In this weekly column, hosts Brandon Doyle, Doyle Real Estate Team with RE/MAX Results, and Colton Pratt, project manager, walk through smart-home products and showcase their capabilities while reviewing pros and cons.
Door and window sensors are the most common sensors. They allow you to know when a door or window has been opened and can trigger an alarm. They range in cost from $15-$45 and are included in most starter kits.
Hubs, such as Abode, are able to connect to a number of different devices over Z-Wave, Wi-Fi and Zigbee.
This allows you to create automations when certain events happen. Let’s say you just came home from work, and it’s dark out. With the Abode’s CUE, you could create a rule set that would turn on your exterior lights when the outside door is opened but only when it’s dark out, using a compatible smart light or switch.
In this episode of “Smart-home tech for agents,” we compare six sensors available on the market right now to help your clients decide which is best for their home.
- Samsung: Zigbee
- Aeotec 7: Z-Wave Plus. (This version does not work on Abode, but it should work with Hubitat. I was not able to pair to SmartThings because I broke the switch. This one is very similar to the FIBARO sensor.)
- FIBARO: Z-Wave Plus
- EcoLink: Z-Wave Plus
- Monoprice: Z-Wave Plus
- Nyce: Zigbee
Brandon Doyle is a Realtor at Doyle Real Estate Team — Re/Max Results in Minneapolis and co-author of Mindset, Methods & Metrics – Winning as a Modern Real Estate Agent. You can follow him on Twitter.
