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> Agree on all points of preferring Z-wave though and it's also what I use. However, Linus (of Linus Tech Tips) recently redid all the switches in his home with

> Agree on all points of preferring Z-wave though and it's also what I use. However, Linus (of Linus Tech Tips) recently redid all the switches in his home with Zwave switches... and they had a firmware issue... And the company refused to publish firmware updates in any way except through "official" Zwave hubs, and not Home Assistant. It eventually got sorted out, but Zwave isn't necessarily intrinsically failproof either. Yes, I followed that drama as well and the did eventually make the newer firmware available to HA and similar though that doesn't exactly negate anything I said. For new features/fixes you are dependent on the manufacturer but that's the same everywhere. The big difference is that if Linus' switch company went out of business then his switches would continue to work the same way they always did (bugs and all). But I do agree with you Z-wave isn't perfect and does sometimes require a little more knowledge to work with. Thankfully I'm all set currently (aside from the SmartThings rug-pull that I have to deal with and finally move everything remaining to HA instead of using my ST hub as just a controller from HA) and I'm just going to sit tight over the next few years and see how things shake out before I upgrade/replace any of my gear.

bisby 4y ago
I was just referring to your comment: > As it stands now I don't care at all who made my Z-wave switches/bulbs/plugs, they could already be out of business for all I care If the company was out of business and there was no way to get the newer firmware, LTT might have had issues. Also, buying a switch because it is advertised as having feature X, only to find out that feature X was added in a newer firmware than you have, and you can't get that firmware. That means it isn't just a "I dont care at all who made my product" scenario. It's much lower risk (especially if the feature you want is basic functionality rather than automation), but it's not 0 risk. I agree with you that Z-wave is going to be 100% better than WiFi devices that call home and join a botnet, but I wanted to make sure it was clear that there is still room for issues.
- lapetitejort 4y ago
  Even if new firmware is out, you're not guaranteed to get it. Linus got it because he has millions of subscribers and if he makes a stink, companies have to listen. If you're a boring customer with just one twitter account at your disposal, you may never be able to update.
  - walterbell 4y ago
    Firmware licensing or device distribution opportunity for Linus Tech Tips.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

bisby 4y ago

I was just referring to your comment: > As it stands now I don't care at all who made my Z-wave switches/bulbs/plugs, they could already be out of business for all I care If the company was out of business and there was no way to get the newer firmware, LTT might have had issues. Also, buying a switch because it is advertised as having feature X, only to find out that feature X was added in a newer firmware than you have, and you can't get that firmware. That means it isn't just a "I dont care at all who made my product" scenario. It's much lower risk (especially if the feature you want is basic functionality rather than automation), but it's not 0 risk. I agree with you that Z-wave is going to be 100% better than WiFi devices that call home and join a botnet, but I wanted to make sure it was clear that there is still room for issues.

lapetitejort 4y ago
Even if new firmware is out, you're not guaranteed to get it. Linus got it because he has millions of subscribers and if he makes a stink, companies have to listen. If you're a boring customer with just one twitter account at your disposal, you may never be able to update.
- walterbell 4y ago
  Firmware licensing or device distribution opportunity for Linus Tech Tips.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]