The GE Cync app brought me here. I have a lot to learn, but I've found that app is simply atrocious for controlling lights around my house. Thanks for providing such great content, I've got a lot of catching up to do!
I just got my River 3 Plus today to use as a UPS! I was pleasantly surprised to see that the free solar panel they sent me can directly charge via USB C (as well as through the normal solar port). I thought that the free item linked on Amazon showed the non-C model, so idk what you'll get if you order through Amazon, but I got the type C model when I ordered through Ecoflow's website.
Everything here is spot on - great products that make home life more “enjoyable.” I’ll speak to the GE Cync line since I use several and I really like them. I did have some smart bulb failures early on, but I use a combination of bulbs, switches, and outlets to make our living area lighting work seamlessly in an old house. So, while u already have under-cabinet lighting that I’m happy with, I’m excited to see Cync branching out with new products and I look forward to trying some of them out. Nice video.
I had a lot of problems with the Nanoleaf matter-over-thread light bulbs, but after some updates to both the light bulbs and to AppleHome they became a lot more reliable for me. I haven't had any problems with them in several months now. I know a lot of other people report that those bulbs are still a bit flakey. I wonder if the reason I've been having good luck with them is that I have several Eve Energy plugs around my house, so I have plenty of thread routers spread around which are always available and fully powered.
@@BostonTerrierDad623 - I have several Eve Energy, Eve Weather, and Eve motion sensors, and the main frustration I have with them is that I wish the batteries would last longer. If you have only one or two of these then the battery life is probably fine, but when there are a dozen of them it seems like every few weeks there's at least one of them where the batteries need some attention. I also have several Eve Energy plugs, which of course need no batteries and which probably give me very robust thread network for all the other devices to connect to.
@ I have 3 Eero mesh routers, 6 Apple TVs, 6 HomePod minis, and several bulbs, light strips, and plugs with thread. Every time I try to connect my Nanoleaf bulbs it generates bugs within Apple Home. The bulbs are unreliable and also causes other thread products or WiFi products to go unresponsive. I use the Nanoleaf bulbs as “dumb” lights but every few months I run firmware updates and see if issues were ironed out. They never are which sucks because before matter Nanoleaf bulbs were my favorite. Their other products seem okay, I have their light strips; but then again they are not matter products so I can’t speak to the rest of their product line just that their older stuff works great.
@@BMar1andonly - I've heard several others who also have problems with the Nanoleaf matter+thread bulbs. It's so frustrating when the home user has to figure out issues like this.
Lots of interesting products. Oddly enough the most interesting one to me was the EcoFlow Portable Power Station. The last few months have been expensive for me (new M4 Pro Mac Mini, among other expenses!), but I'd really like to do something to upgrade the UPS capacity in my house. I'm particularly happy to see these are using Lithium iron phosphate instead of lead-acid batteries. Right now my bank accounts and credit-card balances need to recover, but I'll be checking those out in a few months. On a very different topic, I think of Sonos and huge TV's as "entertainment", not "smart-home".
Thanks Garance! I can totally relate. There were lots of good deals this year! Yeah I consider Sonos to be smart home given the multi-room audio and AirPlay support side. I glossed over that in giving the award, but I also think the modern smart home does in fact include a cinema-like experience of some kind. To each their own... I'd love to build on these subtopics into things like home energy and home cooking but I'm not there yet.
Sonos is on probation in my house. I had two of their products and both bricked after 4 or 5 years. Sonos offered me 30% off on one purchase and 15% off on another. Not too generous. I got the Play5 speakers and wasn't impressed, so I returned them and will get their amp to use with my speakers - like I had the first time around (the old amp was one of the bricked products). Hopefully, amp 2 has a longer lifespan than the first one.
There are a lot of great HomeKit and HomeKey locks out there now, but you are correct in that the Aliro standard that Apple essentially announced support for at WWDC 24 is not coming until 2025 at the earliest.
Her Eric! You mention a little before 2:58 how when you used it as a bridge versus a direct connection to HomeKit it worked more reliably. I’m confused as I also own this hub and want to make sure I’m using it as a bridge too! :)
I think it’s only on Amazon. I have an affiliate link in the description, but here’s the page about the product on TP-Link’s website www.tp-link.com/us/home-networking/smart-plug/tapo-p306/
WRT the GE Sync lights (sink lights?), did you ever deploy the puck versions? Do the puck versions also include physical on/off buttons? Did you leave the bar-style lights setup in just AppleHome? If so, is it possible to do firmware updates via AppleHome, or does that require GE's app?
Hey, so I was watching your Abobe security system video currently thats what im stuck on is do we go with using Abobe or Ecobee, and im still confused on all these integrations things, for example lets say the alarm goes off and I want to lock the doors and turn on the lights, is that a possible automation?
Thanks so much for the video. Can you comment on the SYNOLOGY compatibility of the Eccoflow? And do the DJI AND anker equivalents support Synology battery backup and auto shut down too. I’ve long thought the APC UPS systems SHOULD be obsolete with these new kinds of system. But I’ve never heard any company say they support Synology and QNAP etc. inquiring beer bloggers need to know. Thanks . - Eric ZORK Alan & Sweetie [ 🤣Professional🤣Poets & Bed 🛏️ & Beer🍺 Vloggers ]
I prefer to keep the battery on the UPS running and take care of the problem myself or just let the device loose power. In my use cases that is fine. So a UPS with less traditional compatibility but more flexible charging and battery power is great! Turns out Synology is not compatible with EcoFlow for that feature. While I didn't explicitly say it would support Synology, an eagle eye looking in that shadow would notice I have a Synology NAS. My mistake. Here's a list of compatible UPS options with Synology. I will bring this compatibility up when I meet with both brands separately at CES in January. www.synology.com/en-us/compatibility?search_by=products&model=DS923%2B&category=upses&p=3
@ sadly with all things I have found Synology compatibility lists to be useless. They don’t list APC ups batteries I’ve used for years. And they list NO current hard drives (except their own). As to these DJI POWERSTATION like batteries I do look forward for when they can be used for all things including Synology and QNAP. I HATE how so many old school ups have the kind of batteries like old car batteries where you manually have to connect the terminals and make me feel like I will die in the process. Anyhow, thanks sooooo much for the always great videos. - Eric ZORK Alan & Sweetie [ 🤣Professional🤣Poets & Bed 🛏️ & Beer🍺 Vloggers ]
@ purchased their M1 Hub and it was the biggest piece of crap I ever introduced into my home. Not only did it continuously have connectivity issues, but when it went down, it took all Matter devices with it. Once I removed that Hub, everything settled down again and haven't encountered any issues. Their lock and hub are the quickest devices I have ever returned in my entire life. Replaced the lock with a Schlage Encode Plus (Thread), didn't need a hub for that, and I'm glad I made that decision. I've learned the Hard way, in order to have the most stable and reliable HomeKit experience u have to have an optimized network, and reduce the amount of 3rd party hubs as much as possible.
I never think of Sonos as HomeKit devices, but rather just AirPlay.
Ditto
The GE Cync app brought me here. I have a lot to learn, but I've found that app is simply atrocious for controlling lights around my house. Thanks for providing such great content, I've got a lot of catching up to do!
I just got my River 3 Plus today to use as a UPS! I was pleasantly surprised to see that the free solar panel they sent me can directly charge via USB C (as well as through the normal solar port). I thought that the free item linked on Amazon showed the non-C model, so idk what you'll get if you order through Amazon, but I got the type C model when I ordered through Ecoflow's website.
Cool! Regardless enjoy your new battery and thanks for sharing it here
Everything here is spot on - great products that make home life more “enjoyable.” I’ll speak to the GE Cync line since I use several and I really like them. I did have some smart bulb failures early on, but I use a combination of bulbs, switches, and outlets to make our living area lighting work seamlessly in an old house. So, while u already have under-cabinet lighting that I’m happy with, I’m excited to see Cync branching out with new products and I look forward to trying some of them out.
Nice video.
Idk bout the best but the worst remains …. Nanoleaf bulbs (post matter)
Ditto with Eve stuff...just horrid...
I had a lot of problems with the Nanoleaf matter-over-thread light bulbs, but after some updates to both the light bulbs and to AppleHome they became a lot more reliable for me. I haven't had any problems with them in several months now. I know a lot of other people report that those bulbs are still a bit flakey. I wonder if the reason I've been having good luck with them is that I have several Eve Energy plugs around my house, so I have plenty of thread routers spread around which are always available and fully powered.
@@BostonTerrierDad623 - I have several Eve Energy, Eve Weather, and Eve motion sensors, and the main frustration I have with them is that I wish the batteries would last longer. If you have only one or two of these then the battery life is probably fine, but when there are a dozen of them it seems like every few weeks there's at least one of them where the batteries need some attention. I also have several Eve Energy plugs, which of course need no batteries and which probably give me very robust thread network for all the other devices to connect to.
@ I have 3 Eero mesh routers, 6 Apple TVs, 6 HomePod minis, and several bulbs, light strips, and plugs with thread. Every time I try to connect my Nanoleaf bulbs it generates bugs within Apple Home. The bulbs are unreliable and also causes other thread products or WiFi products to go unresponsive. I use the Nanoleaf bulbs as “dumb” lights but every few months I run firmware updates and see if issues were ironed out. They never are which sucks because before matter Nanoleaf bulbs were my favorite. Their other products seem okay, I have their light strips; but then again they are not matter products so I can’t speak to the rest of their product line just that their older stuff works great.
@@BMar1andonly - I've heard several others who also have problems with the Nanoleaf matter+thread bulbs. It's so frustrating when the home user has to figure out issues like this.
Lots of interesting products. Oddly enough the most interesting one to me was the EcoFlow Portable Power Station. The last few months have been expensive for me (new M4 Pro Mac Mini, among other expenses!), but I'd really like to do something to upgrade the UPS capacity in my house. I'm particularly happy to see these are using Lithium iron phosphate instead of lead-acid batteries. Right now my bank accounts and credit-card balances need to recover, but I'll be checking those out in a few months.
On a very different topic, I think of Sonos and huge TV's as "entertainment", not "smart-home".
Thanks Garance! I can totally relate. There were lots of good deals this year! Yeah I consider Sonos to be smart home given the multi-room audio and AirPlay support side. I glossed over that in giving the award, but I also think the modern smart home does in fact include a cinema-like experience of some kind. To each their own... I'd love to build on these subtopics into things like home energy and home cooking but I'm not there yet.
Sonos is on probation in my house. I had two of their products and both bricked after 4 or 5 years. Sonos offered me 30% off on one purchase and 15% off on another. Not too generous. I got the Play5 speakers and wasn't impressed, so I returned them and will get their amp to use with my speakers - like I had the first time around (the old amp was one of the bricked products). Hopefully, amp 2 has a longer lifespan than the first one.
Great list, see you next week!!
Hey Eric, from my family to yours merry Christmas and happy new year
Thanks William! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you as well 🥂
Interested to know what sump pump you went with? Battery backup?
Waiting for apple homekity changes, i think you mentioned that since current smartlocks dont use that tech wait
Tysm happy holidays🎉❤
There are a lot of great HomeKit and HomeKey locks out there now, but you are correct in that the Aliro standard that Apple essentially announced support for at WWDC 24 is not coming until 2025 at the earliest.
My house is running on Ecoflow SHP2 and DPU. The lack of integration with homekit or any home automation is unfortunate.
Her Eric! You mention a little before 2:58 how when you used it as a bridge versus a direct connection to HomeKit it worked more reliably. I’m confused as I also own this hub and want to make sure I’m using it as a bridge too! :)
How about the TP Link Smart Plug extender? I went to their website and I don't see it?
I am also interested in this one, but I couldn't find on the Tapo website. I want one!
I think it’s only on Amazon. I have an affiliate link in the description, but here’s the page about the product on TP-Link’s website www.tp-link.com/us/home-networking/smart-plug/tapo-p306/
@ I ordered one and used your link. Merry Christmas!
WRT the GE Sync lights (sink lights?), did you ever deploy the puck versions? Do the puck versions also include physical on/off buttons?
Did you leave the bar-style lights setup in just AppleHome? If so, is it possible to do firmware updates via AppleHome, or does that require GE's app?
Hey, so I was watching your Abobe security system video currently thats what im stuck on is do we go with using Abobe or Ecobee, and im still confused on all these integrations things, for example lets say the alarm goes off and I want to lock the doors and turn on the lights, is that a possible automation?
Thanks so much for the video. Can you comment on the SYNOLOGY compatibility of the Eccoflow? And do the DJI AND anker equivalents support Synology battery backup and auto shut down too. I’ve long thought the APC UPS systems SHOULD be obsolete with these new kinds of system. But I’ve never heard any company say they support Synology and QNAP etc. inquiring beer bloggers need to know. Thanks .
- Eric ZORK Alan & Sweetie [ 🤣Professional🤣Poets & Bed 🛏️ & Beer🍺 Vloggers ]
I prefer to keep the battery on the UPS running and take care of the problem myself or just let the device loose power. In my use cases that is fine. So a UPS with less traditional compatibility but more flexible charging and battery power is great! Turns out Synology is not compatible with EcoFlow for that feature. While I didn't explicitly say it would support Synology, an eagle eye looking in that shadow would notice I have a Synology NAS. My mistake. Here's a list of compatible UPS options with Synology. I will bring this compatibility up when I meet with both brands separately at CES in January. www.synology.com/en-us/compatibility?search_by=products&model=DS923%2B&category=upses&p=3
@ sadly with all things I have found Synology compatibility lists to be useless. They don’t list APC ups batteries I’ve used for years. And they list NO current hard drives (except their own). As to these DJI POWERSTATION like batteries I do look forward for when they can be used for all things including Synology and QNAP. I HATE how so many old school ups have the kind of batteries like old car batteries where you manually have to connect the terminals and make me feel like I will die in the process. Anyhow, thanks sooooo much for the always great videos.
- Eric ZORK Alan & Sweetie [ 🤣Professional🤣Poets & Bed 🛏️ & Beer🍺 Vloggers ]
Aqara is absolute trash.
What makes you say that? Genuinely curious because I have a ton of Aqara gear and it all works great for me.
@ purchased their M1 Hub and it was the biggest piece of crap I ever introduced into my home. Not only did it continuously have connectivity issues, but when it went down, it took all Matter devices with it. Once I removed that Hub, everything settled down again and haven't encountered any issues. Their lock and hub are the quickest devices I have ever returned in my entire life. Replaced the lock with a Schlage Encode Plus (Thread), didn't need a hub for that, and I'm glad I made that decision. I've learned the Hard way, in order to have the most stable and reliable HomeKit experience u have to have an optimized network, and reduce the amount of 3rd party hubs as much as possible.