. Please tell me if I should buy this brand, because I read a lot of negative feedback on this forum.

 

;-)

 

BTW You want "opinions" or "facts"?

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BTW I see you are new to this forum. Please tell us where you live (Z-Wave frequency depends on region).

 

Also, please introduce yourself:

 

Please login or register to see this link.

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  • Topic Author
  • Thank you all for comments, anybody else ? @

    Please login or register to see this link.

     i think my question is quite simple, are you satisfied with fibaro ? Don't complicate things :)

     

     

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    11 minutes ago, john1312143 said:

    Thank you all for comments, anybody else ? @

    Please login or register to see this link.

     i think my question is quite simple, are you satisfied with fibaro ? Don't complicate things :)

     

    Why do you want to know this? If I say: "yes" or "no" what are you going to do with that information?

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    @john1312143  

    IMHO, coming (for example) to an Apple forum and asking "are you satisfied with Apple " it's a bad manners

    isn't it?

    FIBARO cons and pros... yes this brand. We can call official support and it can help us. Yes, FIBARO software is far from being perfect.

    (sometimes I'm thinking what company haven't QA at all :D ha ha ha)

    but, it сomplex and ready-to-operate solution.

    Edited by 10der
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    19 hours ago, john1312143 said:

    which one is better lite or hc2

     

    Let's try to start somewhere...

     

    On this page, if you scroll down, you'll find a table listing the differences between HC2 and HCL.

     

    Please login or register to see this link.

     

    What is your definition of "better"? Which one do you think meets your requirements? Now, and within lets say 5 years? Do you plan to build up some experience first? Have you ANY experience with Z-Wave? How important is security and reliability? After all, this is radio technology and in my home network about 0.01 % of all messages get lost...

     

    Edited by petergebruers
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  • Ok so my detailed plan as i mentioned integrate my home with alarm sirene - unlock home to 30 seconds then run alarm if unlock scene is not run, it is possible with fibaro HCL ?

    Then i want to make automation for some lights, 7 roller shutters, 5 thermostats for start. 

    I'm asking if users are satisfied because i don't want to for some reasons when fibaro will be stuck and my alarm will be shouting for all neighbrhood when i won't be home. (as i read in this forum that hcl have this problems ?)

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    6 minutes ago, john1312143 said:

    Ok so my detailed plan as i mentioned integrate my home with alarm sirene - unlock home to 30 seconds then run alarm if unlock scene is not run, it is possible with fibaro HCL ?

     

    I do not know, I do not own a HCL (I have a HC2 and a RaZberry) and I do not use the alarm system. Someone else might be able to help.

     

    I would like to point out, HCL does not have a scripting language (Lua), and that limits its flexibility.

     

    I did a quick search on this forum using "HCL" and "ALARM" and I found, for example, this (rather long) topic. It's about one of the popular available sirens.

     

     

    If you read the 5 last post you'll see, for instance, this question: "

    The HCL have added the siren and I can select between sounds and volume in the advanced tab. I am using scenes for the burglar functionality.

    If the alarm is active and goes off by motion detection I am not able to reset the siren when pressing the pop up message with a red alarm rotating light icon in the iPhone app. If I press deactivate the alarm stops in the app and in HCL web interface, but the siren is still beeping.

     

    Is there a way to include the siren stop command in the deactivate function? The siren is added as a "other device" when setting it up because there where no option that looked like a siren. Maybe thats why it is not showing up in the Alarm panel setup page? Seems like the Alarm panel is only adding components that are matching selected filters.

     

    If I manualy stop the siren it works and by including the stop in a scene it also stops. But I would like to make it stop also when pressing the big red deactivate symbol that pops up in the app."

     

    So there certainly seems to be limitations.

     

    Also on that page, this question: "is there a way to use Aeon siren with less dB in specific cases? For example as a notification when dishwasher, washing machine etc. complete their program cycle?

     

    Then someone answers... "Yes, you can write a LUA scene" - and this is something you'll see many times. Maybe solutions for HCL do exist, but you'll often find a Lua solution and that is not going to work oon your HCL.

     

    16 minutes ago, john1312143 said:

    Then i want to make automation for some lights,

     

    I would like to give you an advice: don't ever thing that a "simple motion scene" or a "simple light script" exists. Ok, it *starts* as a simple on/off script. It is easy to turn on a garden lamp, when a motion sensor triggers. But then you want to add timers, add a "manual override" and make the timers depend on the time of day. I think you'll find many examples of scenes, written in Lua. I think that is because it is easier to share this code, than to post screenshots of "graphic scenes".

     

    Of course, you can start with a HCL then move up. Maybe to a HC, or maybe one of the competing products...

     

    It depends on your ambition. Do you want to learn the programming language?

     

    22 minutes ago, john1312143 said:

    7 roller shutters

     

    It is good to know, the reliability of Z-Wave depends in the size of your house, your network, and the number of mains powered devices. That is because mains powered devices can act as repeaters. If you buy Z-Wave plus devices, this happens automatically.

     

    Please login or register to see this attachment.

     

    There is not a big difference between HC and HCL, this is mainly a Z-Wave thing.

    So I recommend you start with at least 3, maybe even 5 mains powered devices, depending on the size of your house, building materials etcetera.

     

    Because you do not want "false alarms" it is important to have a good network.

    I'd like to point out, some users have separate alarm systems. Some have hardware interfaces, some have IP interfaces. So sometimes a motion sensor on an alarm system can be used to trigger something on your HC or HCL. But it is hard to tell how that would work without knowing the details.

     

    28 minutes ago, john1312143 said:

    I'm asking if users are satisfied because i don't want to for some reasons when fibaro will be stuck and my alarm will be shouting for all neighbrhood when i won't be home. (as i read in this forum that hcl have this problems ?)

     

    Well, maybe this can help... Firstly, the same Z-Wave rules, as explained above, apply to any Z-Wave controller. Secondly... The HCL uses the same software as the HC2 but removes a few components (did you see that table I pointed at in my previous post) and it has limit CPU and limited memory... It probably also depends on the firmware version. I've been around here for about 5 years, it has evolved a lot. Sometimes things break... I sometimes read Homeseer, Z-Way and Vera forums... I do not see a big difference. Some people will make bold claims like "X is better than Y" and I sure do not wan't to call anybody a liar. It probably fixes their problem. 

     

    If you compare systems from different vendors... there are some many different aspects to compare.

     

    35 minutes ago, john1312143 said:

    5 thermostats for start.

     

    You might be interested in this topic I wrote, to get some background on how thermostats work. Maybe you already know all this, I do not want to underestimate you.

     

     

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    2 hours ago, john1312143 said:

    Ok so my detailed plan as i mentioned integrate my home with alarm sirene - unlock home to 30 seconds then run alarm if unlock scene is not run, it is possible with fibaro HCL ?

    Then i want to make automation for some lights, 7 roller shutters, 5 thermostats for start. 

    I'm asking if users are satisfied because i don't want to for some reasons when fibaro will be stuck and my alarm will be shouting for all neighbrhood when i won't be home. (as i read in this forum that hcl have this problems ?)

    Hi @john1312143,

     

    as you can read some other users are flabbergasted by your question. Perhaps you've expressed your self a little bit unfortunete and have to add additional info and additional explanations to clarify.

    Regarding your purpose and goals it can be dome with HCL, but.... Will you be satisfied long term also? Are you going to make HA (home automation) your hobby, or just want to have things connected and finished? Are you willing to invest much time in HA?

    These are the considderations i woul'd make when choosing between HCL and HC2.

     

    And probably if we weren't sattisfied with fibaro, woul'd you expect to meet us here? :P

    Edited by Bodyart
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    11 hours ago, Bodyart said:

    as you can read some other users are flabbergasted by your question. Perhaps you've expressed your self a little bit unfortunete and have to add additional info and additional explanations to clarify.

     

     

    This phenomenon even has a name... It is called "the X-Y" problem

     

    Please login or register to see this link.

     

    I quote: "The X-Y Problem, as it is sometimes called, is a mental block which leads to enormous amounts of wasted time and energy, both on the part of people asking for help, and on the part of those providing help. It often goes something like this: 

    User wants to do X. 

    User doesn't know how to do X, but thinks they can fumble their way to a solution if they can just manage to do Y. 

    User doesn't know how to do Y either. 

    User asks for help with Y. 

    Others try to help user with Y, but are confused because Y seems like a strange problem to want to solve. "

    After much interaction and wasted time, it finally becomes clear that the user really wants help with X, and that Y wasn't even a suitable solution for X.

     

    So X = what the user wants, which he originally described as "I want to integrate my home with alarm sirene - unlock home to 30 seconds then run alarm if unlock scene is not run. Want to add roller shutters, some sensors"

    And Y = "I want to buy and HCL because I think it will do X for me" 

     

    As you say, @Bodyart, good answers require a good problem definition.

     

    What triggered me? When we talk about "alarm systems" - do you think of Z-Wave as the first solution? Then users started to say "no, you need open source" and "no, you need HC2 because it is reliable" and then "no HC2 is not reliable" clearly indication we all had made our own version of "X" in our own minds...

     

    But I think we are on the right track right now, he added "Then i want to make automation for some lights, 7 roller shutters, 5 thermostats for start." and I was able to discuss this.

     

    I think, at this point, still no decision can be made. I would even say... Maybe he wants to debate this on forums of other brands as well...

     

    11 hours ago, Bodyart said:

    Regarding your purpose and goals it can be dome with HCL, but.... Will you be satisfied long term also? Are you going to make HA (home automation) your hobby, or just want to have things connected and finished? Are you willing to invest much time in HA?

     

    All very good questions to help us understand his intentions...

     

     

     

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    • 3 weeks later...

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    • 3 weeks later...

    I am new to this forum and have the similar question. I have read the responses and I'll try asking the same thing but I'll try asking with more detail... here it goes...

    • I am using a SmrtThings (ST) hub at the moment but I am unhappy with the latest round of weekly issues.
    • I am in Canada.
    • I have several lights using Phillips Hue and Lutron Caseta switches.
    • I have several Multisensor motion sensors
    • I have Sonos speakers that I bought specifically for Announcements such as weather, motion alerts, etc.
    • I have Bali blinds with Somfy ZWave controlled motors
    • I have Amazon Alexa and Google Home (just not sure which is better yet. Leaning towards Alexa)
    • My motion sensors turn on my lights when motion is detected but only if Lux is <= 10
    • I do not want to integrate my Ecobee thermostat as it does a fine job stand-alone but I would like to see temperatures in the house.
    • I wouldn't mind integrating, to some degree, my DSC alarm system. ie; status, on/off

    I started in HA about 5-6 years ago. Simply with a few zigbee bulbs.  I have tried Wink, Homeseer and this current ST.  I have WANTED to do a bit more with complex rules but the web-based/cloud development is a big turn-off for me.

     

    Things I would LIKE to do:

    • If there is a severe weather warning, flash the lights and/or announce it through the Sonos speakers
    • If the outside temp is above xx degrees, close the blinds
    • If it's raining or cloudy, close the blinds
    • If a door is unlocked or garage door is open and it's 9:00 PM, announce this to me via Sonos or message
    • Turn on my driveway lights when I arrive if Lux is <=10
    • Nice GUI
    • Some sort of user control

    Probably some more but those are the kind of things I would like to do. 99% of them, I can not do with any other hubs.  Weather seems to be a big challenge with them all.  Stability and no reliance on the "cloud" is obviously a must.  I have about 50 devices.

     

    Based on all that, which hub would work best for me do you think?

     

     Thanks for any suggestions

     

    Edited by aWanderer
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    • 3 weeks later...

    dont buy Fibaro. Communication with issues is bad. Are not open. Old zwave standard. Fgt-001 products about half a year still with a lot of bugs and problems. 

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