Take the thing in your hands, install Home Assistant (https://www.home-assistant.io/) and let Open Source rule your world.
It works flawlessly, there is just a Himalaya steep learning curve and knowing Python helps when doing fancy automations with pyscript (there are integrated automations whihc are a pain in the bottom, and solutions such as Node Red).
In all honesty, Home Assistant opens a huge amount of possibilities but you have to commit to it.
My wife constantly wonders what she will do when I die and the whole thing goes south the day after.
I'm committed to not replacing any switches/plugs if it doesn't Just Work when the home assistant / hub goes away. My poor kids shouldn't have to wander around in the dark if my hass container craps the bed while I'm out of the house.
> My wife constantly wonders what she will do when I die and the whole thing goes south the day after.
Talking about life insurance is morbid, but.. if you have life insurance, try to either consider $5k of it set aside or try to increase your coverage by $5-10k, as a fund that would pay for an electrician to go around ripping out all the smarts from your home. As a yearly to-do, keep a one-page document up to date with two or three electricians you would consider qualified to do the work without ripping off your grieving spouse, and keep that in your "to my grieving spouse" binder.
If nothing else, consider the idea that they might have to sell the house, you wouldn't want them dealing with real estate showings where the light switches don't work.
I have been trying to make my home automation work using only HomeKit supported devices. I did all the “programming“ in the official Home app or the Eve app.
It has not been a good experience. Apple has just not developed home automation beyond surface level.
In trying to deleverage from expensive homekit licensed accessories, I first tried the conbee II / Devon’s first, and just couldn’t get it working.
I’m trying again with home assistant via zigbee2mqtt using a Zigbee USB CC2652P.
I welcome programming the devices in Python instead of the Apple Home interface.
But the moment you step off the homekit reservation, it’s an integration project. Not consumer ready at all. I think Apple Shortcuts may figure out a way to let normal people enjoy multizone, moderately complex, condition-based scenes but it may be a few years.
It works flawlessly, there is just a Himalaya steep learning curve and knowing Python helps when doing fancy automations with pyscript (there are integrated automations whihc are a pain in the bottom, and solutions such as Node Red).
In all honesty, Home Assistant opens a huge amount of possibilities but you have to commit to it.
My wife constantly wonders what she will do when I die and the whole thing goes south the day after.