Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Full functionality at the cost of speed?

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    Full functionality at the cost of speed?

    Hi, I don't mean to be contentious, but...
    I've been eyeing HomeSeer for quite some now, especially recently since my Vera LIFX plugin crapped out on me for no apparent reason. That was basically the last straw.
    However, it seems that the sole HS LIFX plugin ("Ultra"Lighting 3) is quite rudimentary and it's those shortcomings that are stalling my decision.
    Is it safe to say that by purchasing a HomeSeer Alexa plugin you could essentially render this plugin redundant and even surpass UltraLighting 3's abilities? I understand that LAN control is king when it comes to reaction times, but I'm looking for all the bells and whistles, including scene activation and API functions like "Breathe" and "Pulse". Alexa will only set scenes, but at least it's something. The Vera plugin was pretty great while it was actually working because it was a hybrid system that would first attempt LAN control when applicable and then fall back on the LIFX servers for other functions. It would be nice to have the same abilities, especially when you consider the cost of each respective system/software and the fact that the Vera plugin was absolutely free.

    #2
    Here are some screenshots of what you get from the plugin to use in events. The functionality you want may already be included.


    Click image for larger version  Name:	Capture1.JPG Views:	0 Size:	13.8 KB ID:	1326039












    Click image for larger version  Name:	Capture2.JPG Views:	0 Size:	54.2 KB ID:	1326041

    Comment


      #3
      Excellent! That appears to be exactly what I was looking for. I had my lights set up for notifications for certain events and I found it incredibly useful. (eg. - flashing red 5 times when someone pushes the doorbell).
      It's a shame "scenes" aren't available. Do you know of a workaround, or would they all have to be set individually to replicate the scenes?
      Thanks!

      Comment


        #4
        This plug-in integrates into HS very well as light control. You can easily create a scene (LOL!) with a HS event. Not as fast as creating a LIFX scene on the app, but you can customize it better than a LIFX scene IMHO.

        The ONLY thing I wish it could do but can't (yet) is controlling LIFX themes. I would love HS to send our LIFX bulbs the same theme every 15 mins or so so that the bulbs change. This causes the bulbs to swap colors of the same theme somewhat randomly. If it could eventually do that, it would be perfect! :-) Until then, it does everything else well and is one of the plugins you set and forget.

        I originally had 5 LIFX bulbs and was happy. Because they could be integrated into HS easily (and without problems) we now have over 40 of them of various flavors. (The strips make GREAT under counter lighting and bias lighting behind TV's, mirrors and such!) And it is really nice to have the lights come on RED at 3AM when someone needs a glass of water from downstairs. UltraLighting3 lets you do ALMOST anything you want to do with LIFX bulbs....

        UJ, I would buy the plug-in again if you would incorporate themes into UltraLighting3!!! Hear that? :-)

        Rob
        .

        Comment


          #5
          Thanks for your reply,
          I'm curious, what exactly makes you better able to customize a "scene" in HS? It would be nice if you could just set a scene in the LIFX app and then take a "snapshot" of those light settings so that you could save that as a scene in HS. Seems like the best solution to that little problem, but the main issue I have is that some scenes that I have use LIFX Z strips with zones of different colors, creating gradients. The effect is very cool and I wouldn't want to do without it.

          As far as controlling themes, it's my understanding that those features, like the music visualizer and other animations/effects are mostly app based. In that case, it would need to be written from the ground up into the plugin, which seems like an unrealistic expectation, unfortunately. I think the one effect that is programmed into the firmware is the "move" effect for the LIFX Z strips (but I could be wrong). Perhaps you could write your own theme changing app using randomization of variables within certain parameters?


          Comment

          Working...
          X