Smart home / Home automation - Consulting

I was also initially on the path to use Loxone, purely for economic reasons, but after I looked more closely into KNX, I realized that there is not much difference, if any at all. Loxone is stylish, but unfortunately proprietary.

ETS can be obtained as described through bulk orders for 500 euros.

Surely many people have this problem, you are always immediately overwhelmed with the topic, if [KNX] then properly, then only this way or that way, usually sums come together that are not so easy to raise or hard to justify because the benefit is not really seen by the wife.

Well, people are different. For me, a proprietary system is a no-go; I'd rather pay the 500 euros for ETS. There’s no hacking involved, and there are regular group orders...

And if you’re already as enthusiastic about Loxone as you are, then you’d simply be overwhelmed by KNX

By hacking I meant circumventing the 500 or 1000 euros for the KNX software. I once read that this can be bypassed. Not the system(s) themselves.

It may be that I would be overwhelmed by KNX, but we simply didn’t have the money for that.

Thank you, such information about the costs in relation to the automated items is rarely found.

What surprises me, however: Do you not have any presence detectors at all? What about dimmers for the lights?
With these two things and some LED stuff, I come to €6,500 for the Loxone components. If I then also factor in the additional effort for wiring, I could imagine that I can manage the home automation for under €10,000. That would then also be a price that would make the whole thing worth it for me.

I do not have any presence detectors yet, but I have had an additional empty conduit installed at each ceiling lamp outlet so that I can implement it later. Presence detectors cost €120 each if you buy them ready-made.

There is a DIY solution for presence detectors that you can solder together for €5-15.

We do not have any dimmers.

By "tinkering" I meant circumventing the 500 or 1000€ for the KNX software. I once read that it can be bypassed. Not the system(s) itself.

Sure, you can also avoid the purchase costs for the KNX actuators if you break into the electrical wholesaler and help yourself. ETS5 is dongled and, like almost every copy protection so far, the ETS5 has already been cracked.