Recommended Twilio account options for home user

[wdevries]

I recently invested in upgrading my Homeseer system and want to include monitoring key parameters and sending me notifications when things are amiss. In the past I was able to generate text messages directly from the Homesee Send and Email option in Events using a gmail account assigned to my HS4Plus. My personal phone is on Verizon (US), so I would send the email to xxxxxxxxx@vtext.com But it appears this recently stopped working, and I am interested in learning how to use Twilio.

I see Twilio accounts can have extensive features suitable for business small and large, with many different pricing options commensurate with the features offered. But I just want to be able to send a few alert notification texts a month to no more than five numbers. I am not opposed to paying for this service, but it looks like I could easily buy more than I need.

Can someone recommend the appropriate Twilio plan for a US user seeking to send less than 100 SMS notification texts a month to himself?

Can I use my existing personal cell number as the sender of these texts? Or would “porting” my number to Twilio interrrupt the use of my cell phone?

Is there a user guide for this plugin?

Thanks in advance,
Bill

[jon00]

The PI Author has been MIA for over 3 years. Perhaps look at Pushover as an alternative.

[will40]

I continue to use Twilio for SMS and programmable voice call notifications to multiple recipients. If you are pushing notifications to a few users then as Jon mentions the Pushover app is the way to go. I use both.

I have a Twilio pay as you go plan. Twilio issues you a phone number when you sign up for an account. I keep a small balance ($10) on there to pay for the SMS and voice calls my HS system makes.

Pricing page may help: https://support.twilio.com/hc/en-us/...-billing-works

If you do decide to sign up keep a small balance. There is talk about Twilio restricting SMS messaging in the coming months due to spamming. I use mostly for voice calls and a few notifications with SMS.

Good luck and if you need further help feel free to reach out.

[SteveW]

Forget about using Twilio to send text messages. I was doing this for several years, until I got a notice from Twilio a few weeks ago: New telecom industry rules known as 10DLC (ten-digit long code) require that application-to-person (A2P) text messaging from 10-digit numbers is restricted to registered "campaigns', through The Campaign Registry. Twilio will probably stop allowing you to send messages via HS unless you register with TCR, and based on cost and required justification documents, you're not going to do that.

See:

https://docs.skyswitch.com/en/articl...mpliance-fines

https://www.campaignregistry.com/

[Ironbar]

This is something that has bothered me about all of the home automation software programs for years. One of the most important things home automation software can do is notify you of what is going on in your home.

Personally, I like to receive a text message from my HA system. It seems to be the most reliable, fastest, and is not easily dismissed. Currently I use Twilio because the old cheat of sending to your phone number at vtext.com does not work with all email addresses and I don't like the way the text message appears when it is received. Twilio messaging does have it limitations (no multi line messages, one send phone number) but it works very well.

It looks like you will be able to register under the new Sole Proprietor rules with Twilio starting Today. You will have to pay $4 for registration, $15 to open the campaign, and then $2 a month + per text fees. Twilio is waving the first fees if you were already set up. I plan to have a conversation with Twilio to make sure this is the correct path for individuals to send text messages to themselves. Sole proprietor registration opens today and you have until June 1st, 2023 to comply or your messages might be filtered or blocked.

HSBuddy does a good job of sending push notifications. You can easily configure which devices a notification goes to and have custom sounds play for each notification. I haven't played with it to much but I might start in light of the new Twilio rules. Plus, I personally think HSBuddy has the best geolocation service and I already have it installed on all of my family members phones for that reason.

Pushover works well but I find my notifications get lost in sea of notifications from other programs. Since it is not a dedicated program for home automation my family members often miss the notifications. Also, it is just another app on my phone and I have to many already. Many people seem to like it though and it is quick.

Why is there not a native push notification system on the HomeSeer app? Is there something I am missing here?

[will40]

Personally, I like to receive a text message from my HA system. It seems to be the most reliable, fastest, and is not easily dismissed. Currently I use Twilio because the old cheat of sending to your phone number at vtext.com does not work with all email addresses and I don't like the way the text message appears when it is received. Twilio messaging does have it limitations (no multi line messages, one send phone number) but it works very well.

I too am waiting for the axe to fall on Twilio. This has been the most reliable notification service for my HS system for years. I am able to send notices to multiple recipients without them requiring any kind of notification system client on their phones. I have never tried a multi-line message.

What are you referring to by "sending text messages to themselves"? Just using Twilio service to send SMS to one individual?

[Ironbar]

What are you referring to by "sending text messages to themselves"? Just using Twilio service to send SMS to one individual?

Yes. Twilio was designed for businesses to send notifications to customers. We are only sending to ourselves, friends, or family for the most part. There should be an exemption for us however I'm sure we are such a small segment of the business we were never considered.

[SteveW]

Yes. Twilio was designed for businesses to send notifications to customers. We are only sending to ourselves, friends, or family for the most part. There should be an exemption for us however I'm sure we are such a small segment of the business we were never considered.

Thanks for investigating this. Please let us know if you find out more from Twilio. Do note, that these are not Twilio-specific policies; Twilio is following and implementing the telecom industry 10DLC rules, and I have no idea if 10DLC has any sort of exemptions, since their focus is on applications (not humans) sending messages from 10-digit numbers.

[Ironbar]

I have done quite a bit of research. I am currently waiting on a response from Twilio to confirm what I already believe to be true. Yes, this is a new industry standard created by the US mobile carriers to reduce spam SMS messaging. Twilio is conforming to the new rules set by the carriers to stay in good favor with them which allows them to continue to send SMS messages through their networks.

The carriers made cut outs for education, government, emergency, and non-profits. Nothing for "personal use." It looks to me like we are going to have to register as a sole proprietor and start a "Low Volume Mixed" campaign. If you do not register, in theory your carrier would start blocking all outgoing texts from being delivered from your Twilio phone number. Who knows if this is actually true.

I'll keep you posted on how Twilio responds to my requests.

[SteveW]

I have done quite a bit of research. I am currently waiting on a response from Twilio to confirm what I already believe to be true. Yes, this is a new industry standard created by the US mobile carriers to reduce spam SMS messaging. Twilio is conforming to the new rules set by the carriers to stay in good favor with them which allows them to continue to send SMS messages through their networks.

The carriers made cut outs for education, government, emergency, and non-profits. Nothing for "personal use." It looks to me like we are going to have to register as a sole proprietor and start a "Low Volume Mixed" campaign. If you do not register, in theory your carrier would start blocking all outgoing texts from being delivered from your Twilio phone number. Who knows if this is actually true.

I'll keep you posted on how Twilio responds to my requests.

Thanks; that conforms with the information I also found. I didn't want to go through all that for a few alert text messages, so I deleted my Twilio number. But, if things change, it's worth reconsidering. Oh, and I absolutely do support what the industry is doing with 10DLC. Nobody wants SMS spam.

[Ironbar]

An update:

I talked to a Twilio rep today. The answer was simple. "...unfortunately the registration is required, regardless of the messaging traffic." She said it was up to each individual/company how they register and which path they follow but it is going to be required regardless. She suggested the sole proprietor route with the Low Volume Mixed Use campaign.

This is pretty much the final answer. I will have to test some other routes to see if I want to go through this process or just switch to an alternative method of delivering my alerts.

[SteveW]

An update:

I talked to a Twilio rep today. The answer was simple. "...unfortunately the registration is required, regardless of the messaging traffic." She said it was up to each individual/company how they register and which path they follow but it is going to be required regardless. She suggested the sole proprietor route with the Low Volume Mixed Use campaign.

This is pretty much the final answer. I will have to test some other routes to see if I want to go through this process or just switch to an alternative method of delivering my alerts.

Thanks for the update. It's exactly what I expected.

[will40]

yes thank you Ironbar for digging further into this and getting an update.

So I assume this applies to SMS messaging only and that I can continue to use Twilio's outbound calling feature for my priority notifications?

[Ironbar]

I'm not sure will40. I didn't research the outbound calling side.