Computers & Electronics

Wink home automation hub - switching to subscription - May 13

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  • Aug 22nd, 2020 3:14 pm
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Nov 21, 2002
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Scote64 wrote: You could dump the proprietary hubs and go open-source, like Home Assistant. I re-purposed an old Android media player as a Linux box running Home Assistant, and it has worked reasonably well. The biggest issue is that every single supplier of home automation gear keeps making changes to their api and servers, so something breaks and needs a fix about once every other day. It's hard to keep up with the continuous changes and repairs. This is why home automation is just not ready for consumer use, and won't be until somebody kicks the butts of the suppliers into getting behind a common interoperability standard.
I hate when the fix is a new version/hardware revision because its so wifi/internet/cloud based the problem is a security issue. Its almost an unregulated big pay for beta at user expense industry. Its almost like some are fighting for their proprietary cloud service. This is all mostly for in your home?, and the very idea of 3rdy party industry cloud is involved...to me thats crazy. Whats next...the smart condom/vibrator? Connect it to wifi to improve your sex life....oh I bet thats coming....no pun intended.

you its too bad we don't have a sticky here for maybe at least introductions and options for home assitant for Iot and its usage to steer people in quick simple directions where to start. Its intimidating to alot of people when opensource is offered because its considered a wide learning curve when more than often do to lack of clarity and instruction. But the pay offs increase your length of usage in the end.Your investment may last longer and be more safe but merely locking down certain doors by being more independent vs cloud dependent.
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Jan 21, 2018
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For devices operating with Zigbee and Zwave, there has to be an always-on local hub to act as the network interface, so it's fairly easy to make it a smart hub that offers some local control capabilities. For WiFi devices, no hub is needed beyond your WiFi router, but that means that any smarts have to be provided through an internet service from outside your home. Manufacturers face the dilemma that there is no common standard hub that they could expect to find in your home, unless they supply a proprietary one themselves at extra cost.

If there was a standard api, then everyone could support it. You could buy a cheap generic hub that would work, or it might even be incorporated into your router (the way that Samsung incorporates a version of the SmartThings hub into their WiFi routers). Devices could advertise their standards compliance, and you wouldn't have to worry that they wouldn't play nicely.

Right now there are open-source home automation packages like Home Assistant, but you still need server hardware to run it on if you want it to be available 24/7. And while Home Assistant tries to keep up with all the custom apis and cloud servers thanks to the diligent effort of a large support community, it's not easy. I started using Home Assistant late last year, and I am now 15 versions behind, not counting the many interim fixes to components that stopped working suddenly due to changes that manufacturers made.
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May 7, 2020
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knapper wrote: And the offer is based on monthly fees, how is that for winning over peeved Wink owners? I actually already bought the VeraPlus and should get it on Monday. And I purchased based on my belief there will not be monthly fees...
There are no monthly fees for Vera hardware. That's just another offer in an effort for an easier migration if one gets a free hub upfront.
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Jul 28, 2010
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SorinM92570 wrote: There are no monthly fees for Vera hardware. That's just another offer in an effort for an easier migration if one gets a free hub upfront.
Is that offer available for Canadians? Also, some hubs have bluetooth, how is that used?
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Jul 28, 2010
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Bought Smartthings. Can't wait any longer for them to offer the Vera promo for Canadians.
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My VeraPlus is supposed to arrive tomorrow (just in time), and doing some research I found I have a dimmer that is not compatible - Lutron Caseta. Looks like I am in the market for another dimmer switch... If anyone has decided to keep their wink, they can have the old dimmer for free (disclaimer: I won't put out much effort to get it to you).
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All my house runs off OpenHab2 + Mosquitto (MQTT server; both opensource), running on my PC (can also run from RPi etc). I design/make all my smart gadgets (smart switches, smart water leak sensors, 3D printer controller etc). Never have to rely on anyone to provide "service", and it's more secure this way.

Same for video security: a bunch of Wyze /Wyze Pro cams with the "cloud" feature disabled; instead streaming RTSP directly to my PC with iSpy recording things that move.
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Oct 6, 2012
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I am pissed off with this wink move as well. Have any of you tried livingwise?
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BlueLightSpecial wrote: Wink has extended the deadline to the 20th FYI.
As if that will save them from mass defection.
In fact in Rand McNally they wear hats on their feet and hamburgers eat people
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Jul 28, 2010
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Quentin5 wrote: As if that will save them from mass defection.
They're probably rethinking the rate or the strategy. Didn't get enough enrolment or the outrage was overwhelming.
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BlueLightSpecial wrote: They're probably rethinking the rate or the strategy. Didn't get enough enrolment or the outrage was overwhelming.
I hope so, this is he worst time to increase rates and those who bought did so because there were no rates. If they didn't think ahead and put aside some of the purchase price for future needs thats their shortsightedness and consumers are justifiably unhappy to pay for their bad planning.
In fact in Rand McNally they wear hats on their feet and hamburgers eat people
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Jul 28, 2010
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Quentin5 wrote: I hope so, this is he worst time to increase rates and those who bought did so because there were no rates. If they didn't think ahead and put aside some of the purchase price for future needs thats their shortsightedness and consumers are justifiably unhappy to pay for their bad planning.
I'm guessing they were faced with either charging a fee or going under.
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Jan 21, 2018
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BlueLightSpecial wrote: I'm guessing they were faced with either charging a fee or going under.
It doesn't cost much to operate an existing internet server. I'm sure they could have sustained it on a small trickle of income.

It's likely that their choice was not "fee or going under", but rather "fee or make a substantial reduction in expenses". They likely chose to try a fee model as an alternative to giving up a lot of future hopes and ambitions, laying off most of their staff, moving to a smaller office etc..

But I can understand that. If you have talent and ambition, why waste it maintaining a service for others on a trickle of income that has little future when you could gamble to either restore that future with a new business model or put the uncompetitive company out of its misery and move on.
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BlueLightSpecial wrote: I'm guessing they were faced with either charging a fee or going under.
They never realized they would have operating costs until covid hit?
In fact in Rand McNally they wear hats on their feet and hamburgers eat people
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Sep 13, 2004
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im in the same boat.. looking at either SmartThings or Hubitat as a potential replacement. Definitely concerned that ST will eventually move to this model as well given they have been stalling on their "local" offering

edit: just got an email from them that Chamberlain is also pulling support. I assume other integrations are going to be following the same.
"The first rule of RFD is, you do not talk about RFD."
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akz wrote: im in the same boat.. looking at either SmartThings or Hubitat as a potential replacement. Definitely concerned that ST will eventually move to this model as well given they have been stalling on their "local" offering

edit: just got an email from them that Chamberlain is also pulling support. I assume other integrations are going to be following the same.
Yeah, saw the email from Wink and Chamberlain. Great value for the monthly subscription when all their integrations start pulling out because they don’t have a large enough user base to make things worthwhile...

C
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akz wrote: im in the same boat.. looking at either SmartThings or Hubitat as a potential replacement. Definitely concerned that ST will eventually move to this model as well given they have been stalling on their "local" offering

edit: just got an email from them that Chamberlain is also pulling support. I assume other integrations are going to be following the same.
Chamerblain doesn't officially support ST or Hubitat either, but the dev community is great at providing a good work around.
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Sep 3, 2005
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I have a house full of zigbee devices and I know that one day they will all get stranded because my hub radio will stop working and zigbee won't exist anymore. I'm running hubitat, coming from smartthings, but if I was really interested in longevity I would have gone home assistant.
Most of the "smart" market is dominated by phone app driven products. These apps will stop getting support and the APIs to interface the devices will be lost and forgotten. So to support my lights I might need to hold onto an iphone 10 when my daily driver is an iphone 18.
Right now the best standard to adhere to is Alexa compatibility, but it's only a matter of time before Alexa starts "recommending" purchases to me.
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Jul 28, 2010
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CameraBill wrote: I have a house full of zigbee devices and I know that one day they will all get stranded because my hub radio will stop working and zigbee won't exist anymore. I'm running hubitat, coming from smartthings, but if I was really interested in longevity I would have gone home assistant.
Most of the "smart" market is dominated by phone app driven products. These apps will stop getting support and the APIs to interface the devices will be lost and forgotten. So to support my lights I might need to hold onto an iphone 10 when my daily driver is an iphone 18.
Right now the best standard to adhere to is Alexa compatibility, but it's only a matter of time before Alexa starts "recommending" purchases to me.
Home assistant (open source) or homekit (apple)?

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