Insteon Looks Dead, Just Like Its Users' Smart Homes (arstechnica.com) 133
The smart home company Insteon has vanished. The entire company seems to have abruptly shut down just before the weekend, breaking users' cloud-dependent smart-home setups without warning. From a report: Users say the service has been down for three days now despite the company status page saying, "All Services Online." The company forums are down, and no one is replying to users on social media. As Internet of Things reporter Stacey Higginbotham points out, high-ranking Insteon executives, including CEO Rob Lilleness, have scrubbed the company from their LinkedIn accounts. In the time it took to write this article, Lilleness also removed his name and picture from his LinkedIn profile. It seems like that is the most communication longtime Insteon customers are going to get.
Insteon is (or, more likely, "was") a smart home company that produced a variety of Internet-connected lights, thermostats, plugs, sensors, and of course, the Insteon Hub. At the core of the company was Insteon's proprietary networking protocol, which was a competitor to more popular and licensable alternatives like Z-Wave and Zigbee. Insteon's "unique and patented dual-mesh technology" used both a 900 MHz wireless protocol and powerline networking, which the company said created a more reliable network than wireless alone. The Insteon Hub would bridge all your gear to the Internet and enable use of the Insteon app.
Insteon is (or, more likely, "was") a smart home company that produced a variety of Internet-connected lights, thermostats, plugs, sensors, and of course, the Insteon Hub. At the core of the company was Insteon's proprietary networking protocol, which was a competitor to more popular and licensable alternatives like Z-Wave and Zigbee. Insteon's "unique and patented dual-mesh technology" used both a 900 MHz wireless protocol and powerline networking, which the company said created a more reliable network than wireless alone. The Insteon Hub would bridge all your gear to the Internet and enable use of the Insteon app.
IoT garbage (Score:5, Interesting)
This is exactly why I avoid all always-online-required hardware and software, for the inevitable day when the server goes dark. Do I miss out on things? Possibly. But now I'm not the guy who can't turn his frigging lights on because the hub can't communicate with the mothership.
Re: (Score:2)
> Do I miss out on things? Possibly.
It's like insurance.
I have a grand total of one of these things. It's a $10 light bulb that comes on slowly a half hour before my alarm goes off.
If (when) the server goes away I'm probably out the residual value of the bulb. It's not my heat, it's not a huge investment. And it's on my isolated "The S in IoT" network, of course.
Re: (Score:2)
So you pay and pay and pay and pay, and when you need to use it you need to pay more?
That doesn't sound like something one would want to be involved with.
Re: IoT garbage (Score:4, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
Hubitat is a far better approach and not tied to a global conglomerate with a reputation of creating walled gardens and anti-competitive behaviour. It's a LOT cheaper, allows you to use almost any sensors/devices and can be completely disconnected from the internet if you chose to.
Re: (Score:2)
And do you need the cloud for this to work? There are a lot of low tech ways to get this to work, as well as ways to make it work with a normal light bulb.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
That's going to be cool now!
Re:IoT garbage (Score:4, Informative)
Re:IoT garbage (Score:5, Informative)
10-15 years ago, Insteon was by far the best option out there. As recently as ~4 years ago it was a completely viable option. Around that time, they were bought and sold twice, with the acquiring businesses having a different outlook on the IoT approach.
All my Insteon stuff continues to operate-- I have a Universal Devices ISY994i that is the local controller for it. But, eventually the powerline modem will fail and they will all be useless unless I want to break open the case and solder on a replacement capacitor.
Agreed (Score:2)
I switched from X-10 to Insteon not long after they were released in 2005. Works great, and the backwards compatibility with X-10 allowed me to upgrade my switches and outlets over time.
Likewise my Insteon devices continue to work just fine, nothing was setup for online.
I'll have to research what's available now as I've not kept up. Last time I looked none of the others offered anything like the 6 Button [amazon.com] and 8 Button [amazon.com] Keypad switches that allow you to replace a single light switch with one that can be used
Re: Agreed (Score:2)
I still use X10. It works extremely poorly in m house due to the hundreds of devices on the powrrline . Solar inverters and EV chargers are huge problems for any type of PLC.
That sais, X10 RF remotes still work. There are many with a lot of buttons. Some with as many as 16. The way to still use them involves transceivers that will receive the RF signals and convert them to PLC. You'll need 2 way X10 PLC interface to receive the PLC signals on your hub. I use HomeAssistant on a PI3B with a CM11A. If the PL
Re: (Score:2)
About the only thing I still have that works with X10 is my remote Christmas Tree light control, and that only gets used once a year. I still have some unused X10 devices in a box next to my desk, but I've never bothered to install them.
Re: Agreed (Score:2)
My IR543 IR to X10 transceiver still works great. There isn't much in terms of IR automation. FLIRC, but requires a separate computer Even SBCs have gotten expensive with component shortage. The IR543 great in my home theater to control ceiling lights. It also controls power for the 2 rear subwoofers.
Re: Agreed (Score:2)
Well zwave can do just that. And they make zwave scene buttons that fit in your wall. They even make ones that are battery powered with adhesive that can be stuck anywhere. I use one to cycle through colors on my Philips hue lamps.
I have been a zwave household for almost a decade now with no problems. Zigbee sounds cool but 2.4ghz doesnâ(TM)t have the penetration that 932mhz zwave does
Re: (Score:2)
Lithonia has an 8-button control, but it isn't functionally equivalent to the Insteon version, and proprietary protocol IIRC.
My challenge now is that I need to replace a lot of lights (I currently have a metric shit-ton of MR16 fixtures with electronic transformers that dim poorly with LEDs), and my controls have a sunset window. I also want to make sure the devices are UL which really limits options.
Re: IoT garbage (Score:2)
I've determined 433MHz unencrypted radio picked up and published to MQTT is best for low power sensors you don't care to hide from anyone with a radio. Low power, last forever, and are never 'forgotten'.
I've had too much trouble with ZigBee dropping devices that don't talk frequently enough. By the time I'm working with something on utility power, I'll go with something using WiFi and a cracked or published API.
But there're plenty of crappy WiFi devices out there too - I'm looking at you, Kasa.
Re: (Score:2)
That definitely can work assuming it's not locked down/tied to a product cloud service. Onkyo receivers are basically wide open for wifi, but not every device is as open.
As far as Zigbee, I've never had a problem and many things, like sensors and locks, can run on batteries for years with Zigbee/Zwave, which is much more efficient than Wifi
Re: IoT garbage (Score:2)
What's wrong with the Kasa devices exactly ?
Re: (Score:3)
Well, that's just *one* part of the system architecture. Your system may well rely on cloud storage, or use company servers to handle things like Amazon Alexa integration (and to harvest information on you, of course). These are not strictly necessary; OSRAM's Lightify servers shut down two years ago, and the only thing affected was Alexa and Google Home integration.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I do the same. After Wink switched models to a monthly fee, I also decided to avoid any Hubs that require online connectivity to work.
Re: (Score:2)
Not necessarily, some uses encrypted protocols on top of at least WiFi so you can't hack it yourself.
Re:IoT garbage (Score:5, Informative)
The weird thing with Insteon is that it CAN work without communicating with the mothership, you just can't use the official app to control stuff. HomeAssistant put out a post explaining how to migrate Insteon devices to be completely locally controlled: https://www.home-assistant.io/... [home-assistant.io]
Re: (Score:2)
The great thing about Insteon though was that you could easily keep everything local. The [UL-Listed] alternatives are much more locked into the cloud.
I only got about 20% through my house converting it over to Insteon; they have had plenty of supply issues and the writing has been on the wall for years. All the alteratives for me are cloud based with cloud polling as the only automation tie-in. Sure, you can go the non-UL route and run ESPHome on any number of products, but aftter playing with a few I j
Re: (Score:2)
But now I'm not the guy who can't turn his frigging lights on because the hub can't communicate with the mothership.
I've got a whole bunch of the Tuya-based "Merkury" bulbs that Walmart sells. First thing I did before committing to buying several packs of them was to see what one of them would do without internet access. As I live in Florida and we frequently have weather-related power outages, I wanted to make sure I'd still be able to run the lights using my backup generator (the broadband service usually also goes out during a power outage). After the initial set-up was completed, it turns out they operate like a n
Re: (Score:3)
This is not IoT garbage. The IOT part is probably working. The failure is the cloud! If the devices connected to a home computer instead they'd still be working.
Re: (Score:2)
The "I" in IoT _is_ "the cloud."
Re: IoT garbage (Score:2)
Maybe another acronym needs to be devised. Intranet of things ? Oh wait.
Re: (Score:3)
This is exactly why I avoid all always-online-required hardware
The hardware doesn't have an always online requirement. It's just the internet based app that doesn't work. The rest of Insteon stuff including all your local switches and devices work just fine.
The problem now is if one of them breaks finding a replacement may be difficult.
No one out there is unable to turn on their lights. They are just unable to do it from their phones while vegetating in front of the TV.
Re: (Score:2)
^+5...
Yeah, why do I need an external website to read my electric meter or water meter? idiots
Re: (Score:2)
The joys of cloud connect IOT garbage. (Score:5, Insightful)
The number of people that love to connect the critical components of their home to companies like this is just mind-boggling to me. I don't even like using other companies services for my own personal computing. Backup service I can accept some online (with regular offline backups just in case), but having your thermostat or main light switches depend on some cloud service that could *POOF* magic itself away in an executives momentary whim seems a horribly terrible idea to me.
I feel for people that got suckered here, but god damn it's not like you couldn't see the potential from day one.
Re: (Score:2)
I have a bunch of home automation, but I only use parts that will still work without internet access. Will I lose some features of my thermostat? Yes, but it will still function as a thermostat. I just won't be able to check it from my phone. I'll still be able to turn my lights on and off, I just won't be able to use automation scripts. It has to continue to perform its basic function without internet access or it doesn't get installed.
Re:The joys of cloud connect IOT garbage. (Score:5, Insightful)
Not just homes. Companies do this with critical infrastructure. It's insane to give someone else that much control over your core... they can hold you hostage whenever they want. Price doesn't matter. Convenience doesn't matter. In my opinion, you cannot set a purchase price for these tools low enough to justify that loss of freedom and operational control.
Re: (Score:2)
Careful You're coming pretty close to speaking ill about 5G. That could run you afoul of lese majeste laws. Soon, all bandwidth will belong to the telecoms. You will use it at their pleasure.
Re: (Score:2)
Corporate decision makers have always been insane, so I don't even bother trying to figure out that decision process. I was at a company when they started going cloud because the head of IT was in an IT Director's Group that all were bobbing their heads at the pretty, shiny speaker. We've had more outages since moving then we ever did before, but now all we can do is point the finger and wait for the cloud providers to do something, rather than work on a solution ourselves.
Do you say the same for people's data? (Score:2)
I mean, it's the same argument, right? Why trust your critical data to cloud storage or trust your need for software apps to a cloud-hosted environment? At any time, it could just vanish, taking away your data or ability to work! Crazy, these people using DropBox or OneDrive or cloud versions of QuickBooks or ??
Seriously, I never liked this trend to cloudify so many things... I run my own media server and "personal cloud" with local disk storage for just this reason. But at some point, you have to place
Re: (Score:2)
... but having your thermostat or main light switches depend on some cloud service that could *POOF* magic itself away in an executives momentary whim seems a horribly terrible idea to me.
It gets much worse than that. The Ring thermostat has a microphone in it and uploads everything it hears to the Ring server, because "analytics". Until proven otherwise all IoT appliances should be considered to be bugging devices for the company that sells them. I would not take them for free - in fact I did do this with the Ring thermostat and door camera as a contractor offered those as a "bonus" when doing a solar install.
Re: (Score:2)
but having your thermostat or main light switches depend on some cloud service that could *POOF* magic itself away in an executives momentary whim seems a horribly terrible idea to me.
Just as well none of that actually happened. The only thing that POOF'd away was the ability to control it remotely on your phone. But hey it's a smart home device and one small minor feature of it, and one that can be used by another internet hub currently doesn't work so hate away.
Re: (Score:2)
Just one more reason.... (Score:5, Insightful)
...that in the age of the "cloud" that it's far wiser to own and control all your infrastructure.
There is zero reason with today's tech that, when we buy third-party tech, we should be relying on that third-party's server infrastructure. It's trivial to have a smart-home be internet-controlled by an app talking to the smart-home directly. And in today's environment of high-speed internet to the door and routers with the computing power of small servers, we don't need to rely on cloud for storage, sharing, syncing, or really much of anything except the actual communicating (which is what we should be limiting the Internet to).
Own your tech, own your protocols, and own your data.
Re:Just one more reason.... (Score:4, Insightful)
"Trivial" is a bit of a stretch, but the rest of your post I agree with. I'm relatively smart when it comes to techy crap, but Home Assistant took me 3 days of screwing around to get to work correctly. I couldn't get the stand-alone Raspberry Pi setup to work, so now I have a Pi running my Zwave bridge and HA running on my local ESXi host. Then I recently switched ISPs. Turns out TMobile doesn't allow you to NAT through their router. Now, because of that, I have to maintain a permanent VPN connection to one of my VPSs so that I can communicate from the outside-in. So, technically, even my home-brew setup won't meet my needs without "the cloud" being involved.
Say what you will about Wink, but when it worked it worked great. It's something I could give to my parents and they could have it set up and running without my intervention. Plop it down, log in, connect your devices, done. THAT is what I consider trivial. Even if they didn't rely on the cloud for their automations and such, just being able to get "inside" the users local network from an external connection is anything but trivial, if you want to maintain their desired level of user experience. They had a good thing going, It's really too bad that they fumbled things as bad as they did. (I'm a former Wink customer, still have a Wink2 sitting in a box somewhere. I dumped them after they started charging for access to my device, then their service went belly up for 2 weeks with absolutely zero explanation.)
Re: (Score:2)
T-Mobile's 5G is double (or more) NAT'd. It takes your IPv4 NAT's it to IPv6, then back to IPv4 somewhere along the line, and that external IP changes every time a packet comes through. If you downgrade to their 4G LTE version things work as expected and the VPN isn't as necessary.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
That's only to handle v4 though, which is legacy. v6 traffic should come through without any NATing at all.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Trivial when a project has a few paid developers to document and package the system cleanly so it is easily to install.
HA is at best tricky to get functional, and not the easiest right now to keep running. I am a linux expert and the containers and/or HAOS images are great while they are working, but if they break good luck figuring it out The common thread with pre-build images/container is the developer(s) always believe it will just work so leave out any ability to easily see what is going on insid
Re: (Score:2)
HA is at best tricky to get functional, and not the easiest right now to keep running.
100% agree. It is, like most open source stuff, not consumer grade. Your average dope isn't going to have the knowledge, time, energy, or patience to get it up and running and maintain it. Now that I've suffered through that part, I absolutely love it. It meets 99.9% of my needs. I dread the day I run into the situation that you did, where one day it just decides it's done booting up. That, at least, is one reason I'm glad I separated my bridge and HA server. If HA goes belly up, "all" I have to do i
Re: (Score:2)
such that their control app talks directly to the home. No server required.
I would be genuinely interested in knowing precisely how that would work, especially in a situation such as mine: I literally have no control over my Internet connection. There's no bridge mode, no NAT, no port forwarding, no firewall access, no external IP address, no nothing. (I mean, yes, I technically have an external IP, but its on a 192.168 subnet) Because of that, the app has no way to route directly to the controller, and the controller has no route directly to the phone. (I, admittedly, am not a
Re: (Score:3)
There has to be some form of NAT to be going on somewhere, or else you'd not even have an IP address at all. In most cases, networks like that activate UPnP or NAT-PMP or something similar. If those aren't available, there are other techniques to punch holes from the inside out in order to listen. I'd have to see your network specifically to see which methods may or may not work.
For sure they are NAT-ing things, but the options available in the router are insanely limited. And from what I understand, they are doing some "wild" things with internal routing and NATing. I can hit "what's my IP" from google a dozen times in short order and get a dozen different answers back. It's a T-Mobile (Nokia) 5G21-12W-A if you're interested. I have an EdgeRouter-X sitting between the T-Mobile router and my network. After as much "researching" as my networking pea-brain could muster, I ended u
Re: (Score:2)
we don't need to rely on cloud for storage, sharing, syncing, or really much of anything
Oh yeah, smarty-pants? If you're not connected to the cloud, then how is all your data going to get to China? Checkmate!
Re: (Score:2)
There are at least a few features that rely on the cloud. For example, if you want to remotely connect to your automation control panel, you hvae to have a server to connect to. If that's at your home, you have to have a port mapped in, and either a static address or some OTHER server to connect to and fetch your current address.
But these dependencies should be limited. A lot of services require the cloud to be up to do things that arguably shouldn't need it. If you adjust your thermostat on the wall, it
Re: (Score:3)
It's trivial to have a smart-home be internet-controlled by an app talking to the smart-home directly.
It is not even remotely trivial. It stopped being trivial when we broke the end to end connection of the internet by NATting fucking everything while complaining that IPv6 is too hard. We broke it even more when we CG-NATted the fucking NATted network so now even if you're a techie who knows how to setup a router you're still at the mercy of someone else.
Like it or not, a central communications point is for many people outright necessary these days when bridging networks.
Control4 and other closed ecosystems same risk (Score:4, Insightful)
The zigbee wireless module in it died, it stopped being able to communicate with the devices and my only solution would be to buy a new controller for $300 and pay someone to migrate the configuration into the new hardware.
It's quite the racket and if Control4 ever closed everyone with these systems is going to be sitting with a bunch of dumb smart devices.
I do miss some of the cool features that Control4 had that I can't seem to find an equivalent for with other platforms, like a media switch that has pause/play and volume buttons. That was quite handy with the Sonos Amp system with in-ceiling speakers.
Re: (Score:3)
You've never been in a really! expensive! house with a whole house Nutone intercom that included the tape deck or the 8 track module 40 years later?
Re: (Score:2)
My mom's house has an intercom system. Growing up it was used as an intercom only a very few times. Mostly it's just a radio, so turn on the radio in the kitchen but you can hear it in the bedroom. Big deal, that radio problem was solved with the invention of clock radios. Today though, the system constantly buzzes and hums, which annoys me but mom can't really hear it.
Re: (Score:2)
Buzz/hum is probably just a few dried out electrolytic capacitors in the power supply part of the system.
You aren't a geek if you can't fix that!
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Same situation here, and I hate it. Homebuilder choose Control4, not me. And the screwed up thing is you can't really undo it. The switches are wired differently and can not be swapped out for normal light switches. So much for trying out competitors. Added bonus, the builder installed those all in one LED can lights where the light is built into the frame. Insanity.
Re: (Score:2)
The switches are wired differently and can not be swapped out for normal light switches
Huh?
This doesn't make sense. Unless it is not a real switch, just something that looks and acts like one. All you is 3 wires for a switch. Hot, Neutral, Ground.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
There are at least some products now where the control units, switches, base stations, etc just get low volt leads to them. Initial they were designed to make retrofits convenient; a lot easier to pull a lamp cord or smaller thing of flexible braided wire with a fish-tape, than stiff piece of romex) but I am hearing other stories where builders trying to save money by running mains lines only to the fixtures are receptacles.
Think about scenarios like a kitchen with a high ceiling/clear story where you have
Re: (Score:2)
It makes sense, even if you're not after automation. You don't run 120/240 to your thermostat to physically switch the furnace off and on, so why do we do it with light switches?
Re: (Score:3)
It does make some sense. However the problem here is really standardization. You can't ever change out those fixtures for anything else without also replacing the control unit.
Which might not be an issue if its conventional-light-switch replacement, you will just get a new one that pairs with whatever you are installing. however if you have some fancy programmable touch panel that also runs other systems that might be a less pleasant proposition. Imagine the house is 10 years old all your stuff is integra
Re: (Score:2)
Fortunately there are ways to do it that aren't stupid. I used thermostats as an example for a reason.
A pair of low voltage DC signal wires could go from the switch to a standard control box somewhere. That box could have a relay in it, or an SSR. For modern lighting, the logical place to put that would be on the lighting fixture itself. Then you can install a regular old mechanical switch (that's cheaper and safer), or whatever fancy electronic gizmo you like.
You could skip the mains wiring to the lighting
Re: (Score:2)
I saw other people already answered your question, so now you see the issue...
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
What about Home Automation is actually useful anyway? I honestly don't get it. They've had timers for lights for decades now, they have programmable sprinkler systems for decades. Why a new "smart" device, and what does it do that's "smart"? The only one I know with any of these devices is one with a lightbulb, but he's crazy and is addicted to gadets and he just likes that it changes color; and one with a Nest that was fond if it for a few weeks and now appears to be bored and uninterested in it.
Right to repair (Score:2)
ransomware vs cloud (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3)
I guess we will go back to hosting software on our own servers pretty soon.
Go back? Maybe I'm in the minority of uber-geeks or something... but some of us never entirely stopped.
Re: (Score:2)
I guess we will go back to hosting software on our own servers pretty soon.
How? When you CG-NAT the already NATted network, how does grandma know how to setup the software?
Like it or not, self hosting is not an alternative for many, even technically minded people.
All IoT devices should (also?) support open protoc (Score:3)
Insteon works fine offline (Score:5, Interesting)
Insteon was one of the few providers that don't require constant-on cloud services. All their gear can be programmed to interact directly over RF or powerline. There are 3rd party local hubs that provide services like timers and clocks and complex scene interactions, some even allow you to bridge multiple protocols.
The protocol itself is simple enough that you can get a programmable radio to talk to the system. Sad to see them go since they were one of the better providers, although it seems Nokia has also been involved in the last few months, promising to deliver new Insteon-based systems by end of year, not sure whether that is now stopped as well or if Nokia will continue a compatible line of devices.
Re:Insteon works fine offline (Score:5, Informative)
Running Insteon devices with Homeseer and having zero issues, these folks can switch over to a number of self hosted options and still support Insteon.
Go big... or "go home" (Score:3)
It's starting to feel like you can't really buy these internet-of-things devices from small companies with any high degree of confidence in their longevity. These devices kind'a need to fall into one of two categories:
* Either they are owned and operated by one of the Big Tech companies, in which case you're just hoping that the "too big to fail" description is accurate enough that your stuff doesn't go offline anytime soon, or
* They're operating on self-hosting systems out of your own home, which you configure and control yourself. If it goes down, it's entirely on you to fix it -- but the privacy literally can't be beat, as information only leaves your house when you want it to.
The latter used to a bit more common, at least among technophiles -- until companies like Alphabet/Google and Meta/Facebook started to realize that they could get a foot in your front door by offering to automate all of it for you, and then monetize just about everything that you do... which means that the former is now more common, and the latter is becoming harder to find. More's the pity.
Re: (Score:2)
"Too big to fail.', I don't even think about that aspect. And "Too big to decide your product no longer matches their roadmap and will be discontinued." is never, ever true.
Re: (Score:3)
You shouldn't buy any of them unless they speak open and well-documented protocols which are unencumbered by any patent. Period.
Re: (Score:2)
Really the only solution is to go open protocol and be able to switch manufacturers on a whim. Plenty of products by reputable brands have been discontinued or introduce new lines that are incompatible with the previous line, which makes slow conversion from line voltage to smart switches much slower.
I was excited about Shelly.cloud's new line of "pro" devices, but got my first one and it is such a flimsy plastic that I wonder just how bad the lack of internal voltage isolation is-- they are not UL listed.
Re: (Score:2)
Either they are owned and operated by one of the Big Tech companies
You mean the big company who announced they were shutting down the Works with Nest API and only backpaddled after some serious outrage to the news that everything Google related would stop working?
They're operating on self-hosting systems out of your own home
NAT made sure that only the most technically minded can do that.
CG-NAT made sure that even the most technically minded can't.
Cloud connection? What cloud connection? (Score:5, Interesting)
I suppose I just don't keep up, but I've been using Insteon for 10 or 15 years, and I had no idea that it was supposed to be cloud connected. I've been controlling everything locally via the powerline modem (Insteon branded) the entire time with local software.
The PLMs have a habit of going dead, so that worries me a little bit. I suppose if it dies I can replace my stuff with ZWave, but ZWave switches are incredibly laggy, even when used locally. Insteon is fast enough to feel instant.
So, I don't give a shit about the cloud, but I still need hardware from time to time.
Re: (Score:2)
I used insteon a long time ago (15+ years now) before any cloud connectivity was a thing. I liked that the logic could be programmed and stored in the switches themselves so they were not server dependent for basic actions. This was long before they offered any cloud connectivity options and it was all local. I never did get around to playing with a home automation server but there was one good option at the time, the name is escaping my memory. Now there seems to be afew number of good open source /
For those whom are not afraid to solder. (Score:2)
I use this...
https://tasmota.github.io/docs... [github.io]
You can setup a server. Or just control it with its web UI.
A little bit of a learning curve.
Does "smart" mean "cloud based"? (Score:2)
IoT is generally garbage, and so is any kind of "smart home" stuff. However, having such things be cloud based as well seems like an additional layer of needless complexity. Is there any reason (as in technical reason, beyond just rent seeking by the providers) why such "smart" technologies need to be cloud based as well? At least from a technical point of view, isn't it much more sensible to have the owners connect to their homes directly?
From the website... (Score:5, Informative)
Dear Insteon Community,
In 2017, after many successful years, Smartlabs, Inc found itself in financial difficulties and the path forward was unclear. That year, Smartlabs took in additional capital and brought in new management to turn the situation around. These efforts resulted in new investment into the fortification of the technology and development of new products. The future was looking bright.
In 2019, the onset of the global pandemic brought unforeseen disruption to the market, but the company continued to move forward. However, the subsequent (and enduring) disruption to the supply chain caused by the pandemic proved incredibly difficult and the company engaged in a sales process in November, 2021. The goal was to find a parent for the company and continue to invest in new products and the technology. The process resulted in several interested parties and a sale was expected to be realized in the March timeframe. Unfortunately, that sale did not materialize. Consequently, the company was assigned to a financial services firm in March to optimize the assets of the company.
The pioneering work in smart lighting and world-class products have created an extraordinary following and community. Clearly, all Smartlabs’ employees who have worked so hard to produce such world-class products and technology hope that a buyer can be found for the company.
Although incredibly difficult, we hope that the Insteon community understands the tireless efforts by all the employees to serve our customers, and deeply apologize to the community.
Re: From the website... (Score:3)
Yeah, I'm sure the top dogs will be shedding those crocodile tears over some hookers and blow.
Some warning would be nice (Score:2)
I think this is all we get - (Score:2)
. (from https://www.insteon.com/news2022 [insteon.com])
"In 2019, the onset of the global pandemic brought unforeseen disruption to the market, but the company continued to move forward. However, the subsequent (and enduring) disruption to the supply chain caused by the pandemic proved incredibly difficult and the company engaged in a sales process in November, 2021. The goal was to find a parent for the company and continue to invest in new prod
Local control... AWAYS LOCAL CONTROL (Score:2)
Once you have installed the all the software locally to your hub, yo
Re: (Score:2)
Whenever somebody pushes you hard to buy something, you can rest assured it's to their advantage for you to buy it. Whatever benefit there may be to you is not their primary concern. So whether it's some "internet of things" device/software, a leased car, an extended warranty or something else, you can be certain that the moment it stops being to their advantage for you to have it, you're going to be in trouble.
What's wrong with the lights turning on with a mot (Score:2)
Why try to add more tech?
Cloud connectivity should be a bonus (Score:2)
The biggest checkbox I look in any smart device is whether it works without needing a cloud service. If a given device can't work with my home being disconnected from the internet, while still having a LAN, then I don't want to know about it. Doing so otherwise makes my home highly dependent on the upstream provider still being in business, which is is especially bad for anything that costs more than $100.
So far I have seen that Apple's HomeKit can work without the internet, back I can't tell for Alexia or
Re: Cloud connectivity should be a bonus (Score:2)
Many wifi smartplugs can be controlled locally from HomeAssistant without going through cloud. I use cheap TP link KP125. Got 63 of them for under $1000. They also measure energy which allows for some very nice notifications of when clothes/dishes/food are done based on wattage of what's plugged in. Or if my humidifers turned off and neer water. Them goint dry means spendint 2 hours retuning the harpsichord. The power curves in HomeAssistant on each plug also let me figure out which appliances were least ef
This is why (Score:2)
People should not be investing so much into something that needs to constantly talk to the mothership and...forget it.
Enjoy your expensive happy shinies and don't think about the man behind the curtain.
China's fuck-ups (Score:2)
I tried 'Mirabella Genie' and 'Lepro Lamp' software: The server is in China, and the applet needs the server to work. Once the individual switches are programmed, it can be offline but changing its profile requires an internet connection. Worse, every few months, the server would delete the profile. It was still inside the local devices which continued to operate but there was no way to recover the data: The profile had to be manually input again. After a year, I got tired of fixing China's fuck-ups.
The S in IoT (Score:2)
Stands for Support.
Re: (Score:3)
The switches still work, you just can't add new ones or change programming without some work.
There is an API and there are 3rd party solutions to the issue. So while it's sad it's not the end of the world, I just threw a linux vm on my esxi box and installed HomeSeer.
Re: (Score:2)
Until AT&T/Verizon convince the FCC that they need that slice of bandwidth for their 5G product.
Won't somebody please think of the poor child trying to play a vidya game on his phone when the network latency starts to pile up.
Re: Site announcement (Score:3)
They were mumbling that as they slowly backed out of the office, and into the escape jet while carrying briefcases stuffed with money.