[Official] Home Automation Thread

[Simplicity.]

Hello, new to home automation and am planning to have a smart home for my new place next year. Trying to learn as much as I can before key collection.

Am planning to get Aqara Switches with an M2 hub and would like to use homekit because I'm an apple ****.

Some questions -

1) Would Aqara Switches work with near.sg bulbs? In my head I'm thinking of being able to turn on / off the bulbs via homekit, and being able to adjust color and/or intensity from the near app. Does this sound doable or is there an easier way via homekit?

2) Neutral wires, does anyone know if newly TOPed condos come with neutral wires for switch points? Somehow I doubt it, but can't seem to find much info online.

Thanks all

 

[Millimeter]

Hi all, collecting keys to my BTO soon and would like to make my new home a smart home. Inclined to go with Smartthings with my main hub, and Google as my voice assistant. These are the things I want to achieve:

1) When we walk into the house, the entryway light comes on
2) When we lock the door, all the lights and ceiling fans at home turns off
3) Voice control for lights and fans, as well as AC
4) Voice control for curtains and blinds
5) When I turn on AC at night, the AC should turn off at about 3/4am then the fan comes on automatically

For items 1 and 2, I would need smart switches that can connect to ST so that these smart switches can control the lights and fans? Perhaps for the entryway light I would need motion sensors too?

Then for items 3 and 4, I think I would need the Google Nest Minis in the various rooms where I want to control stuff with voice?

What about for item 5?

I have various smart devices too (washer, dryer, robot vacuum, air purifier etc) but those are more "nice-to-have" if I can control with voice via Smartthings. Main purposes would be the five listed above. Thanks, I'm really noob and would appreciate all the help I can get.

 

[blimey]

Hello, new to home automation and am planning to have a smart home for my new place next year. Trying to learn as much as I can before key collection.

Am planning to get Aqara Switches with an M2 hub and would like to use homekit because I'm an apple ****.

Some questions -

1) Would Aqara Switches work with near.sg bulbs? In my head I'm thinking of being able to turn on / off the bulbs via homekit, and being able to adjust color and/or intensity from the near app. Does this sound doable or is there an easier way via homekit?

2) Neutral wires, does anyone know if newly TOPed condos come with neutral wires for switch points? Somehow I doubt it, but can't seem to find much info online.

Thanks all

I'm in the midst of my home renovation and bought Aqara switches and M2 hub. Hope to give you some info in the coming weeks once everything is up but for your point 1, i don't think near.sg bulbs would work with homekit since they use wifi and i don't see the usual homekit certification on their bulbs in the website. or you plan to use homekit via the m2 hub?

I'm not 100% sure but best you ask the vendor.

For my case, i plan to use a mixture of bulbs from hue and ikea's tradfri. Only problem, ikea's tradfri is sold out everywhere. might just go with dumb bulbs for now.

Point 2, my electrician mentioned there is no neutral wire in my wall switches so i got the non-neutal switches. Hope it works.

 

[batniss]

Hi all, collecting keys to my BTO soon and would like to make my new home a smart home. Inclined to go with Smartthings with my main hub, and Google as my voice assistant. These are the things I want to achieve:

1) When we walk into the house, the entryway light comes on
2) When we lock the door, all the lights and ceiling fans at home turns off
3) Voice control for lights and fans, as well as AC
4) Voice control for curtains and blinds
5) When I turn on AC at night, the AC should turn off at about 3/4am then the fan comes on automatically

For items 1 and 2, I would need smart switches that can connect to ST so that these smart switches can control the lights and fans? Perhaps for the entryway light I would need motion sensors too?

Then for items 3 and 4, I think I would need the Google Nest Minis in the various rooms where I want to control stuff with voice?

What about for item 5?

I have various smart devices too (washer, dryer, robot vacuum, air purifier etc) but those are more "nice-to-have" if I can control with voice via Smartthings. Main purposes would be the five listed above. Thanks, I'm really noob and would appreciate all the help I can get.

1 and 2. Yes You can use motion sensors
3 and 4. Yes or equivalent.
5. really depends which aircon brand you use. If non smart, Sensibo. Unless yours is old flat still using 3pin then any smart plug will do.

 

[batniss]

Can you share which motor you got please? The normal indoor blinds one will work? Thanks!

i used indoor 1. so long it doesn't get wet.

 

[yoongmy]

Hi All,

Just wanna check, Tuya smart switch or Aqara smart switch?
I still doing research, not sure which one should go for. Any one have experience and advice?

 

[Millimeter]

1 and 2. Yes You can use motion sensors
3 and 4. Yes or equivalent.
5. really depends which aircon brand you use. If non smart, Sensibo. Unless yours is old flat still using 3pin then any smart plug will do.

Thank you! Would you have recommendations for switches and motion sensors available in SG that would work with Smartthings right out of the box? The brands listed on the Smartthings site don't seem to be available in SG, while Aqara and Tuya which are often recommended require DH and even then don't seem to work reliably with Smartthings, at least based on what I read in this thread.

For aircon, I intend to use Daikin so it should be fine.

 

[batniss]

Hi All,

Just wanna check, Tuya smart switch or Aqara smart switch?
I still doing research, not sure which one should go for. Any one have experience and advice?

i have both but i prefer Tuya over Aqara. - i use a lot of wall switches. Wife prefer touch over rocker so one major reason why we dump Aqara away

easier to set up, no need gateway. Straightforward and works reliably. However, wifi motion sensor has 2-3s lag. If it matters.

 

[batniss]

Thank you! Would you have recommendations for switches and motion sensors available in SG that would work with Smartthings right out of the box? The brands listed on the Smartthings site don't seem to be available in SG, while Aqara and Tuya which are often recommended require DH and even then don't seem to work reliably with Smartthings, at least based on what I read in this thread.

For aircon, I intend to use Daikin so it should be fine.

reliability, you buy the right model + DH, it will work most of it but won't beat having aqara gateway and I don't have good experience with it so I eventually sold my ST gateway

I prefer tuya. way easier.

 

[Millimeter]

reliability, you buy the right model + DH, it will work most of it but won't beat having aqara gateway and I don't have good experience with it so I eventually sold my ST gateway

I prefer tuya. way easier.

Tuya will be able to connect to ST without any DH/gateway? Any particular model or would they all work?

 

[batniss]

Tuya will be able to connect to ST without any DH/gateway? Any particular model or would they all work?

only for the automation, motion and door sensors but you will still need to have them add into Tuya 1st followed by linking them into ST

 

[Millimeter]

only for the automation, motion and door sensors but you will still need to have them add into Tuya 1st followed by linking them into ST

Switches like https://shopee.sg/Tuya-Smart-Switch...-Assistant-i.237211919.9604747781?position=10 or https://shopee.sg/(Local-Stock)-Sma...No-Neutral-i.325308705.7376865460?position=11 would work? What do you mean by adding them into Tuya though? I'd need to get a Tuya gateway then link the gateway to ST?

 

[batniss]

Switches like https://shopee.sg/Tuya-Smart-Switch...-Assistant-i.237211919.9604747781?position=10 or https://shopee.sg/(Local-Stock)-Sma...No-Neutral-i.325308705.7376865460?position=11 would work? What do you mean by adding them into Tuya though? I'd need to get a Tuya gateway then link the gateway to ST?

Tuya Smart app. - download from your app store or play store.

Wall switches will not be picked up by ST properly. It will show as offline. If you can only use ST, I will not recommend Tuya.
I control both my Tuya and ST items in Google Home. 1 stop shop for all of it. Unfortunately, it means I need more apps on my phone.

 

[Millimeter]

Tuya Smart app. - download from your app store or play store.

Wall switches will not be picked up by ST properly. It will show as offline. If you can only use ST, I will not recommend Tuya.
I control both my Tuya and ST items in Google Home. 1 stop shop for all of it. Unfortunately, it means I need more apps on my phone.

Ah okay. So you connect your Tuya switches/sensors to the Tuya app, then this Tuya app is linked to your Google Home app?

I'm not fixed on ST yet - was just under the impression that it's quite good before I realised many of the switches/brands that ST works with are just not available in SG.

Might be open to switching to Google Home then. Btw, is the Nest Hub worth it or just the free Google Home app + the relevant supporting devices (ie Nest speakers, Tuya switches and sensors) would suffice?

 

[batniss]

Ah okay. So you connect your Tuya switches/sensors to the Tuya app, then this Tuya app is linked to your Google Home app?

I'm not fixed on ST yet - was just under the impression that it's quite good before I realised many of the switches/brands that ST works with are just not available in SG.

Might be open to switching to Google Home then. Btw, is the Nest Hub worth it or just the free Google Home app + the relevant supporting devices (ie Nest speakers, Tuya switches and sensors) would suffice?

yup, you got it.

don't be misled by what you hear from YouTube. He will not be here to help you extensively especially when the system requires a fair amount of DH and specified models to work alongside (this is not even mentioned la). Even so, it doesn't work 100%

depends on your wallet I reckon. Nest system imo are pretty expensive.

 

[Millimeter]

yup, you got it.

don't be misled by what you hear from YouTube. He will not be here to help you extensively especially when the system requires a fair amount of DH and specified models to work alongside. Even so, it doesn't work 100%

depends on your wallet I reckon. Nest system imo are pretty expensive.

Yeah... I suppose you figured out that I was following a local Youtuber's advice haha.

Mind sharing what you use for voice control then? Really appreciate your help and advice.

 

[batniss]

Yeah... I suppose you figured out that I was following a local Youtuber's advice haha.

Mind sharing what you use for voice control then? Really appreciate your help and advice.

Google Home.

 

[Millimeter]

Google Home.

Alright thanks!

 

[yoongmy]

i have both but i prefer Tuya over Aqara. - i use a lot of wall switches. Wife prefer touch over rocker so one major reason why we dump Aqara away

easier to set up, no need gateway. Straightforward and works reliably. However, wifi motion sensor has 2-3s lag. If it matters.

You get the wifi version instead of zigbee version? Heard that wifi version may face connection issues sometime.

 

[batniss]

You get the wifi version instead of zigbee version? Heard that wifi version may face connection issues sometime.

Yeah wifi. No disconnection problems yet. Maybe because my router good?

For the sensors, zigbee might be better if one couldn't stand the lag of 2-3s. I have some zigbees too.