UD ISY994i ZW+: Z-Wave Plus Certified/INSTEON/X10 Home Automation Controller - Compatible with Alexa/Google Home

I did a lot of research about how to best automate devices in my home and this controller beat everything hands down. I took a lot from reviews here on Amazon (thank you posters) so maybe it is time for me to do my part and post. First, ignore much of the negative rantings about this device, because it is not accurate. No one beats these guys on documentation - no one. Okay, you have to go online to read about various topics, instead of having a handy booklet that comes in the box and then you can never find again. But their online Wiki support page is awesome...Period. I use it ALL the time. Second, a few reviewers mention it, but if you email them, they respond, immediately, if not sooner. And that is no exaggeration. Very kind, simple or complex answers that fit your need. Further, this runs on Windows 10 PERFECTLY. I run it on Microsoft Edge all the time. It does run in a Java environment, which is just fine. But it runs great in Windows. Ready for this? I run it in my Windows phone, too! It runs great. You just use their Portal for access and it is easy to set-up, and my screen on the phone looks just like the picture shown here. I can control any device in my house, anywhere I have phone OR Wifi service. I also have Alexa to turn things on and off by voice. We love it. That is the only thing I PAY for. It is $49 for 2 YEARS of portal access that supports Amazon Echo. BIG DEAL - That is about 2 dollars a month, and being able to use Alexa is priceless. We didn't have it for a few months in the beginning, but wow, what a difference.So, that being said, this device IS NOT for someone that wants to just plug in, hit some kind of LEARN button and be up and running. Go get one of the silly 'hub' devices for that. There is something for everyone on the market now.I wanted something that I could install, connect to Z-wave and Insteon light switches, outlets, motion sensors and such, that was highly reliable. But I also wanted something that would grow with my needs and abilities. How many times do you install something and then wish it was capable of doing more a few months down the road? But too late, you are committed. You won't feel that way with this device, if you are like me. Now, I am no programmer. I am an electronics technician, by trade and I found it pretty easy, with a little patience, and reading the online instructions to hook up almost 60 devices in my house from water leak sensors, to wall outlets to light switches, to motion sensors, and gate and garage door opener controllers to name only a few. I am integrating it into my already wired security sensors now. Wireless sensors would be done by now, but I want to use the wired sensors in my house from my old ADT box.This is not plug and play like some of the other hubs, but it is still pretty simple, following the step by step instructions. You should go online and watch a couple of the youtube videos about the programs you create and read some of the wiki pages for the Universal Devices controller to see what I mean. When I install a device, I simply tell the ISY controller to 'find it' in the house (radio waves) by using the administrator (control) panel on windows. So, you install the administrator control panel software (easy) and it will talk to your controller and you can do a million things from there. You hit a button, it finds your device, you give the device a name, save it, and then fill in some blanks in the program to tell it what to do and when. For example - I have some table lamps plugged into an Insteon dimmer outlet. I filled in the blank fields in the program to tell it IF it is sunset, (it knows by the time of day) THEN turn on the "Table Lamps" @ 45% and THEN turn them off 4 hours later. Done. I can do a lot with simple programs like that. And the instructions online and videos give you plenty of samples to work from and modify to your particular situation.I recall a review I read here before I bought this where someone said "Why didn't I buy this one in the first place?" or something to that effect. I was so glad when I read that review. He had a 'hub' of some kind and was stuck not being able to do what he wanted. So, I bought the PRO ISY controller with the max devices capable, 1000. And with Z-Wave installed and IR. I never use IR, the box is in another room with the computers and router and such, so, I would not get that option again. But Z-wave definitely, of course. Read about Z-Wave, and you will understand.Go online, do some research, don't buy impulsively, it took me weeks or more. But ultimately, this device will have the capability and the support you need. It is pricey, I was a little put off for that price for a microcontroller, and I MAKE microcontrollers. But you are paying for the programming and support. These guys did a great job on this device and they stand behind it....all day and night long. This is a very, very stable device. it boots right up, everytime. It has never locked up on me in the two years I have been using it. I would not hesitate to buy it again. Get the PRO version with the better security and the most devices, you will be glad you did. It is bullet proof. Then.....write your review. Don't wait 2 years like I did.

I had previously owned the ISY99i controller and was ready to stomp on it and throw it in the trash - this was about 3-4 years ago. I am a professional software engineer with decades of experience and recognized the the 99i (not the 994i) was not capable of what I needed to do, hence my frustration. The primary issue was the lack of "variables" - There was no civilized, if any, way to implement counters, flags, etc., so a task such as adding 10 minutes to the "off time" of my garage lights when either of two motion detectors fired was impossible. I was furious because I had been able to do such things with older technology.That was the old product, the 99i, enter the new(er) product, the 994i AND its latest software...I was looking for a home controller and was getting set on the Verde product line, despite it being (effectively) Z-Wave only, with the hint of a promise that somebody would implement Insteon. I wanted both Insteon (its the gear that I have) and ZW (because it is another complete product line from which I can choose system components. The ISY came up in my searches, I looked over the NEW specs and found they had variable support and promised ZW. I chose to give the updated ISY product another chance.Between the hardware updates between the 99i and 994i, which I believe are capacity and support for daughter boards (ZW support) and the new software features, the 994i has become an outstanding product. So why only 4 stars - I have not yet found sufficient documentation of the software and design patterns - when I find these, I will give it 5 stars. The user base is also larger, so finding programming examples and advice is vastly improved.The basic programming model is the same as before, the "IF - THEN - ELSE" paradigm, with its very interesting ability to execute any of the three sections independently, creating subroutines out of mainstream code.Variables - These are great! There are typical integer variables that you manipulate with typical operations (+, -, *, /, etc) and operands can be variables, too. In addition to the "integer" variables are "state" variables are are essentially the same, except they generate events - meaning you can write programs that are executed automatically when a state-variable changes value. That value could a decrement to zero which causes lights to be turned off, or changed from 0 to 1 which enables a feature in your code. This is a very powerful feature that I wanted and finally have.There are also variables that contain system information, such as date and time, and meta-data that simplifies many tasks.Email - this is a fantastic feature, I've only used the ISY-system provided sender, which has been enough - the emails come from the ISY system, but you can have them come from your email account, I actually prefer them coming from "ISY", but there could be installations that require the use of a private email system. Sending email is very simple, but there is prep-work. You can send emails and text messages (and other types, too, I believe) as "Notifications" - you Notify a list of recipients using a pre-written message template. The template can contain references to system information - the message can refer to the name of the device that triggered the event and the name of the program that is sending the message, the latter is very important for debugging. One message template can be used for many devices since you can report the name of the device in the message.I have not explored all of the possibilities as yet, but I have seen enough to know that I will be able to accomplish just about everything I need to.I do wish they'd pretty up the UI a bit, too!

I have been an Insteon user for a long time, but needed to add some Z-Wave devices. The ISY994 is very popular as a hub for both, and it provides far more detailed programming than the standard Insteon hub does.What I did not realize initially was that for Insteon compatibility you need the 2413S serial power line module, and this is "unobtanium" at the present time. The 2413U USB version, which you can buy and which Amazon "suggests" goes along with it, is NOT compatible. However, a user who goes by the handle "MrWorf" has put together instructions for how you can use a Raspberry Pi as a "bridge" between the ISY and a 2413U (or a 2448A7 RF-only interface which I used) - I did this and it works. You can read about it on the Universal Devices user forum topic "Insteon 2448A7 + RaspberryPi + ISY994?"The user interface for the ISY is ugly and difficult to understand, with some settings buried under toolbar options that don't hint as to their content. Worse, the only way to get at this is to run a Java applet on your local computer. There is a phone app, but it is very limited at present.That said, the user community is very helpful and I had my ISY up and running quickly, adding my Z-Wave and Insteon devices and it works reliably. I haven't even scratched the surface of what it can do, but one thing I took advantage of, for example, was its knowledge of sunrise and sunset times for my location.

Unfortunately this device used to be good but now just can't compete with things like SmartThings. Their sales team lies as well as they have been saying version 5.0 of their firmware is coming for YEARS now, like at least 4 years and still nothing. You can't integrate with anything like Hue etc and the mobile app is horrible. This device was good when home automation was new but now it feels like something from the 1990s.

This is a powerful little home automation controller. Not for the faint of heart, as the user interface is somewhat non-intuitive, but once I played around with it for an hour or so I was able to write simple programs to do what I wanted.I have long wanted to be able to have my water supply shut off automatically if my water heater should spring a leak, and this little controller enabled me to shut off the pump (I'm on a well) and close an automatic valve. It will also shut off power to the water heater.It is able to get weather information (with an additional module), so one could automate garden watering based not only on time, but on the amount of rainfall.