Smarthome Philips Hue and Somfy TaHoma experiences

I’m not quite happy with this yet :confused:.


This will almost certainly also be voice-controlled in 80% of all cases with us, or with the app. But I also want to "be able" to use physical switches.


I have the same response to your post as I did to tomtom79, with the addition that I do want switches, but not at every single window. For example, in one room we will have 2 or 3 windows on the west side. It would simply be nicer if the 3 roller blinds could also be operated with one switch. This is probably more common than the other way around. Or another example in the bedroom, one window on the south side, one on the east side, and directly connected another one in the dressing room to the east. Since we will almost certainly keep the sliding door to the dressing room open 360 days a year, it would just be practical if with one click on the button in the bedroom, all three roller blinds would go down at once.
I would definitely set up an automation behind everything and link things with other stuff again, but being able to do it via a switch is simply great.


Since I don’t understand your question, unfortunately only a counter-question.
If I have Somfy radio motors in my roller blinds, why shouldn’t I also use the connection via Somfy into HomeKit? What would you use to integrate with HomeKit in my case?

I realized something similar for a customer with Loxone.
Hue was not an issue there (as of today).
For him, it was more about roller shutters, motion detectors, etc.

Everything works perfectly, the customer is satisfied.

And I don’t need a cloud for it.

Hue and Loxone work together, but probably through detours; I have never implemented it myself with HUE.

Since I don’t understand your question, unfortunately just a counter-question.
If I have Somfy radio motors in my venetian blinds, why shouldn’t I also use the connection via Somfy into HomeKit? What would you use to integrate in HomeKit in my case?

Sorry, I didn’t remember that you want to do without wiring and rely completely on wireless connection. So it’s settled :)

Today I called Somfy and among other things also asked about the range of the radio system. The radio motors cannot pass on the signal, which makes me think again, because everything has to be reached via the TaHoma Switch. That is bad in my case, because I actually wanted to place the box in the (concrete) basement. That would probably be good for the blinds in the basement, maybe still okay for the ground floor, but with high probability it won’t work anymore on the upper floor (but I’m not sure about that). If I put the box on the ground floor, I’m not sure whether the blinds in the basement can then be addressed [IMG alt=":huh:"]https://forum.smartapfel.de/images/smilies/emojione/1f62e.png[/IMG].

Does anyone of you have experience in a single-family house with a concrete basement?

Somfy also told me that the radio motor is not compatible with a normal switch, meaning even if I wanted to, I couldn’t use a standard switch and would practically have to use a Somfy switch which also works with radio (and battery). They also said what Hangman already said, that this is not a problem, because the motor is always accessible via a remote control, which you need anyway to learn in the motors.

Somehow I’m torn back and forth here now. Now I also read elsewhere that Eltako has a new series called 64 in the starting blocks, which is supposed to support WLAN, Bluetooth, HomeKit, Alexa and so on and so forth.

Would it perhaps be somehow more sensible not to buy radio motors, but old-fashioned wired solutions and then control them with devices like the ELTAKOS? Sounds like you could (if you wanted) install a switch and still work completely with a radio solution. Additionally, you don’t have the problem with the range, as I understand it, that should then go over WLAN.

Man man man, one can really drive oneself crazy o_O

Or you don’t install a wireless gadget, but something real in a house that is supposed to stand and function for a sufficiently long time. Then you can also sleep peacefully.

Why insist on Somfy at all costs? There are so many better and less insular solutions.

Would you like to name a few much better solutions, so I can also read up on them?