Indigo Users' Matter Thread

Thanks, I may try one of the bulbs. I have a bunch of INSTEON bulbs in my outside lights - z-wave will not work out there due to the outside light construction (they are like little faraday cages). I have some INSTEON bulbs inside too that I could replace with the Inovelli bulbs and save them for the outside locations (for when the INSTEON bulbs eventually die).

Thanks goodness I have a backup INSTEON usb hub - that is a single point for failure for a ton of INSTEON stuff - I would have to replace dozens of devices and convert them too - the horror

I agree with everything that @Jay said.

Yes, Inovelli are priced a higher than some brands like GE or Zooz, but I would but them on par with Aeotec, Cooper, Leviton, etc. In my opinion, with these devices, you get what you pay for. The reason you saw a lot of refurbs on the Inovelli site is because customers have asked them to get as many devices on the market as they can. When there's a shortage of Z-Wave chips, that's what's left.

@Jay: there is a 3D printing model out there for that button that's got a lower profile--where you almost need a fingernail to press it (basically eliminates accidental press). The only downside to these if you ask me is that it might be hard to find a filament that's a perfect match for the switch color. Their forums are off line at the moment, but if you search this, it'll come right up.

Code: Select all

low profile button site: community.inovelli.com

[jay (support)]

It only consistently happens in that one location, and I already have a Zooz dimmer I can replace it with, so I probably won't try it.

[jay (support)]

The only downside to these if you ask me is that it might be hard to find a filament that's a perfect match for the switch color.

Well the other downside is that you need a 3d printer LOL...

I'm not going to out a particular someone on these forums, but that someone 3D printed an entire Raspberry Pi rack mount setup for me.

They're available to buy, too -- but I think they come in packs of 10. One other option that some have done is to file the button down.

If anyone here needs anything (and has a file) I can print in white (lots of other colors too). A few months ago I got a new 3D printer and it is about a million times easier to use than my first one (which is ~5 years old). New one is the prusa mini - so easy to print now - really night and day compared to my old one. I have been using it so much more - even made xmas gifts for all the neighbors.

Way to go Norm. Nice!

If anyone here needs anything (and has a file) I can print in white (lots of other colors too). A few months ago I got a new 3D printer and it is about a million times easier to use than my first one (which is ~5 years old). New one is the prusa mini - so easy to print now - really night and day compared to my old one. I have been using it so much more - even made xmas gifts for all the neighbors.

I've been thinking of upgrading to a Prusa. I have an Ender 3 Pro now.

The mini is inexpensive and has a pretty good build volume - the self leveling feature is to die for, the magnetic build plate is also really nice - a quick bend and prints just pop off. Printing is such a pleasure now. Designing stuff is still pretty hard for me but I have made some stuff. It is nice now that is is so easy to print I can also find cool stuff and print in no time.

3D printing is great. Discussion of z-wave brands and availability is great and useful. However, as the OP, I really want this thread to be about ... well, Thread. and Matter.

So to stimulate discussion, I'll share some resources I've come across that I found interesting.

Which devices will work with Matter? This article discusses some of the brands that are out there now that are making products that will be compatible with Matter when it comes out. It's a bit hard to tell, but in at least a few cases, I think that devices you can buy today will be firmware-upgraded to new versions that will actually be Matter-compliant. Matter will be built on the Thread networking protocol. Thread is its own kind of mesh network and several manufacturers are selling products you can buy today that are also based on Thread, which presumably means that in the future, your Matter devices will "cooperate" with these devices to propagate signals.

As an Indigo user, I'm left to wonder: in a hypothetical future where I go into Home Depot and see a thermostat on the shelf that says "works with Matter", what will this mean for me? If Matter is the great new standard some are hyping -like Insteon and Z-wave (but more "standard", more "open", and with more wholesome goodness) - then surely it would won't be long before Indigo supports it, right? So is it right to think of Matter as a "protocol" in the same category as "z-wave", "zigbee", "Insteon", "X-10", etc?

If so, I wonder if it will it be treated in Indigo more like z-wave (official "built-in" support) or will it be more like zigbee (no official support, spotty brand-specific plugin-based support for some devices, no standard interface)?

It looks like I can buy today a small set of devices for which the manufacturers claim will be upgraded to Matter support. There's a larger set that are already using Thread protocol. Brands like Hue have announced that they have a transition plan for their existing "bridge" device that will keep all their legacy products working smoothly and interfacing with Matter. The timeline has already shifted a few times, but if you believe the industry news, we'll see release of official supported devices into the market by the end of this year.

My instincts are to try these devices out and to develop and test control capabilities for this new protocol. ... and also to stop spending money on other stuff that looks like it's headed toward obsolescence. That choice has of course been made simplified in recent weeks by clarifications of Insteon's future (isolated to the eBay scrap-heap). The first wave of Matter devices will work out-of-the box in HomeKit (which comes pre-installed on my iPhone, my AppleTV, my Mac, and even my watch) as well as with other major platforms. I know of nothing announced so far that indicates there will be any way to tie these devices to Indigo. HomeBridge and friends look really encouraging, but afaik also seem like they're only going to be "one-way" in terms of bridging devices...

I'd like to hear thoughts of other Indigo users. Skeptical? Hopeful? Working on new plugins that will keep Indigo vibrant and relevant during the upcoming Matter rollout? Please share your thoughts.

I mentioned a while back (not in this thread) that if Matter takes off I think it will steam roll everything else - the only thing is - will it take off, when will it take off, and will it be everything it is supposed to be - those are really big questions that impact viability. Also, it is a lot easier to say something is going to be a better mousetrap - a bit harder to actually get that done — that is the nature of the bleeding edge. I’m pretty sure Matt and Jay can not afford to burn calories on anything Matter until that space is better understood (matured).

I would welcome great new technologies but I still have a house full of legacy (working) devices so for me bug squashing and feature adding (for the existing stuff) far outweighs any work on Matter. Just my 2 cents…

PS, sorry for getting the thread off track.

To be honest, I haven't burned a lot of fuel learning about Matter (or Thread) and probably won't until Matter's on the street. I know it's IP-based and uses Bluetooth for commissioning, but how will that work in practice? What I don't want is a home automation setup that has lots of different frameworks and brokers (and especially cloud requirements). We don't use voice services (Alexa, etc.) so that's not a selling point for us. We don't use MQTT or anything like that. We don't use any cloud services (in our HA setup) which would be a non-starter. I suppose I should go watch the webinar to find out how it works.

We've bought into Z-Wave, so I'd say--until Z-Wave is no longer a viable option--we'll probably stick with that. If Matter takes off, we'll definitely consider it--but it'll have to be super-compelling for us to make any kind of dramatic move. Foremost, it'll have to "Work with Indigo".

If anyone here needs anything (and has a file) I can print in white (lots of other colors too). A few months ago I got a new 3D printer and it is about a million times easier to use than my first one (which is ~5 years old). New one is the prusa mini - so easy to print now - really night and day compared to my old one. I have been using it so much more - even made xmas gifts for all the neighbors.

Sorry to derail, but i recently did a major overhaul on my CR10S Pro- linear x-rail, heated enclosure, biqu h2 extruder, adjoining dry box, and Klipper/Fluidd to run the show. My default filament is now nylon. Also happy to help out with anybody who has 3-D printing related questions!

I imagine that, early on, we’ll see a lot of Matter Hubs, that pair with Z-wave, Zigbee, or proprietary protocols and translate them to Matter.
Of course, we won’t see any actual product announcements until the final, version 1.0, Matter standard is published.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I've been thinking of upgrading to a Prusa. I have an Ender 3 Pro now.

It really is impossible to describe the difference... though, like ANY 3D printer, you have to learn to use each individual one. I am upgrading my Prusa i3 MK3S to a Prusa XL when it comes out later this year and I can't wait. Look that one up if you haven't -- not cheap but coming out with a TON of unique features, plus is CoreXY design. Could also build a Voron if you want to take on a project...