Hive/Nest and other such smart home tech

[kevpuk]

Happy Tado user here......seems to 'just work', albeit we have the early version. Keep thinking about upgrading to the newer one, but......
Oh, and it plays nicely with Echo!

[filthy1980]

got a few Philips Hue bulbs which are great, expensive but really good fun, kids love them, seamlessly sync up with Amazon Echo too

will look at automating the heating and security in the new house, but I want to control everything from one app, not have different apps for each, but then you're looking at the more fully fledged home automation products / companies

went to the Gadget Show earlier in the air and there are tonnes of companies to choose from, weary of buying into one product range just yet

[d000hg]

Does the tech exist for one to do this themself if they're into that... e.g. buy light fittings and radiator valves, etc, which have facility for low voltage control and then build a rig using RaspPi/Arduino?

Not that I've looked in detail into the stuff available but it seems you have to buy into one ecosystem or another, and you're paying for branding and sleek design when possibly you just want a way to control everything over WiFi?

Building your own smart-home, writing your own software could be a really fun project for a real nerd.

[vwdan]

I've got Nest Thermostat and Smoke Alarms. I'm not hugely into the home automation / internet of things but I do rather like these. They're easy to set up and seem to be very good devices in their own right - the nightlight on the smoke alarm is a lovely touch.

[woohoo]

I've got Nest Thermostat and Smoke Alarms. I'm not hugely into the home automation / internet of things but I do rather like these. They're easy to set up and seem to be very good devices in their own right - the nightlight on the smoke alarm is a lovely touch.

I can see the nest smoke alarm has a motion sensor, can you get it to send an email if it detects movement? I'm thinking if I'm out would be good to know if detects someone in the house.

[stek]

I can see the nest smoke alarm has a motion sensor, can you get it to send an email if it detects movement? I'm thinking if I'm out would be good to know if detects someone in the house.

No, it basically pairs with the thermo to detect people still in the house and thus keep the heating on.

[minestrone]

My problematic thermostat kicked the bucket at the weekend so a rushed purchase of a nest yesterday morning and managed to wire it up successfully without blowing up the boiler.

I'm guessing the temp is a second order control system which should improve efficiency and hopefully help to manage the wife's thinking that if the radiator is not hot the heating is off.

I will echo the comments about it being a high quality product, bit unnerving how it illuminates when you walk past though. Spirt level in the thermostat housing is a quality touch.

[cosmos]

My Nest thermostat is being installed tomorrow. Looked at the competition but really none compared to the Nest so went with that, albeit its a bit more expensive than the others.
I have two Amazon Echos and a range of sensors around the house including motion sensors, window/door sensors and presence sensors on our keyrings so if I go out and leave a window open or the garage door open I'll get an alert.

Got some decent integrations set up now such as hallway lights coming on automatically after sunset if the front door is opened etc. but plans for much more.

I've got fixed CCTV at the moment but looking at getting at that so that I can get motion alerts from outside IF we're out or its after sunset and not when we're home during the day.

Also planning on adding a Ring video doorbell ASAP.

[d000hg]

What kind of ghetto do you live in? Maybe consider moving to a gated community...

[pr1]

I will echo the comments about it being a high quality product, bit unnerving how it illuminates when you walk past though.

you can turn that feature off so that it only wakes up "on press" rather than "on approach"