Sell me

Hey folks,

I'm about 90% of my way through my free trial and I am at a decision point. I am not sure if I want to proceed with Indigo. I am torn between this and openHAB for the functionality I'll list below. I'm going to put my major concerns down and if you can provide me any clarity it would go a long way.

First off.... I really, really enjoy working with Indigo. I love the graphical interface and the ability to make complicated schedules, action groups, and triggers. I love how if it works, it seems to work great. There isn't TOO much time spent trying to get everything to work together. Additionally, the plugin community has been great and provided some really awesome plugins that impressively expand the envelope of the system.

What I struggle with is device compatibility. I always seem to be torn between using devices that I want to use, or using Indigo. There is typically something out there for each need, but I often purchase something expecting it to work and then find out there are issues and I need to return it.

Another major concern is that this product seems to be in it's own dark corner of the internet, primarily no amazon echo support and no IFTTT support. IFTTT alone would increase the usefulness of this software 10x. I realize echo support may come eventually, but right now on openHAB there is fully fleshed echo support using your voice to execute action groups. Also, mobile support is very lacking. No location awareness, no messaging. Control pages are a 'nice' work around and I like the idea in general of being able to create my own pages... but the reality is that the hours I would have to put in to make clean, functional control pages is a huge hurdle and putting a bad taste in my mouth - especially with other services offering clean user experiences out of the box.

I realize that there are only a couple of guys working on this and, like I've said, I immensely like the app. But where Indigo excels, there are many other options that are far beyond in terms of capabilities. Even the services such as IFTTT.... while the functionality would be fantastic, the fact that they are not considering this platform for inclusion leads me to believe that this software may be left behind as other services such as openHAB and smartthings continue their forward march with their increased manpower and budgets. Granted... each of those services have major downsides to me as well. OpenHAB is a nightmare to get set up and working correctly. Smartthings is cloud based (for now) and has limited Sonos integration.


So that's my take. Convince me this program is right for me. Are the functionalities coming? On what time frame? Perhaps this isn't the right software for me? I appreciate all feedback.

Hi Exos.

Firstly on IFTTT - this decision is not Indigo's to make. The developers DO want to integrate with it, but IFTTT developers need to write the integration with Indigo, not the other way around.

For mobile and location, have a look at Home Remote - a 3rd party app but the author is working closely with the Indigo community; v3 is due out today/tomorrow with lots more features for Indigo.

Echo, I'm sure some folk have got it working (?) but I haven't followed the threads on it so may be wrong.

Device support is something the devs are working on - Indigo 7 is coming soon (I anticipated it would have hit beta by now, but I'm not aware it has) and i think they're reworking some of the mechanisms for adding new device support quicker.

You shouldn't often be in a situation of buying and returning - there's a supported device list on the wiki and you can search these forums for most items before buying instead of after.

I don't know OpenHAB but Indigo is the way forward for me.

Peter


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Hi Peter,

Thanks for recommending Home Remote. Home Remote - Activator 1.7 (out in the next day or so, just waiting for iOS version to be approved) allows control of Indigo via the maker channel of IFTTT currently. Fully integrating with IFTTT is not a simple process, but one j out in motion last night by applying to become a partner. It's a fair bit of work, but if I am accepted, then I will do what I can.

You can also use Amazon Echo with Home Remote, using IFTTT or with a dedicated app I will be open sourcing in the next few days. I can't release it as an Alexa Skill so some setup will be involved. You can see this in action here: http://youtu.be/RwkkHBU8MZg

Just to elaborate further. To Indigo, Home Remote adds:

Beacon support
Geofence support
Voice recognition
Echo support (in the next update)
An Apple Watch app
A Pebble Watch app
An Apple TV app
An alternative iOS app with Today Screen access
External , secure access without using a Reflector
3D Touch support

Indigo is great, and offers great configurability to developers and I expect to see many more
great 3rd party implementations.

Hi Exos

I am a new boy on the block too and have only had Indigo for couple of months now, i started my HA project with Vera, then moved to Fibaro HC2 then on to Indigo. The most important thing to me was stability and reliable operation. With Vera and HC2 this was major issue and i read lot of comments on Smartthings being same scenario.

All i can say is since switching to Indigo i have had zero issues with scenes not running or devices not responding. I understand the draw of an open system but no doubt this will bring instability and that is one thing you dont want in a HA system. I know the phrase wife friendly is used a lot (i know not PC) but its 100% true, during my times with the other systems i often had the comment "all i want to do is turn the bloody light on" but since Indigo has taken control of my house all is good

Any system that offers the world and full compatibility will surely have its issues, but i for one would rather one that is carefully and sensibly updated with reliability at the forefront. There are a few devices i would like to see supported, i have the 002 version of Fibaro smoke alarm that simply does not work but that is an exception as some unsupported devices do still work you just have to configure the parameters via Z wave setup.

Dont get me wrong there are parts of Indigo i find frustrating but they are few and far between and by using this great forum you can normally find your way around issues.

Whichever way you go good luck

First, a +1 for Home Remote - I love it! I use it mainly for presence/geofencing at the moment and it's the best solution I've found.

I'm new to Indigo too, having been through SmartThings and Vera. Stability and local execution tops my list of must-haves, and Indigo has that. I finally pulled the trigger on Indigo when Jay got the Amazon Echo plugin running. I've never tried OpenHAB so can't comment on that, but I will say Indigo is rock-solid and fast. Sure, I'd like more devices, and quicker rollouts, but every system has it's trade-offs.

And regarding IFTTT, while it may allow for some work-arounds on some devices until Indigo gets them integrated, it is NOT without its issues. Just last night I told Alexa to "Trigger TV" to send a command to my Harmony Hub so we could watch the news and nothing happened. I tried again...still nothing, so I used the physical remote instead. Hours later after having gone to bed, I heard voices in my family room which was pretty unnerving, to say the least, especially as I have an alarm system. After investigating, I found the TV was on in the family room even though I had shut if off before going to bed. Turns out that my earlier unsuccessful command to turn on the TV via IFTTT had not been totally unsuccessful, but just delayed due to problems at the IFTTT service, and fired off successfully after the problems were resolved. I had a similar issue with SmartThings triggering a siren for no apparent reason due to problems with their cloud server; that convinced me to install a dedicated alarm system, a much better solution.

I've come to realize that home automation is, and probably always will be, a work in progress. And as everyone knows, "Tech is great...when it works." Indigo works for me.
Jim

What I struggle with is device compatibility. I always seem to be torn between using devices that I want to use, or using Indigo. There is typically something out there for each need, but I often purchase something expecting it to work and then find out there are issues and I need to return it.

This is of course a valid concern, but Matt and Jay always "err" on the side of stability. A previous poster is right, the best bet is to check the Wiki first for compatible devices and then if something's not listed there, the boards to see if others have tried. I would suggest never buying something outright without checking compatibility first.

Another major concern is that this product seems to be in it's own dark corner of the internet, primarily no amazon echo support and no IFTTT support. IFTTT alone would increase the usefulness of this software 10x. I realize echo support may come eventually, but right now on openHAB there is fully fleshed echo support using your voice to execute action groups. Also, mobile support is very lacking. No location awareness, no messaging. Control pages are a 'nice' work around and I like the idea in general of being able to create my own pages... but the reality is that the hours I would have to put in to make clean, functional control pages is a huge hurdle and putting a bad taste in my mouth - especially with other services offering clean user experiences out of the box.

I know that many are very much interested in support for things like the Echo and IFTTT, but I'm not one of them. With respect to the Echo, I am just not comfortable having an always on microphone in my house (or several depending on the kind of coverage you want) but moreover I'm dead-set against cloud-based solutions unless there's truly no other alternative. For example, at one point I had a Nest Thermostat which was well integrated into Indigo, but there were too many times where something wasn't working because the Nest --> Internet --> Indigo --> Internet --> Nest pathway was broken. I now use Trane Z-Wave thermostats and they are rock solid in Indigo and completely local control. A personal preference.

I realize that there are only a couple of guys working on this and, like I've said, I immensely like the app. But where Indigo excels, there are many other options that are far beyond in terms of capabilities. Even the services such as IFTTT.... while the functionality would be fantastic, the fact that they are not considering this platform for inclusion leads me to believe that this software may be left behind as other services such as openHAB and smartthings continue their forward march with their increased manpower and budgets. Granted... each of those services have major downsides to me as well. OpenHAB is a nightmare to get set up and working correctly. Smartthings is cloud based (for now) and has limited Sonos integration.

First of all is the stability. I came from Vera and have never looked back. I have Indigo running on a mid-2010 iMac (along with some other services) and can count on up time measured in months (or longer!) One of the things that you are most likely *not* going to get with the other systems is comparable developer support and the community. Matt and Jay are on the forums almost daily and provide support far in excess of what I've experienced elsewhere. Beyond that, the user base here is second to none and there is always someone willing to step up and try to answer a question or help with a script. I think it's important to recognize Indigo for what it is--a home automation platform for DIY enthusiasts. Its features and functionality are probably well beyond the average person that wants to plug in a couple of WeMo lamp modules. With scripting and plugin support, the capabilities with Indigo are seemingly endless.

I'm hopeful that a future version of Indigo will support a more "modular" approach to device inclusion with the Indigo Up to Date program--that is, that Matt and Jay can add new devices more seamlessly--without the need to queue the updates for each release. To each his or her own, but IMHO--pound for pound--there is no other solution out there that compares to Indigo.

Dave

I've looked at openhab. intriguing, but way too much work for me to set up and maintain.

My Pros for Indigo:
Stability/reliability is excellent
GUI is awesome.
Customizability.....just the right amount
compatibility is very high with most common devices (I've only encountered one z-wave device in two years that is yet to be supported...the linear garage opener).
Most third party plugins are well-designed and well-maintained.
forum community is relatively small but very focused and helpful.

Alright folks, you've convinced me. I'm going to purchase an indigo license and proceed. Thanks for the help with my decision. Here's to anxiously awaiting V7.

Hooray!


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Welcome to the world of Indigo Exos! Im sure you'll find it a very accomodating place. I know I certainly have

I've read this with interest.
I too have been down the Vera, Fibaro etc route.

I've been trying indigo and homeseer.

Indigo does have the best GUI and seems to be rock solid and fast.
Homeseer has more options but then again do I really need or want options?
There are a couple I do like the sound of but could do without.

I'm away from home trial long these 2 pieces of software. This came about since Vera let me down again and I can't access my heating or lights while I'm away. I know it's doing random things as the family have told me that lights come on randomly and the heating is all over this place.

So when I get home at the end of the month I need to decide homeseer or indigo.

Reading forums and reviews helps choose.
I thought open source like Domoticz or HomeGenie, having looked at both I just can't be bothered with the pain of setup, Sudo, apt-get commands drive me nuts.
I just want it to work. Even though I can write scripts etc I just can't be bothered.




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I've been trying indigo and homeseer.

Indigo does have the best GUI and seems to be rock solid and fast.
Homeseer has more options but then again do I really need or want options?
There are a couple I do like the sound of but could do without.

Hi

What options are you fancying - we might be able to help.

Peter


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The options I like are the following.


RFID - to log in and out of the house. I want to not have to use the phone app as much as possible.
Also when I get my business going this would be a key feature as I have a healthcare company potentially interested in some care feature for elderly and this would show care worked have been.


Modbus - this is only because I have quite a few Adams modbus tcp I/o units I could used for a few things like my outhouse and the attic. I also have a gas fire that needs 4 relays. To work via a wall switch but I would like to be able to automate it.
This option is nice to have but not a deal breaker. Also a cost effective way to get I/o.

When building rules, events. Homeseer does well with and statements, eg motion and low light. However I believe I can do that with conditions in indigo.

Apart from that I was in the process of setting up a business to do home automation systems, this is one reason I've bought and tried a few gateways. I even flew across to Holland to speak to BeNext. There controller and hardware was ok but I was finding faults all the time.

Due to my son taking seriously ill last summer I've not progressed with the business. I do however still have a lot of interest. I want a platform I can trust.
One thing that drew me to homeseer was the zee s2 as s cost effective basic solution, from that you can scale up to the embedded SEL or Windows box.
However I do think indigo is a great solution that I'd be happy to install.
Apple Mac mini is solid.

I'm testing this in a hospital ward between other things.
I have my MacBook Pro running with keyfobs and some Fibaro kit in a case.

I'm not in front of the system right now but those are the options that spring to mind.


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I'll add that I am a controls and automation engineer with my background in electrical engineering.
I work with Plc and scada systems offshore and in many factories.
I know how a control system should be.
Plc and scada is too expensive and too much of a rewire for most houses or properties.

I first thought about using Beckhoff cx controller with I/o and enocean for doing my house but it was too much hassle and cost.

Regards

Graeme


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