expired Posted by doublequote • Mar 28, 2024
Mar 28, 2024 9:32 AM
Item 1 of 2
Item 1 of 2
expired Posted by doublequote • Mar 28, 2024
Mar 28, 2024 9:32 AM
Lutron Caseta Deluxe Smart Dimmer Switch Kit w/ Smart Hub
+ Free Shipping$117
$165
29% offAmazon
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TL;DR: You are paying a premium for genuine quality, ease of install and use, minimal delays when using with Siri/Alexa/Google assistant.
Learn from my architectural mistake of wanting to go hubless when I got started.
I didn't want to have a mass of hubs connected to my router and I mistakenly thought that going purely WiFi would be better.
It's. Not.
Roughly 20 Wemo devices and 12 Lifx bulbs later I understand why I should've just saved up my money and grabbed Lutron devices when they came down to this price (I still haven't converted yet).
I'm one of the few lucky ones that don't have too many MAJOR issues with my Wemo switches, dimmers and smart plugs but they are notoriously flaky to many and, I work in IT so my tolerance and understanding is different. I went LIFX smart bulb wise becase they were (and still are?) the best when it came to color accuracy. LIFX is now owned by Feit so...take that however you want.
The biggest lessons I've learned regarding smart lighting is:
1. It's better to have a smart switch/outlet than a smart bulb if you don't care about millions of colors and
2. Hubless isn't as great as promised. Even now that Apple have made Homepods and AppleTVs auto-magic hubs, the response times can still be slow and flaky. Also, as already mentioned, these don't require an internet connection and communicate on their own wireless protocol. So, the more devices you get, the less you have to worry about your wifi traffic being affected.
3. Lutron does one thing: Lighting. So, their products are rock solid and they are built with decades of purist lighting experience in mind.
Hope that helps. All the best!
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And I second the reliability. These never disconnect, unlike my other TP-Link or chinese knockoff brands. Once set up, they just work, for years, no reboots.
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TL;DR: You are paying a premium for genuine quality, ease of install and use, minimal delays when using with Siri/Alexa/Google assistant.
Learn from my architectural mistake of wanting to go hubless when I got started.
I didn't want to have a mass of hubs connected to my router and I mistakenly thought that going purely WiFi would be better.
It's. Not.
Roughly 20 Wemo devices and 12 Lifx bulbs later I understand why I should've just saved up my money and grabbed Lutron devices when they came down to this price (I still haven't converted yet).
I'm one of the few lucky ones that don't have too many MAJOR issues with my Wemo switches, dimmers and smart plugs but they are notoriously flaky to many and, I work in IT so my tolerance and understanding is different. I went LIFX smart bulb wise becase they were (and still are?) the best when it came to color accuracy. LIFX is now owned by Feit so...take that however you want.
The biggest lessons I've learned regarding smart lighting is:
1. It's better to have a smart switch/outlet than a smart bulb if you don't care about millions of colors and
2. Hubless isn't as great as promised. Even now that Apple have made Homepods and AppleTVs auto-magic hubs, the response times can still be slow and flaky. Also, as already mentioned, these don't require an internet connection and communicate on their own wireless protocol. So, the more devices you get, the less you have to worry about your wifi traffic being affected.
3. Lutron does one thing: Lighting. So, their products are rock solid and they are built with decades of purist lighting experience in mind.
Hope that helps. All the best!
Thanks!
You should read and understand all of Lutron's directions before proceeding, and be comfortable with electrical work and observe all safety practices - that being said, here's a summary of what's needed:
You'll need to turn off the breaker for the circuit associated with the switches, remove the wall plates from each of the 4 locations, find which are the 3 way switches (they'll have 3 terminals on them), and replace 1 of the 3 ways with the Caseta dimmer. The Caseta dimmers are pretty beefy depth wise, so I generally replace the 3 way switch in the less busy of the 2 3 way switch locations. As mentioned, the remaining 3 way switch and the 2 4 way switches get replaced with Pico dimmer remotes, so dimming can be controlled from any switch location, .and the disconnected wires from those switches get wire nutted together.
Keep in mind that Lutron has a new Claro style dimmer, which is a more traditional Decora style paddle switch than the flat-buttoned Caseta switches. Those are currently on sale too, although have one less Pico dimmer. The more traditional style Claro may help with SOAF (significant other acceptance factor)
https://slickdeals.net/f/17371248-lutron-2-diva-smart-dimmer-switches-w-cas-ta-smart-hub-pico-remote-149-95-free-shipping?p=1698
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