Looking for thread and Zwave products. Any recommendations? I live in the UK.
#Starting HA, using thread and/or Zwave. Any product recommendations?
delicate sail
mossy plinth
depends entirely on what you want or need for device types
ebon tree
ZigBee seems to have cheaper devices and more devices. Matter is newer and generally seems 'better', but there aren't a lot of choice for devices with it, and they're more expensive.
Zwave is the same 'generation' of protocols as ZigBee (e.g. when they were released-ish) but seems to have fewer devices and more expensive ones.
Sharing my research, as I'm in a similar situation to you
mossy plinth
there are vastly more differences between the individual protocols but usually what matters ia their implementation on a specific device
those can differ wildly between brands and will affect the operations of the entire iot network those devices build
sacred temple
^ I’ve found Z-Wave to be more reliable in my case because they have to be certified
(ignore me, I’ve just done more research and seems like both have to, could’ve sworn zigbee didn’t need as rigorous testing or something)
delicate sail
Thank you for all your explanations! 😀 I have noticed that both thread and Zwave products are more expensive and (strangely) it seems easier to find thread products that Zwave. I'm trying to stay away from Eve if I can because that have crazy prices compared to the competition, but they have some products that are the only ones that you can buy in thread of that type sooo 😅
ebon tree
I think going all in on one protocol (at least for matter+thread, and ZigBee) is a good idea, because they are a mesh network, and you need routers (signal repeaters) to make sure signals from end devices (like sensors) can reach your central node/controller.
Probably a bad experience if you don't have matter+thread, or ZigBee working in your most distance rooms/locations
mossy plinth
even with few devices you can cover a rather large area if you set them to channels that are less frequently used for wifi. zwave doesnt have that issue at all and should generally have decent range. tho to keep in mind that only grid powered devices act as router while all other devices usually just are clients to the mesh. turning off routers may cause trouble for some older or poorly implemented client devices which can fail to change to another available node.
personally id not fix on thread or matter compatible devices yet as those protocols are still rather new, unfinished and likely to get better in the future. focus on getting the devices that best match the functionality you want to have as that is something you can take advantage of
delicate sail
even with few devices you can cover a rather large area if you set them to chann...
You can just set zigbee and thread's channels? If so, could I use both Zigbee and Thread without them interfering with each other?