Samsung Smart Things

A few months a go i joined the insiders programme https://www.theinsiders.eu/

as they wanted testers for the new samsung smart things, so i though id have a go not thinking i would be picked

this is the product

Samsung SmartThings - For Your Connected Smart Home

so what they do is i test the product for 6 weeks and if i like it i can buy at a reduced cost or send it back, if im one of the lucky ones i get to keep it for free

now theres already been a few unboxing of the products and to be honest i dont think i could do any better so heres a video of the unboxing done by some one else, on the same program, dont mind posting this one.

But i want to do some thing different, i want ideas on what you think it could be used for, but love to get inside the hub and see what makes it tick.

so heres the box open with all starter kit

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Now the price new is £199, to me it seems a tad to expensive, so i thought of the old saying do i want it, do i need it and can i afford it,

i suppose once i used it i may get the answer,

so ill start with

first thing i thought, its an android box , its got 2 usb ports a ethernet and power and reset nothing else, but has bluetooth but no wifi
also underneath it takes 4 batteries as they say in case of a power cut,

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now call me stupid of what, the thing is connected via ethernet to a router that is mains only, you have a power cut and the whole lot goes down, cant see what use the batteries are for.

So setting up is easy if uses the samsung smart thing app https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.smartthings.android&hl=en

once that is set up its time to connect the devices,

one thing i did notice is the one time set up code, personnally i would say every one in the house who has a phone should be able to control the unit, but i suppose that would take away the need to buy one of the devices ie the presence sensor.

more will follow on each piece once i set it up

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first 2 devices connected to the hub, one is the presence detector and the other is my phone,

both devices tell me when they are at home or away, the above device can also be made to buzz in case you lose it

so have the device given to my son and this tells me when he arrives or leaves the house, the good thing is it can also set of what ever i tell it to do when he approaches the house, ie switch on his pc,
these devices cost £29.99 each, a lot if you ask me, would be better if i can use his phone, but the software/hub only allows the one phone, bad move if you ask me .

it can also be attatched to you dog collar and used with other devices to monitor, would love it to be on my cat but i consider it to be too big and heavy for that

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a bit of a block, suppose it has to be to have all the switches and wifi inside it

this is easy to connect just plug in and connect via the app, good thing about this is it shows how much power you are using,

so what did i use it on, first thing of course a lamp,simple switch on and switch of via the app, can also set a timer with one of the apps as well, best use though i though of when im away for a long perion of time, im on the beach switching the light ,or radio on and off,great deterant,

it can also be used with one of the presence detectors so when i approach the house, my light or even the kettle comes on.

so what problems have i had,
the lamp ,great on my own as i have the app on my phone, so i switch the lamp on with my app and im out of the house, my wife whos at home cant do any thing with the lamp as she doesnt have control of it so she cant switch the lamp on or off with out taking out the unit,
ok she needs a unit, cant use her phone as its a one phone only deal,
or we buy a button unit that can switch the light on and off

so to be honest samsung need another app just for manually switching units on or off

then theres the price, id need at least 5 to 10 units ie 1 or 2 per room
cost £45 each, 10 units £450, ok it may go down in time but im finding to do what i want i need an over draft

movement sensor

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so the movement sensor, nothing much in this except of course the movement sensor but also a temp sensor,

so we can check the temp of the house while we out and if conected to the thermosat can switch on an off the heating, you can also use the sensor with the other devices,ie switch on and of the power outlet if some one comes near it,can also track movement of say your animals in the house, but you will need more sensors