I apologize in advance for posting a topic that does not involves Trannys, ISIS or the Stars and Bars.  

I've got a vacation house and I'm looking to tie a few things into a home automation system:

1)  Locks
2)  Lights
3)  Leak Sensing
4)  Water Shut Off Valve
5)  IP Cameras (Low Priority, current solution works fine)

I have two general questions that I've been trying to answer for myself and now want to turn to the hive.

1)  What are some good controllers to use?  My strong preference is to use one that does not rely on a 3rd party server on the internet to operate.  I have no problem with concepts like port forwarding and dynamic DNS to establish a link to the controller over the internet.  So far I've pretty much just come up with Homeseer controllers as a viable option.

2)  What is the best standard to focus on based on my objectives that I've described above?  Z-Wave, Insteon, ect?  Any good or bad experiences?

I used to have a Homeseer controlled house, but their software became too unreliable for me and I trashed it.  Plus I trashed Windows so that also negated Homeseer.
Remember you're required to have a PC up and running at all times to manage a Homeseer installation.


Currently, I'm waiting for the HomeKit products to hit the market.  Yes, this is Apple.  But, what it will do is tie all HomeHit certified devices (from all manufacturers) together so they play nice.

Then you can buy the best-of-breed device and have them work... you're not stuck with one device brand over another.


As for protocol, I have Z-Wave devices on my ADT system that work 100% or the time.  I've also had great luck with Insteon in the past.


I'm sure there's a forum for this somewhere on ARF.

Why would I need a pc up and running all the time if I have a dedicated controller?  

Thank you for the homekit mention.  I will look at that.  Does it require 3rd party support for remote access or can you connect directly with an ip address and port forwarding?

I did everything with HS3 software on a PC.  I didn't use the dedicated controller.  I'm not sure how robust they are in comparison.



I did see a thread on the HS forums that they were looking into HomeKit support.



All of the specs on Homekit aren't out there now for non-developers.  We're still waiting for all of the products to finally hit the market.  So, I don't know what kind of controller you'd need.  There's talk about the new Apple TV being the controller, but that's all speculation.



My goal is home automation.  I had it pretty much set in my last place, such that it worked.  It'll make my day when I can hit my iPhone and say: "Siri, open the gate" and my fence gate will magically swing open.  One phone to rule them all!  

Z-Wave



/thread