Need some help starting out please help

Hello, everyone im looking to get into home automation. I live in a loft about 1500 sq feet . I looking to control my lights i have 3 floor lamps and 2 fan lamps. I also want to have the system control my tv and avr and blu ray player . Also want something to control xbmc because i use xbmc for all my media music, video, pictures. Would also want to control the system with my ipad and ipod as well and later ill add motion detectors ect. I was thinking of going with the insteon smartlinc system from smarthome, but heard that system is junk is that true? The smartlinc system is in my spending limit and works with my ipad which i really like . So my question here is im looking for a main unit for no more then $200.00 Any idea's ? what main system i should go with?

I like the mi casa vera 3, However its a little more then i want to spend but like this unit because it will do z wave, insteon ect.. So what would you guys recommend for the main unit for under $200.00 , Thanks for any help , Ryan

I'd recommend upping your budget, or maybe look at Elve running on a computer. HA is not a low-budget hobby - for a few lights, a controller, and media center control, I'd budget $1K minimum. The MiCasaVera isn't bad at all - it's really geared towards Z-Wave but can do a lot. Insteon is no longer "junk" - they're still single vendor, but recent users love it - but, they generally swear buy buying an ISY which is more like $400-$500 or so.

Wow 1k really ? Well i was thinking start out slow and at low budget then over the years once i got all my lamp switches ect . Upgrade the main unit to something better. Thanks for the help , Ryan

Any good main units for under $200 ?

The common ones all cost more than that but if you want computer based, check out Premise (free) and Elve ($99 starter version). Anything hardware based will be more because you have to pay for the hardware too.

I personally think $1000 is a good a jumping off point, I agree with Work 2Play it's not a cheap hobby but with the right equipment and knowledge it's very worth while. I've used insteon for 3 years now and I think it's a good HA tech. To control your AV equipment this works really well http://www.smarthome.com/81181/Global-Cache-IP2IR-iTach-Wired-TCP-IP-to-IR/p.aspx. I use the "XBMC Constellation" app to control my custom whole house audio and I'm sure you've figured out XBMC is an excellent media source.

Sorry try this link. http://www.amazon.com/Global-Cache-IP2IR-iTach-Wired/dp/B003BFTKUC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338181370&sr=8-1

You should give HomeSeer a trial. It will run on your PC and is a good starting point for controlling nearly anything you can think of. It can be used with the affordable X10 line and allow you to upgrade to UPB, Z-Wave, Insteon, etc along the way. I run a mixture of X10, Insteon, UPB, and Z-Wave. The Z-Wave locks are really a nice addition to any home automation project. http://www.homeseer.com

Okay thanks for the help everyone, I have been doing days of reading still confused. If i was to get the software for the pc wouldnt i still need somthing to for usb or to buy the hardware part that would control the software for the pc ?

EDIT: so i would need the software and something like the aeon labs z stick s2 ? is that right ?

Ryan00 said:

Okay thanks for the help everyone, I have been doing days of reading still confused. If i was to get the software for the pc wouldnt i still need somthing to for usb or to buy the hardware part that would control the software for the pc ?

EDIT: so i would need the software and something like the aeon labs z stick s2 ? is that right ?

Click to expand...

The Aeon labs Z Stick is for Z-Wave devices like these:
http://store.homeseer.com/store/Z-Wave-Products-All-C52.aspx

For any protocol (ie Insteon, UPB, Z-Wave, X10) you would need to get an interface that interfaces the pc to the powerline or in Z-Waves case it's RF. So for Insteon you would need something like the Smarthome 2413U PowerLinc Modem INSTEON USB Interface (Dual-Band):
http://store.homeseer.com/store/Insteon-Products-All-C245.aspx

The same for UPB and X10. Each requires an interface.

The Homeseer software looks really great. Im thinking about getting the software, I have a old pc i can use . Thanks again for the help ...

Good luck! I never want to discourage someone from getting into this hobby... but I don't believe in half-assing it... and if you try and fail with cheap and shoddy components, you might get discouraged. This costs money - real money... but it's worth it!

You should also look at the VeraLite. It is just under $200 and is basically the same as the Vera 3 but with out the wifi router, which you probably already have. It also has a little less memory, but will handle a lot.

automatesocal said:

You should also look at the VeraLite. It is just under $200 and is basically the same as the Vera 3 but with out the wifi router, which you probably already have. It also has a little less memory, but will handle a lot.

Click to expand...

The VeraLite looks good for $200.00 , However i was wanting to use the homeseer software and the software doesn't support the VeraLite. I know alot of people here like Elve which looks very nice as well , But does anyone use the HomeSeer HS2 software here. I guess with the HS2 software i really like how you can customize the whole package to your liking . Plus their is alot of plugins which seems nice just wish they would support a xbmc plugin.