Partially crossposted from Apple Bytes

Had learnt many lessons and made many mistakes on the process of renovation in the past one year and had been lurking around this forum for many renovation tips.
I want to share a connected home ecosystem where different brands of smart accessories work together in one single app - and you don’t have to have a“brand loyalty”, just choose whatever brand that works best for you and the devices will work with other brands in your house.

Apple Homekit, Google Home and Home Assistant (for advanced users) work with all the devices that I share here.

The current state that I had completed is just plain Apple Homekit - planning to add Google Home (accessories can connect to both ecosystem simultaneously) and Home Assistant (when I have the time to tinker). I have a Google Home on the way and can’t wait to try it.

A connected home comprises of many elements but I believe that switches, lighting, blinds, fans, curtains, door locks and TV make up the most of the accessories.

Before I start I just want to show what is possible with a connected that does not rely on one single brand with different brands working together with the automations in Homekit:

Very Reliable and Responsive App Control:
https://youtu.be/e3vPL5OqyT4


Control autogate (Terncy Switch Module) with Apple Home app, can use Siri and control outside from wifi network. TV and other home lightings (Philips Hue Lightstrip) change color indicating gate has been opened (Terncy Door Sensor). Change back to original state after check TV is on or not (LG OLED B9) (white/off) when gate is closed.
https://youtu.be/UQV2US6nkb4


Open gate automatically by tapping phone on NFC (Terncy Switch Module) + Indoor Philips Hue to change colour.
https://youtu.be/QadOyAiXZSU


Turn on the TV (LG OLED B9) and have the lights dimmed (Philips Hue downlight + Gledopto) and the backlight on (Philips Hue Lightstrip)


How about a bedside switch… with an NFC sticker (Terncy Wall Switch).
https://youtu.be/AqI6ExqStIs


And VERY reliable wireless lighting/fans app control .. even on mobile data (Terncy Wall Switch, Philips Hue Lighting)
https://youtu.be/-XUoP8-vIyw


Choosing between a smart switch or smart lighting? Why not both… Reprogrammed the buttons to control lightings, but different scenes - warm light, cool light, relax (dimmed) (Terncy Wall Switch, Philips Hue Lighting)
https://youtu.be/WG3HS974Xdw


Apple Siri + Wall Switches - turn on everything upstairs





For a reliable and responsive connected home, depending on your size and budget for me personally these 4 are the most important criteria:
1. Reliable network throughout the house (preferably strong 5ghz wifi signal for full coverage of the house). I’m currently using Ubiquiti Network (UDM as my router with 2 Unifi AC to cover a 4000sqft double storey house) It’s best to have ethernet cable all over your house because wired signals are always the best, but if you are upgrading a house that has no ethernet, consider a mesh network with a backhaul frequency (“triband”) I’m not an expert in networking so you can learn more from the sifu at the networking forums. One router is never enough for a large home no matter how strong they advertise their signals are and wifi repeater sucks.
2. Neutral wires in all your switches. Neutral switches are more responsive, works better, safer and have longer life compared to it’s non neutral siblings - live wire. If you are renovating, please consider adding a neutral wire in all your switches as smart switches play a major role in a connected home.
3. Hub to bring all your different brands together!! - for apple there is Apple HomePod and Apple TV (or an old iPad which I don’t recommend because the network might cut off anytime). Google Home (will install and update my experience later)
4. Supports Google Home AND Apple Homekit with local network control (No passthrough the vendors servers)

Choosing a connected accessory:
For switches and ceiling lightings where you will have a huge number and need them to work reliably, I would recommend you NOT to get wifi or bluetooth ones.
If you are not using an enterprise grade router and have 50 wifi switches lighting connected to your router, it will jam your network and you certainly don’t want them taking your network traffic. Also, imagine the nightmare when you change your wifi name or your wifi password when you have to repair everyone of them. Oh, and most of them are connected on 2.4Ghz so if your live in a dense area then there will be a lot of interference (Not responding from time to time)

Bluetooth is just not made for smart home with its short range, unless you rent a small place la then it’s ok. Expect devices like these to flop - short range and slow. - Elgato Eve, some Xiaomi bulbs

Then get what?
Get smart accessories with a hub! I think currently, the best standard for a connected home is Zigbee 3.0. It’s good cause.. it uses a mesh network, means like your light bulb ah or your natural switch - they act as signal repeater for longer coverage - also they are very reliable and doesn’t hog your wifi network. And then when you change your wifi password or when you move, just bring them and repair the hub and you are good to go. I know there’s a general hatred towards hubs because they feel like a scam to suck more money from you and some people prefer wifi because they have not many devices and I think it’s perfectly ok to go full wifi if you have a small place and don’t plan to expand in the future.

For everything else like table lamp, washing machine, TV , air purifier where you don’t have a huge number or don’t need to use them at high frequency - get the wifi one is okay la. If need repair or what at least no need climb ceiling or pull out the wires behind the switch.

What I finally bought (all of them support apple HomeKit AND google home):
Switches: 35+ Neutral Switches from Terncy aka XIaoyan , 2x Terncy Switch Module (like the Sonoff ones) - Zigbee
Bulbs: 23x Philips Hue Downlight and 6xLight strips (I got them like.. 50% off in a sale) - Zigbee + Gledopto light strip controller- Zigbee, Yeelight Table Lamp (excellent little piece), Yeelight Table Lamp with Wireless charger - both yeelights are wifi
Other stuffs: LG B9 (GREAT TV. EXCELLENT), LG washer dryer, Xiaomi Roborock S6, Xiaomi Air Purifier - all wifi .
Oh and this - Yale YMI70 Smart door lock - bluetooth

Review
Switches
I think switches are the most integral part of a connected home la. Like to on anything you usually use switch mah. I was looking for wall switches that support Homekit since last May and four companies were shortlisted… because they have hubs + support Homekit and Google Home
Lutron, Aqara by Xiaomi, Lifesmart and Terncy.
I know there are like broad link and Sonoff but because they use wifi I did not consider to use them at all, but I read excellent reviews on Sonoff flashed with a Homekit firmware that would be a kickstart to test Apple Home.

Lutron: best and most established brand in the US. Only US switches available, relative in US using this, and online reviews are overwhelmingly positive. Get this… if you have the budget and can source it? Zigbee!
https://www.casetawireless.com

Lifesmart: This is a terrible brand la. They advertised they have HomeKit but it’s actually beta then if I’m not mistaken they got sued by Apple then what happen is they promised their users that their Hub will support Homekit in a future software update… and guess what, they just got certified recently and you have to buy a new hub. Also their old wall switches with no neutral looks REALLY good has a serious design flaw and my friend bought one that broke down in a couple months. Now they release a non neutral version… with battery. YMMV. Oh and they use 433Mhz as the network protocol instead of Zigbee… which is exactly like the signal in the remote control for autogate or the Broadlink RF device… So if someone neighbour play a prank and put a signal jammer.. then all their devices would not work anymore. I don’t recommend this brand at all.
https://lifesmart.com.my

Aqara: Excellent choice if you are staying in a tiny house like a studio or don’t plan to expand in the future because they are cheap and affordable. Seriously considering between this and Terncy for a while but a couple flaws made me chose Terncy instead. The Hub is connected to the switches via Zigbee, BUT the Hub is connected to your router via 2.4Ghz Wifi. 2.4Ghz wifi is not very reliable in my area because there’s a lot of interference and reliability matters a lot to me, hence I didn’t choose this. Another reason is at the time when I am about to purchase, their customer support told me the wall switches does not act as signal repeaters and I have to buy a couple hubs in my house….. which is unacceptable to me. At that time last year I have to get from Taobao… and Xiaomi Aqara is REGION LOCKED. From what I understand is getting from Taobao and getting from Malaysia will require you to have two different setups in two different servers. ….. That’s kinda terrible.
https://www.lazada.com.my/shop/aqara-official-store

Terncy: This is the choice I made and I don’t ragret a single bit. The switches and modules are connected via Zigbee 3.0, they act as repeater (only the neutral ones) and the hub is connected to the router via ethernet (YAY). I found this while visiting an Apple Store in China and bought one hub and switch to test. I bought from an unofficial seller in taboo and they sent me a hub with a switch that had an older firmware. I had some bumps here and there while setting up but the customer service agent promptly resolve my issue with an update. The range, reliability and responsiveness is excellent. Oh. And also PRIVACY. I know like google Xiaomi apple and china companies all collect data, but I trust Apple more than any China company to protect my data. They support sign in with apple and will rollout a feature to stop all network calling home in a future update. I am looking forward and will update here.

I was very new to all of these at that time… but one worked excellent doesn’t mean 30 would work excellent too. But I want to cut cost on shipping so I just took a bet and ordered 30 of them… And it worked. It worked so good I was so shocked because they exceeded my expectations. They respond INSTANTANEOUSLY and VERY reliable for the past seven months I had them installed. I was thrilled because I always had the impression that ugly products work the most reliably (look at Lutron switches) but they look good and they work very well. The matte finish on the switches are great and look very classy - I ragret sticking labels on them because I tried removing them now but they left permanent marks from the stickers. Talking bout the hardware, I had never once try to turn on/off something and it did not respond. NEVER. At least in the past seven months.. Touchwood. It’s so reliable I wired my autogate switch to a switch module (not the wall switch) and never brought my key out… since I moved in. Granted, you also have to have a strong and reliable wifi network for everything to be that responsive.

The switches come with four buttons with a tactile click no matter you get 1gang to 4gang. (Oh and Aqara didn’t have 3-4 gang switches at that time, which pushed me over to Terncy.) If you get anything other than a 4 gang switch, the extra buttons work as programmable buttons. Say goodbye to hardwired 2-way switches because now every switch with a programmable can be … used to control any other switches/Philips hue lights/Yeelight/TV/Fans in the house. It’s like a multiway switch. I had a programmed button near the main door where it will turn off everything in the house before I leave home. Another one to turn off everything downstairs at the stairs. Extra buttons in the bedroom switches to turn on the hallway lights.

Obviously simple automations like routines and scenes work very well. The pillar lamps will turn on after sunset and turn off after sunrise. There’s also like timer features because I always forgot to turn off the bathroom lights. Turn on bathroom lights - wait 20 minutes - turn off one light to serve as warning- then wait 5 minutes to turn off the other one. (Conserve water by not taking bath more than 20 minutes).
Everything works as expected, reliably and responsive - which I feel is a core and most important criteria for a connected home. I think it really matters that when I press the button in the app, it will respond instantaneously and reliably like I expect it to be… the best technology is the one that is transparent to its user. If I press a button and it only works 70% of the time, I will lose my confidence and just resort to use the hardware switches instead. They really knocked the hardware out of the ballpark and I would give the hardware a score of 5/5.

The Terncy app is not polished and there are little bugs here and there like signing me out from the app occasionally. I would not recommend anyone to use it as a daily driver at its current state (it is a shame because the hardware is so damn good and the software can’t keep up). Please use Apple Homekit or Google Home or even Amazon Alexa. The company announced that they are going to release an update this year with a design overhaul and I’m looking forward for it. However, the app supports many complex automations and allow the switches to be permanent switches… (will elaborate in the lighting section)

All things considered, I’m very glad I made the choice of going with Terncy. Those that have access to Lutron can consider getting them if you have the budget (they have more variety and even support AC fans control), I believe they would work equally as reliably as Terncy. I would not consider Xiaomi Aqara to use as wall switches at all at their current price point because the Terncy ones are much more better and responsive (compared to my friend’s house) unless you are already invested in the Mi ecosystem. Although Terncy is a Chinese company, they support Sign in with Apple, no region lock, local network control and I can’t wait to update to a new firmware that would allow me to stop them calling home - I had DPI on in my Ubiquiti router that would check all outgoing network traffic. Xiaomi recently had circulating news about violating user’s privacy and sharing data even on incognito mode and I think that’s sort of expected… so yeah.

Terncy Official Store in Shopee
https://shopee.com.my/terncy.my

Lighting
For Zigbee Lighting, I think the options available are kinda limited. Philips Hue and Ikea Tradfri are the more reputable brands. I heard good things about ikea Tradfri, but I had not been able to source them so I could not give my comments.
Philips Hue is the best. They offer the most options : look up amazon if you cannot get local and their only flaw to me is overpriced (because they are the only option in the market) . They respond immediately, have a vast selection of devices and work very reliably in the past six months. The only sad part is one of the hue downlight I bought stopped working after 5 months ( I think this is an isolated incident).
If you have the budget to go Philips Hue, you wouldn’t ragret.
Anyway, if you don’t have the budget, you can consider getting a Philips Hue hub and use Gledopto light strips + bulbs instead. They are extremely affordable and because they are Zigbee, they work very reliably. They can be added directly into the Hue app, works with Zigbee, but unfortunately not with Homekit. I had two of these strip lights that I used for my ceiling in the dining and living area and I think they are great and reliable in the past few months. You can add them to Apple Homekit if you use Homebridge.

https://www.lazada.com.my/shop/philips-ligh...-store-malaysia
https://gledopto.aliexpress.com/store/3685003

Smart Switch or Smart Lighting?
Smart switches are definitely cheaper and works with any kind of lighting or accessories (fans etc).
Smart lighting allows adjustment of temperature/color/hue but they cost significantly more and they require constant power on (if they lose power they can’t be controlled via the apps and automations will stop working) and you have to leave your wall switch permanently on. This is extremely inconvenient for people who are not competent with technology.

I recommend using smart switches for areas where you won’t spend too much of your time like hallways etc.
But if you have the budget to go full smart lighting, go for it.
There is a problem among the community to choose an ultimatum between smart lighting and smart switch (because like I mentioned just now, smart lighting stop responding when the power is cut and smart switches defeat the purpose of smart lighting).

Of course if you are using Hue, you can buy the Hue remote or Hue Tap to attach it to your wall. However, those options usually require batteries and wiring your Hue lights permanently to the power source would make maintenance hard. But I was very excited when I find out that Terncy supports permanent Power on. - so you can have both smart lighting and smart switches.
Let say you connect a Yeelight Ceiling Lamp to to the Terncy Wall Switch, you can opt for a setting to change the button on the switch to allow power on permanent and the button will immediately become a programmable buttons. Then you can do cool things like set this button to set the daylight scene, double tap for warm light ETC.
You can even make the button to turn on the TV and dim the lights for you… with one press. And they don’t require battery replacements (unlike the Hue dimmer switch). And when you decide that you want to change to a normal bulb, you can flip the button to turn off permanent power on in the software and it will work like other smart switches again.
THIS IS AN EXCELLENT FEATURE with NO COMPROMISES and from my reading, I think this Is the ONLY connected switch that works that well with smart lighting. I still can’t comprehend how they did not advertise this feature and the setting is hidden deep in the switch settings.

Oh and Yeah about Yeelight lamps. These are appealing to me because I can add to the Apple Home app without using the Xiaomi app. They are quite affordable and I recommend anyone who wants to try Apple Homekit to try them out.


Fans
The only smart fans I know that supports both Google Home and Apple Homekit are Hunter fans but they were too expensive…. So I would be glad if someone can share their inputs on any smart ceiling fans.

TV
I’m currently using the LG B9 OLED and Homekit support is great! I can change the TV HDMI input, control the TV content and adjust volume with the built in remote in iOS. Also when I turn on the TV it immediately dims the Philips Hue lights and when I off the TV it will restore to its previous brightness. (If you have smart curtains, you can make them to turn off the curtains too). Also, I am able to press a switch on the wall to turn on the TV, the fan and dim the lights in one go (Netflix and chill scene). All things said, the LG TV colours are excellent and I bought it from Harvey Norman and don’t regret a single bit.

Miscellaneous : Sensors and wireless switch
I am currently using the Terncy Door Contact Sensors and the Terncy Wireless Switch with motion sensor.
I think they are excellent and for the price it’s a bargain. I wrapped the Terncy Door Sensor with cling foil and stuck on the autogate to detect its state. All bedrooms are equipped with these sensors so when you enter the room, the small Yeelights will on automatically (at specific times) - benefit of CROSS BRAND support. They work very reliably as expected and the automations never failed.

The first Terncy Wireless Switch I received has a defective sensor but they promptly resolve it for me… by sending a new one. I was allowed to keep the defective one as a wireless switch and holy smokes it work so well as a wireless switch for anything. Turn on the TV, open the autogate… Well.
The wireless switch also have two motion sensors that detect the direction of motion and I think its really helpful to put in hallways.. When you pass by it turn on the lights and when you leave it will turn off the light. The only flaw I can think of is this is not a true occupancy sensor (let say two people walk pass and one person left first - it will still turn off the lights), however I think it works rather well for its purpose now until a true occupancy sensor comes along.

Terncy has limited number of accessories compared to Aqara. I am looking forward to install Aqara water leak sensor or the vibration one in the future. I had read mixed comments in the smart home thread on reliability and connectivity, that’s why I haven’t hop into the bandwagon yet.

Wrapping up

My conclusion is I believe that it is better if you don’t stick yourself to one "smart home" ecosystem or put all your eggs in one basket(like Xiaomi (non Aqara) or other proprietary smart home company I (IMT) in Malaysia) for connected home accessories and rather use a unified system like Apple Homekit, Google Home or if you are a coder - Home Assistant so you will have flexibility and can upgrade one by one in the future.
Most of my automations are configured in Homekit - they work cross brand, so if I want to switch out Hue for Yeelight, I can do it one by one without having to throw the whole system away. And if I don't want to use Terncy door sensor, I can switch out to Aqara one by one without having to throw the whole system out. And different accessories work harmoniously together with one another, so you can buy something from another brand that is cheaper or more reliable.
The reason I didn’t implement google home last year is because unlike apple HomeKit, google doesn’t allow local control yet, means when you tap something, it has to go to google server -> to Philips hue server -> come back to your house. This control is slower and much less efficient compared to Homekit which just use your local network and work fine without internet.
Google Home released an SDK this year to allow local control. Will test it out and update you guys if anyone is still interested.
https://www.androidpolice.com/2020/04/07/go...e-tp-link-more/

This post has been edited by kokhoong0624: May 4 2020, 08:03 AM

I want to share on smart curtains/blinds, door locks and also security camera in a future update... Once I get everything fixed post MCO

This post has been edited by kokhoong0624: May 4 2020, 08:13 AM

Reserved

Nice write up. We have similar interests. However I also use homebridge for accessories not HomeKit compatible out of the box.

With some thinking power and tinkering. I’ve emerged with an insane setup while saving some money avoiding some HomeKit products where it occasionally seems like daylight robbery.

I wouldn’t recommend TRADFRI for now. I spent an entire day setting up the blinds, it was absolutely painful, a shame because the product itself is awesome, just the app sucks tremendously.

Aqara switches can act as repeaters but only the ones with neutral line.
They are not exactly region lock.

Interesting write-up. I have about 40 smart devices at home. Sonoff. Xiaomi. Alexa (4). Google. My unifi-provide tplink router was dying. So I upgraded my router to Asus mesh routers and connected my tplink to my main router and use the tplink dedicated to all my smart devices. It works like a charm and I can connect even more smart devices now without problem

I agree! Some Homekit products are kinda trash for the value they offer even if they are sold in the Apple Store. Was about to get Elgato Eve in Singapore and fortunately I read the reviews before purchasing them.
I've used Homebridge for the Gledopto strip lights and I think they work wonderfully.... And much better value proposition compared to Hue.
And for Tradfri, I had read many...conflicting reviews but hearing you mention that the product is awesome and the app sucks make me heavily consider it, because I personally only use Apple Home app for controls now and looking forward to add Google Home.
Wanted to get in Singapore initially but then the pandemic happened... Sigh

Santik!

I think the Aqara curtains and blinds motor as well as the smart plug works as repeater too from the comments I read, but those were mentioned as NOT repeater by Aqara when I enquired them last year when I'm looking for a product.
Thanks for sharing! Yeah I am still saddened by this. Aqara DID not have an official store in Malaysia when I purchased it last year and I had been scorched by China products in the past for being region locked. I bought a 360 brand security camera from China and while it worked for a couple months, it then stopped working because a region locked is applied at a later date AFTER I purchase the product. Same with a Xiaomi Air Purifier and a Mi Hub, I think. When I contacted a salesperson in Aqara China, they told me they are "not very sure" if they will be region locked in the future which raised my concerns and the 2.4ghz wifi option pushed my decisions over to Terncy because Terncy reaffirmed to me that they will never region lock their devices and I hope they stay true to their promises.

Thanks for sharing! Sonoff is great and really good for the value they provide and I had a couple Sonoff smart plugs flashed with firmware that natively support Homekit and for the price value proposition, there's nothing that can beat them. They work reasonably well and for what I use them for, they are excellent. I'm hoping they would support local control with Google Home sometime in the future. But because my area is kinda dense, I am very doubtful that the 2.4GHz wifi sonoff switches will perform reliably in my area...especially if I'm going to have like 30+ of them compared to Zigbee devices.
How is google home working for you? are you using the Google Home Mini or the Google Home Max?
yeah the router that comes free with Maxis is also damn trash and Asus makes really good routers. May I know your router model and does your one support wifi 6? my friend is looking for a router too and he's considering between Asus and or Linksys... it would be great if you can share with me your router model because he wants to go the Sonoff route as well for his rented apartment

About the SonOff. I’m assuming the firmware that you refer to as HomeKit compatible is RavenCore ? Strangely this has been a pain for me. I’ve always gone MQTT with Tasmota, mostly because I’m using mostly SonOff POW for consumption tracking as well. I use fakegato to emulate an eve energy and it works great so far

does the Terncy Home center uses 5Ghz? No technical specs at their home page.

its a good alternative. only price on the high side, almost 2-3 times more than Aqara

Yes. RavenCore are they are preflashed into the smart plugs. I'm just using them to control a standing fan and for what they do it's okay. The reason I don't use them for major stuffs like switches is because I only stay at home 2 days/week and if anything goes wrong.. my parents would call me and it's a pain for me to remotely fix something that disconnect from the network and no real way to troubleshoot them.
I've never heard of MQTT and Tasmota and may I know if the consumption tracking works with Homekit/Google Home automation? I think it would be great like having the lights flashes/change color when the washing machine is done washing (with lower than a threshold consumption) and I always wanted to implement them. I believe this is possible with HA... but I'm always too lazy to start and don't know where to start.
Now I'm stuck at home and a great time to tinker with these LOL as I can fix them personally

I think they are using Zigbee 3.0 to the smart accessories and ethernet only to your local network. Yeah I agree they are much pricier (especially the lower gang models), but for the reliability I have in the past 6 months made them really worth it for me.

Here’s a sneak peak of what I get with Tasmota on a SonOff POW R2 running a plug-in that I branched from someone else with some edits I made. It works well so far and I also output the data to a CSV sheet to plot the data myself if I feel the need

I previously used an ASUS RT-AC5300 and GT-AC5300 and they constantly failed with the 70+ devices I had connected to it

Currently running a Synology Router handling all the DHCP and management and Linksys EA9500s as an access point for wireless devices and rarely if ever faced any issues ( apart from a Vocolinc Flowerbud that never stays connected for some reason. Plenty of issues with this all over the internet )

With the above set up I’m still able to saturate my 2gbps connection, with the Asus, wishful thinking. Not sure why.

you using the neutral or no-neutral switches?
any pictures of the back of the switches?
thanks

This post has been edited by idoblu: May 6 2020, 08:15 AM

Great and thanks!! I really dig the looks of the Elgato Eve app and I can see people choose this over the default Home app.
I gonna try some tinkering in the next couple weeks as I'm stuck at home haha and hopefully I can make it LOL
Just took a quick look at MQTT and I guess might need some sensei advice from you... if I encounter any roadblock hahaha

I'm using the neutral one. I believe the non-neutral ones would not work as responsive as the neutral ones. like Aqara, the non-neutral ones do not act as signal repeaters.
This is a 4 gang one

No one here using this guy ?
I love it
Hard to change the batteries though
And I received one with weak batteries
The internet says that you can’t change the batteries, but you in fact can, it’s just a pain

Thanks for the input. I was more inclined towards Linksys too. hahaha will let my friend know

Do you have a link for this? I only know Opple downlights, not their smart switches

This post has been edited by kokhoong0624: May 6 2020, 09:42 AM

So far my experience with Asus routers are good. I don't need raw speed so I opted for 2 mid range RT-AX3000 which has wifi6 capability. I am likely adding a third unit the entry level AX56u to expand my coverage as I have 4285sft house with lot of glass and walls.

BTW AX3000 is really "cheap" note below 650 after rebate at Lazada from ookas

You have almost double of mine. But did you set up your Asus as aimesh? Anyway in my case I connect most of not all of my smart devices to the my tplink with different wifi SSID. So far my Asus router CPU is typically less than 5% although memory usage of high but that's normal for router.

This is even while I am waiting for my two other routers from ookas.

You can see reviews here
https://homekitnews.com/2019/12/04/aqara-op...-switch-review/

I’m not sure where to find them in Malaysia. Probably AliExpress ?

6 button is around 20 sgd, and each button has 3 triggers. So effectively you have a 18 button switch, but if you use Siri Shortcuts. You can get even more than 18 triggers

You can find the aqara opple wireless switch in Lazada

A lot of good real life exp and info here, thanks TS.

Just wondering if Terncy can integrate with Home Assistant? If not I think i will have to go for Sonoff route. Ultimately I want a smart home to decide and everything for me, no more touching of switch, be it on the wall or on the phone. (ideally)

As long as it is homekit certified, it will be able to integrate to Home Assistant, My HA now managed Aqara homekit devices and yeelight homekit bulb

Thanks!
Currently with the official stable SDK I don't think they integrate with HA yet, but according to their website it is currently in development and should be rolled out in the next 2-3months.
If you need it right away like the other response, Aqara is the choice.
Keep in mind that my switches are the neutral version, and they respond significantly faster compared to the non-neutral one. And if you are renovating, I really recommend you to pull neutral wires for all your switches if possible
Yes but for now I think my home is not "smart" yet, more like connected. Still have to swipe in the app or call Siri sometimes to get things going.
Please share your HA set up when you're done! haha initially wanted to do HA, but I find the automations in Homekit is good enough for now.

How is your HA set up like? Would love to see you share some of your ideas.
Haha I had a Raspberry Pi and HA running but haven't really tinker with it yet.

At the end my friend got the Linksyss one and it is stable for the past one week. I also think that the Linksys ones are better from reading the online reviews when compared to the Asus ones

Nice write up! Did you come across any 20A smart switch that pairs well with Terncy smart switch side-by-side? It doesn't look nice if I have Terncy ones everywhere except switches for water heater.

Just went to look up information on terncy. Looks solid, but the price damn solid. On Taobao, it's about RM180 for the wall switch. definitely not a cheap solution, imagine replacing for the whole house wow.

@kokhoong0624 what's your take? do you feel it's worth the money so far?

The pros is that it's all zigbee 3.0, which technically should be completely open, so with a HA + Mqtt2Zigbee + the CC2531 USB zigbee stick, technically you can already integrate everything into HA. Only issue is that Terncy or Xiaoyan is not officially recognised / listed within the zigbee alliance. And the certified product page in Zigbee alliance also didnt have any item for terncy / xiaoyan.

Nope. Now my house switches look like this

Hahah please let me know if you find any that supports 20A or more. I'll update you if I know of any that supports high wattage too.

At the very start my requirement for the Connected Switch is the ability to be reliable and to integrate to Apple Homekit/Google Home, so I can add family members easily and they don't have to install a dedicated app like broadlink/xiaomi and register an account to take control.
I was considering Lutron Caseta switches... which cost around RM300-RM350... because of their reliability.
Then I seriously considered XiaoMi because Aqara is relatively affordable and can integrate to Homekit. But ultimately the lack of ethernet at the Hub, tons of reviews about intermittent connectivity and the max of 2 gang switches that cost around RM100 at the time I renovate made me chose Terncy instead.
I had a bad experience initially because I bought the Terncy switch from a non-official seller in Taobao to test in Malaysia before bulk purchasing. The app does not allow me to connect after trying for 2 hours+. Then I contacted the seller and the seller asked me to contact Terncy official store on Taobao myself.
To my surprise, their support is excellent and they even offer to send me another switch after I told them I reside in Malaysia and I can't return my original one. They reassure me that I don't have to return mine yet if the issue cannot be resolved. But thankfully it's just some firmware and app bugs.
With this kind of attitude I made my bet on them and bought 30+ switches at one go and they shave about 10% off the retail price which total around RM4k. When you take into account the 3-4gang prices its not that absurd when compared to the Aqara counterpart.

They are excellent. All my house switches are the neutral ones. They had been working so reliably for the past 6 months I have them and I have nothing to complain. Whenever I have any queries, their support is excellent and I always have my issues resolved in no time.
I feel like for a "smart home", the most important aspect and foundation is reliability and responsiveness, and Terncy really overachieved these two qualities and I think they are well worth the money I spent on them. I never ever have to try to restart the router or to tinker with the hub just to make things work in the past 6 months. The only "incident" I had is I bought a motion sensor from them and it came with a defect, and they promptly send me another one... Yeah.
I think currently my only complaint is the app is kinda... not optimised and not very user friendly. Little bugs here and there put me off from using their app as a daily driver. In this regards, Xiaomi one is probably better, but it doesn't matter if you use Google Home or Apple Homekit or HA.


I would recommend you to wait for them to have sales or discounts... or you can contact them via Shopee/taobao and see if they can offer you a discount if you doing bulk purchase.

As far as I know, Google Home local control and HomeAssistant is in development now and they will be released in the next few months? So if you need HA integration now I think the only option you have is Xiaomi one.
I haven't integrate into Google Home yet because local control is not possible.. and I am really spoilt with the speed and responsiveness of local control. hahaha will update once I get my Google Home running

Nice to know that they are responsive. Now just need to wait for house to be ready, of coz that depend on the MCO.

If switch point not done yet can consider using this because deeper than those they are selling in our local electrical shop so easier to install smart switches.


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Can you please share the seller link?

My china smart switch supplier sent it to me. You can try search in Taobao but it only fits the China plug screws which has larger thread. It's very cheap if you sent via Sea.

You can search "86型暗盒" in taobao, or go to this link: https://s.taobao.com/search?q=86%E5%9E%8B%E...0200514&ie=utf8

BULL/公牛 is one of the biggest company in China selling switch related product. I think should be quite reputable. Just make sure you get from the official store if possible.

For Smart Home newbies, just get few switches/devices to experience 1st. Because end of the day, you might not need so many 'smart' devices at home.
Will you use your finger touch or always bring along your mobile to switch on the light?

Yeah this brand is quite famous but I think I got these instead because they are significantly deeper haha

I think a connected home is never a need but more like a luxury anyways.
But once you get connected you will never want to go back.
I rarely use the wall switches to off stuffs now. Like on my bed, I usually just use phone or "Hey Siri" to turn off my bedroom lights.
When I leave home, I'll be able to check if the doors are closed and locked properly, so do the windows.
And I don't have to bring my keys when I leave or enter the house. Zero keys from entering the gate to the main door.
I can have the lights on automatically when I go up the stairs.
And you're right about the touch part, I had program one switch near the stairs to turn off everything downstairs when im going to bed.
I can open the gate + door for a friend when I'm in my room with monitoring from CCTV.
When I turn on the Tv, I have the lights dim for me and the Tv backlight on (how troublesome to do this by hand) and if you have smart blinds/curtains, they can turn off too + adjust the temp in the room.
When you turn off the tv, the lights can be brighter again
I think we reached an era where everything is modular and reprogrammable so everyone can have automations/scenes that suit their need
Hahah I think it depends on creativity and having a more unified connected home where different brands work together, so you won't be restricted by smart home products of one ecosystem.

Connected home is a lifestyle not luxury. 10 years back market as luxury but not now.

HOwever, home automation is not only a control device, use finger on switches or finger on mobile devices, this is only the basic.

It is a relation of sensors and actuators under a preset circumstances/ conditions. The logic like if ... then ...else ... else if ... etc .

Just chatted with their sales support via Taobao
1. confirmed that it's not zigbee 3 certified, and it will be limited to xiaoyan/terncy ecosystem
2. they are not developing any integration to HA

Not sure if this sales too lazy to ask the relevant department or what, but somehow we got very diff answer for the same question.

have been using no neutral aqara for almost a year already, so far still good, no neutral on my home phase and not doing reno soon
but i think main think terncy win like what you say 4gang n ethernet-connected hub if one required, plus point on region
but also important thing is unified frame work rather then brand loyalty is more important for swapping of device in future, and also local control
smart switches vs smart hub, i think for places like living hall i would have both if budget permits, but places like kitchen/bath/laundry can just use smart switches

its better to link up the devices to the hub and have the hub talk to the network, then your network will not be congested

my personal setup (current and planned) is per below
lights>>yeelight bulb on stand lamp no smart plugs, all dumb light with smart switches
smart switches >> aqara switch to control lights and fans (my fan i dont change speed anyway)
sensors >> aqara based
cctv >> aqara g2H (coming soon)
security alarm >> linking aqara sensor to trigger BT speaker (planning for homepod), currently the hub is the siren
AC control >>no idea yet, prefer aqara AC companion but it come in dif plug while tado seems not my cup of tea
vacuum >> still looking
auto gate>>iSmartgate but maybe will just macgyver it with switch module.
blinds>> i like how terncy planning to release just to motor module, but i seen hacks using the aqara curtain to "auto" sliding windows
dead bolt>> maybe will used august / level lock

no homekit hub yet, but budgeting for it

This post has been edited by razr_sped: May 30 2020, 09:11 AM

Sorry I think after some confirmation with the official shop:
1. They do support Zigbee 3.0, although had not certified. I had been using them with my Hue lights for quite some time now.. (Hue lights directly to the Terncy Hub)
2. HomeAssistant is going to be rolled out in a near future update. I talked to one of the backend engineer last time and they are already in the testing phase of the SDK.

I think Aqara make great products, especially at the price they are at now. I like how they are pushing the market to release more affordable connected home products.
Yup and I recommend using dimmable and variable temperature bulb for living room and bedroom if possible (They are really life changers - look at gledopto if your budget is limited)
Depending on the number of CCTV you have, I would recommend you to use the IP cameras (Hikvision, Unifi protect etc) to store the footages because the non-IP ones usually not VERY reliable... because they can just remove the camera and leave with the footage, I am getting the Aqara G2H camera too, can't wait to try HomekitSecureVideo. For security alarm, I understand the thrill of getting smart ones but I really recommend getting an old wired reliable brand if possible. (My house had been broken in during CNY, and wired alarms can call your phone even you are out from home)
For smart switches, I think Aqara switches are great if your 2.4Ghz Wifi is reliable and not much interference, but it's impossible to get stable 2.4Ghz wifi in my area.
I swapped out the Autogate switches with a Terncy module and my whole family had never brought a key out for the last 6 months and we had never failed to open the door - That's how reliable the Terncy ones is - just because they use Ethernet connection. From reviews online and my friend's house that also use Aqara- changing to Terncy, I don't think Aqara can beat Terncy on both reliability and responsiveness if the 2.4Ghz connection is not stable. And now the Terncy switches are like RM50 off promotion each model in their Shopee shop and at this price point, I would recommend anyone who hadn't bought their smart switches to get the Terncy ones (Bonus: They work with smart light bulbs by providing constant power). I could've save 1k+ if only I had bought it a couple months late
Aqara has many more sensors compared to Terncy, planning to use the G2H camera as a hub and get some sensors to test haha
I am getting the Terncy blinds for my room and my brother room soon. Will update when I have it installed...
But anyway, great choice there! Do look out for deals for the HomePod in the United States (try to use a transhipping company), I got one new HomePod for RM750.... just a few months ago on a Costco deal.

my house already had old style cctv buit in, those using coaxial which im not keen to rewired it with PoE IP cable, there for will adding the G2H as extra as i can slot it as additional lens in the (locked) cctv casing.

2.4ghz wifi is ok, though not as big mine still have to covered 36oosqft but only 2 levels so that is alright. it was an issue earlier due to signal angle

good tip on homepod, will have a lookout for it

mind sharing how the switch module connect? i believe the terncy switch module is similar to the aqara wireless relay switch module, if so then perhaps i'll hook it as those are homekit certified too

I think they really need to train their customer service, they way their CS answer me really dont give me any confidence. Good thing is my house CCC is affected by MCO, so still got a few months to go before CCC and defect checking, if by then xiaoyan can get the Homeassistant sorted out then i will probably opt for xiaoyan brand for blinds and switch.

But again, see the price still a bit hati sakit.

There is EOC(Ethernet over coaxial) with POE available to replace analog to ipc. Been using more than 2 years no issue. Can even daisy chain to add in up to 7 ipc but max I tested was 4 only.

The customer service agent is in the team and had told me that they did not deny HomeAssistant support. Maybe you had asked a reseller instead? Their official shop is this:
https://xiaoyankeji.tmall.com
Their Terncy shop in Shopee is also having a promotion with MYR50 off every switch now.... pricing almost like Xiaomi.. just bought a couple for a friend Kinda upset that I bought a couple months ago but can't complain cause use half year d, could've saved 1k+ there

Sorry I did not see your question yesterday. Lemme try to look up the schematics and I'll update my circuit here when I find it.

This is how I connect mine. I think it's best to send your schematic to the official shop seller (either at Taobao or Shopee) and their engineer would work out and see how can yours be connected.
Keep in mind that they appear as switches instead of door in Homekit, but nonetheless worked quite well for me (able to open one door - left or right, two doors - which is not possible with ismartgate)

any recommendation, tried searching lazada/shopee macam no avail
thx for the info

thx for the info, but i see there is suppose two physical switch how would it control left or right?
i suppose one switch should be one side, the the other switch is both side.
for ismartgate to control both gate, you need the pro version i suppose as the standard on have one switch for one door, pro has 3.

EOC

Also can i trouble you to list down all the switches you use in your house? breakdown by rooms. The terncy look like pretty good price to buy now, but im not sure how many i need for the terrace house, will like to ref your set up and plus / minus according to my needs.

I asked them in the group and the response is because there are many competitors out there that pretend to be customer and ask them about future roadmaps, so they would not disclose it in the public on an official channel. If you are interested you can talk to the Taobao/Shopee seller to join the group (usually they will ask you if you interested after you purchase their products) and you can talk directly to the people who are responsible for the app/product.

Keep in mind if you don't know what gang to buy let say 2 OR 3 gang, you can always buy the upper gang, because the extra gang can be turned off and change into a programmable settings via the app and the price difference is negligible.

For me it's master bedroom x 2
1 x 4gang - lights x2, fans, cabinet light (activated via door sensor),ventilator
1 x 3gang - toilet lights + ventilators
1 x 1gang - bedside lamp + remap the other 3 gangs to turn off room lights/ outside lights/ or turn on toilet lights

Other rooms
1 x 4 gang - lights x2, ventilatorsx1, fanx1 (For lights my room ONLY use hue lights so I allow continuous power to the lights and make the lights bright/dim using the programmable button settings, other members of the family not interested)
1 x 1 gang (not all room) beside the bed - bedside lamp, map the other gangs to turn on the lights outside/toilet lights etc

Toilet lights
1 x 3 gang - lights x 2 , ventilator x 1, extra button use to turn off everything/ turn on stairs lights

Stairs
1 x 2 gang

Living room
6 x 4 gangs - my living room is like two terrace house combine so quite side, switches on both sides so 3 each side. 1 x fan, other lights (all set to be programmable so some can on the TV.., some play songs on the HomePod, some dim the room, some brighten the room, some turn off everything so just have to press that when leaving home)

Dining room
2 x 4 gang - fans, light strip, hue lights (all programmable except for fan)

Kitchen
1 x 3 gang - light light strip ventilator

Hallway
4 x 4 gang - lights lights lights for each side + hallway fans

Should be around like that but my house have like... 8 rooms in total? Because it's like two adjacent terrace house combined..

Get the one with neutral wires right?

Also got the number of gang im a bit puzzled, for normal switch 1-4 gang related to the number of switch on the plate itself, but this product seems to only have the 4 switch design, meaning 1 gang = 4 switch on the plate that does 1 thing only? or is it they have diff switch for diff gang count?

For all the switches with 1-4 gangs, there are four buttons. So let say you buy 1 gang one, the rest 3 can be programmed to do something else like turn on the outside lights/ turn off everything downstairs etc
The 4 gang one does not have a programmable button unless you have smart lighting then you can allow continuous power OR you didn't use all 4 gangs, then can turn off one gang and make it into a programmable button

Yes get the ones with neutral wire

get neutral if u have neutral, wont work with most house in Malaysia as its extra cost for contractor when building houses

Ok noted, so basically just get the 4 gangs whenever possible? since i can just not connect the wires and program the button instead, one last thing, without internet those i connected with wires will still work like a normal switch right?

Lucky it's gonna be a new house, so i'll make sure everything point is connected to neutral.

took the plunge and bought 22 hope i get more than enough.

the shopee customer support is way way way way way better than the one from taobao. really helpful and answered a lot of questions. Like you said, they are already testing the HA integration now, to be released soon. now just waiting for their item to be on discount.

managed to get a free home center from them. Hope they really deliver.

Anyway, thanks for posting your experience here, really helpful, and also thanks for answering all the questions i had This switch really fit what i'm looking for in terms of looks and functions. just the money is really burn a hole in my pocket. only missing item now is 20A switch from them. Told the CS about this, hopefully they will feedback to their team. I guess for them to create a 20A switch shouldn't be too troublesome, is just whether they think got the market or not.

I've changed my mind. Terncy switches look nice but I want consistent look and feel.

I'm probably going for Simon switches / power sockets + Shelly relays. For 20A load I'm thinking about using contactors i.e. switch -> relay -> contactor -> load.

This post has been edited by iamsobloodysick: Jun 7 2020, 12:29 AM

If you want consistency there are many types of 16/20A Smart Switches that matches those normal smart switch. Why go through the hassle of Shelly relays and "switch -> relay -> contactor -> load" for high amp switches.

Many? I could only find one which has a glass finishing - https://shopee.com.my/20A-Smart-Wifi-Touch-...7179.2837158247.

double post

This post has been edited by adamw: Jun 8 2020, 02:10 AM

I ask my supplier customized. Also if the housing is similar you can change it yourself.

This post has been edited by adamw: Jun 7 2020, 08:44 PM

I bought a few of these, make sure they fit in the socket, mine fits if not for the thick wires.

Their 16A switch is scheduled for this year release. That's what i get from their customer support. That is also if you are not in a rush to replace / use.

Apology for being out of topic a bit, but I wonder if any of you will be interested in AI Kitchen? Especially working adults with kids but partner and self are both working.

The concept is robot will take out ingredients from fridge, wash and cut the ingredients, and also marinate. So once you got home, just get the prepared ingredients and cook immediately. Dishwasher comes along too. ETA for dinner everyday: 15mins and dont need to touch knives etc.

Let me know because Im looking for someone that has common needs

I think you should download “ food panda”or “grab”

extremely informative write up!
I am currently planning to do the same too

Assuming i have 2 x 4 gang switches, so i will need 2 neutral lines? or i can have 1 neutral and loop it to 2 switches?

I think it's possible to have 1 neutral and loop to 2 switches, some of my neutral lines are looped from the nearby switch sockets too

if the neutral line won't get your RCCB tripped, then you can loop it.

Hi all, anyone managed to get Home Assistant or Alexa working now with Terncy ? I do not use homekit, but interested to go the Terncy route.
Hope to hear from some of you.

If using Alexa why need pay the extra price for Terncy?

I thought Terncy switches, hubs are better built as mentioned by TS.
And we can choose either homekit, google assistant or Alexa as voice control?
May i know what you mean & what switches you recommend to work with Alexa?

Terncy price is high due to Apple's licensing. If you prefer Alexa join us here:-
Read through the whole thread

Thank you. But after much research, I will use homekit for now.

Can share what are the reasons for you to use homekit instead of alexa or others?

I know but dare not say

I know GA/Alexa is more established and I am an Android fanboy for yesrs. No particular reason, just Homekit got better and usable now
mainly because I am planning to change to Apple phone from Android. bored of Google/android after so many years.

PM? hahahah

is it possible to retrofit a neutral wire onto a house?

If you have 3 pin socket or airco/heater switch nearby still possible but if you are not doing any renovation might be a bit messy.

Possible definitely yes, just matter of how troublesome and how much.

am trying to find a 4 gang live wire switch though i cant find any in the market.

aqara and tency only has 3 gang for live wire.

any recommendation?

Nice thread! Just to check a if I understood correctly... Terncy switches are HomeKit compatible which means you wire

a. Terncy Switch --> Terncy Hub --> HomePod
b. Terncy Switch --> HomePod

a. or b.?

Also unfortunately my house which I just got keys back in Dec'20, does not have neutral wire for the switches. So I will need to work around it... if I were to loop from close by 13A/aircond/heater, they have to be within the same phase? eg. lights are on R1 while the aircond is on Y5 so I won't be able to use those right?

there are switches with no need for neutral - https://shopee.com.my/Terncy-Wall-Switch-wi...3185.7229753354

a. Terncy Switch --> Terncy Hub --> HomePod

loop from same phase neutral

This post has been edited by idoblu: Jan 19 2021, 09:04 AM