I have been on my quest for a smarter home journey for a while and I thought I would share some of my device selections. I will update this post as I add new devices. In the future I will also share some of my use cases for them as well.
The SmartHome System
I went with SmartThings because of its openness. When I first started out I gave Lowes Iris v1 and v2 a shot but I was unable to do the things that I wanted to. Their v2 system is closed, doesn’t have an api and is a bit buggy as of the last time I used it. I think there are two different use cases for these two products. Lowes’s Iris is a good fit for someone who wants to setup an out of the box home automation system in which they don’t want to do a ton of customization. SmartThings is a fit for those that want to integrate everything, and don’t mind doing some “coding” and detailed configuration work. In the end Lowes provides a simple closed system and SmartThings a wide open system.
My device picks below are for the SmartThings smart home system.
Contact Sensors
| Rating | Manufacturer | Price Range | Product Link(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5/5 | Lowe’s Iris System Made by CentraLite |
~$23 | Lowe’s Iris | Why the Lowe’s Contact Sensor? I found that it is one of the cheaper options on the market for SmartThings compatible open close sensors.
To configure with SmartThings, you will need to create a custom device type from this code on Github. |
| 3/5 – Device is too big. Maybe ideal for sliding doors. | Monoprice | ~$20 | Monoprice | Why the Monoprice Contact Sensor? I found that it is one of the cheaper options on the market for SmartThings compatible open close sensors.
To configure with SmartThings, you will need to create a custom device type from this code on Github. |
| 5/5 | SmartThings | ~$40 | SmartThings | Why the SmartThings multi sensor? This sensor is not only a contact sensor but is also a vibration and temperature sensor. My current use case is alerts for my washer and dryer.
This device is directly support by SmartThings so pairing is easy. |
Motion Sensors
| Rating | Manufacturer | Price Range | Product Link(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4/4 | Lowe’s Iris System Made by CentraLite – Lowe’s Iris Motion Sensor |
~29.99 | Lowe’s Iris | This motion sensor is one of the cheaper options and it works extremely well.
To configure with SmartThings, you will need to create a custom device type from this code on Github. |
| 0/5 | Aeon Labs – Aeon Multisensor Gen5 | ~47.50 | Amazon | This sensor looked like it had great potential but it really did not. I have not had any luck getting it to work with SmartThings. I need to reach out to the manufacturer to see if this a defective sensor. Also the updating time for the sensor is really slow. |
Bulbs
| Rating | Manufacturer | Price Range | Product Link(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/5
They lag a little in turning on and off. They also get out of sync in the network rather often. |
Ge – Ge Link Bulbs | ~$15 | Amazon | I chose these because of the price being low.
The device type for this is built into SmartThings so it will pair easily. |
| 4/5 | SYLVANIA ULTRA 11-Watt | ~20 | Lowes | I needed something inexpensive that would work outside. Even though these are indoor bulbs, I have the working nicely outside.
The device type for this is built into SmartThings so it will pair easily. |
Smart Plugs
| Rating | Manufacturer | Price Range | Product Link(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/5 – For difficulty in pairing | Lowes’s Iris SmartPlug | ~$35 | Lowes | These plugs I originally got when I tried Iris. It work with SmartThings but the device is a bit expensive and from my experience the built in repeater can mess up the device network.
You can get the device type for SmartThings from Github. |
| 5/5 | Aeon Labs smart plug | It was $20 when I bought mine. Now ~$100 | Amazon | This smart Plug works pretty well and was a good price when I purchased it.
The device type for this is built into SmartThings so it will pair easily. |
| 4/5 – Setup is a bit rough | Aeon Labs power strip | ~$80 | Amazon | Great for controlling multiple devices, has 4 individually controllable plugs and two normal plugs.
Steps to setup can be found on this forum. The device type ca be found here as well. |
Miscellaneous Sensors
| Rating | Manufacturer | Price Range | Product Link(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5/5 – It’s loud | Utilitech Siren | ~$35 | Lowes | This siren works well with SmartThings and is plently loud
This device type is built into SmartThings. |
| 5/5 | Utilitech flood sensor | ~$30 | Lowes | I have not had a leak yet but in my testing the device worked well.
The device type for this is built into SmartThings so it will pair easily. |
| 5/5 | SmartThings Arrival Sensor | ~$30 | SmartThings | Device works great for setting up arrival/departure events, such as setting or dis-arming alarm
Device is directly support by SmartThings |
| 5/5 | Garageio | ~$200-$219 | Garageio | Works great for making sure garage door is closed as well as for receive notifications for when the garage opens.
See this forum for integrating. |
| 5/5 | Logitech Harmony Hub | ~$90 | Amazon | This device makes it possible to integrate your media devices (TV, DVD players, Game consoles and so on).
See this forum for integrating. |
| 5/5 | Amazon Echo | ~$180 | Amazon | Configure voice control for SmartThings.
See this forum for integrating. |
Stay tuned for my top SmartThings app picks as well as some other cool devices and SmartThings projects.