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Why are “smart homes” always presented as either all in or all out? We have a handful of Wemo switches that we use to turn on various lights, mostly on a sunri
by Tagbert 5y ago
Why are “smart homes” always presented as either all in or all out?
We have a handful of Wemo switches that we use to turn on various lights, mostly on a sunrise/sunset schedule. They are reasonably reliable with no more than about 1 failure to switch in a month. My husband sometimes needs to repeat himself if he is using voice commands but then, he is a mumbler and I often have to ask him to repeat what he says to me. If I needed to switch one without voice or app, I can just tap the physical button on the switch.
When we leave town, they continue to switch off/on. I no longer have to dig out one of those Daisey-wheel timers and try to figure out what is on and what is off.
None of these lights are ‘critical’ in that, if they don’t switch now and then, I’m not upset. I don’t demand 100% uptime for decades at a time. At worst, I might have to unplug and replug in the switch to reset it. I don’t try to get complicated with them and have no particular desire to automate the rest of the house.
I feel like my home is smart enough at this level, not particularly fussy, and not a source of stress.
- jbuzbee 5y agoI also use the Wemo switches at home. And yes, for the most part they are reliable. I really like setting schedules based on sunset and sunrise. The integration with Google sometimes fails as the article notes (I interpret as a timeout), but if you set up scheduling in the Wemo app, it's stored locally so they can run their programmed schedule without going out to the internet. That's a plus. I also control them via SOAP calls from the local lan so if Wemo ever gives up the market, they are still usable.