Caseta Smart Lighting Smart Hub for Light Bulbs and Fans, Compatible w/ Amazon Alexa, Apple Homekit, Google Home, 75 Device Capacity, L-BDG2-WH, White

Got this to replace a Wink bridge after they, rather abruptly and rudely, swapped to a pay model. Unboxed, connected to my router (patch cable included) and downloaded the app while the unit powered on. Used the app to create an account, pressed the button on the back when prompted and my iPhone connected within seconds. At this point the firmware update installed and within minutes it was ready to go. I attempted to add my first dimmer and nothing happened. I tried a few times and with different switches still nothing. The app prompted that I might need to reset the switch since it had been connected with Wink. The method on the switch didn't work and I googled my issue. Instead of using the three taps on the "on" button hold and three taps I found tapping off five times and holding until the lights flash, then tapping five more time (each set of five in half a second or so) forced a factory reset. This worked for me. Once the switch connects the app asks where it is located (kitchen, bedroom, bath, etc) and what kind (pendant, ceiling fan, etc) and automatically groups them based off this info. I had all my 12 switches programed and operating with half an hour. Alexa integration was easy, Lutron is not a default app and you'll need to find it, once done it was only a matter of logging in. I found the voice controls react much faster than Wink, lights go on/off almost immediately where Wink took a couple seconds. Overall voice control feels way more professional and streamlined while Wink seemed more like a DIY patchwork. The app is very basic and straight forward although it is customizable. Controls mimic the style of the physical switches you tap the switch you want to control and a "switch" pops up and slide your finger up/down for dimmers and tap on/off, I like the Wink style of a group of circles with title much better and it allowed me to easily control multiple switches.

When Wink announced in May 2020 that they would no longer allow use of their wireless hub unless a monthly subscription fee was paid, I scrambled to come up with a solution to keep my smart home devices up and running. I found the Lutron Caseta Wireless Smart Bridge to be the perfect solution to control all of my Caseta switches. I took advantage off an Amazon Warehouse offer and picked one up for about $20 off the price of a brand new one. The device arrived today and setup could not have been easier. First, I simply factory reset each of my Caseta switches/dimmers and then deleted all of these Wink associated devices from the Alexa app. Then I just followed the prompts in the Lutron app to re-enroll and name all of my Caseta switches to work with the new bridge and Alexa. All were automatically added to Alexa without needing to do any discovery at all. I find the Lutron Caseta Wireless Smart Bridge to be fast and reliable. Response to voice commands given to Alexa to turn lights on or off are quick as are toggling lights on and off using the Lutron app. When I was using the Wink Hub I used to have an odd problem with a group of three recessed ceiling lights. I'd say, " Alexa, turn on living room lights" and usually only one or two of the lights in this group would turn on, almost never all three. Oddly, the problem apparently had something to do with the Wink Hub, because since switching to the Caseta Wireless Smart Bridge, all lights in the group now turn on and off reliably. Yea! Rah! Rah! It is a shame Wink decided to go to the "dark side" (charging a monthly fee for a device I bought with their promise of "no monthly fees") but I'm pleased to be rid of them now. I do believe Lutron will continue to support their Caseta Smart Bridge for many years to come as it is directly tied to smart home switches and devices they sell now and others they will likely offer in the future.

I use the Lutron Castea system in conjunction with Apple HomeKit. They integrate seamlessly and easily while the combination allows a multitude of features. In addition, the Casseta Homebase network frees-up bandwidth on the 2.4Ghz band of my WiFi mesh network that would otherwise be taken-up by smart switches from any of the other vendors such as Kasa. Our four-story 3000sq.ft. townhouse functions nicely with a single Homebase connected via Ethernet to a Deco mesh node on the second floor. At first, I glossed over such features as adding remote switches and programming scenes via the Caseta app. Now I find they add tremendously to my home. For example, I have a Pico on the dining room table that adjusts all the lighting in and near the dining room for an evening meal with one touch. Same for the home theater; same for our primary bedroom at bedtime. I added a pico in the hallway using just a double gang faceplate on an existing single gang switch without any wiring at all. Now I can initiate the primary bedroom evening lighting scene - or turn on all the bedroom lights full strength - before I enter the room. There is even a pico with a built-in nightlight. If you have outdoor temporary lights, perhaps for the holidays, there are weatherproof outdoor switches you can program. All our permanent outdoor lighting is on the Caseta network for security and, of course, you can program switches for when a room is occupied via HomeKit. We also use the system for electrostatic air cleaners that help to keep our home dust and allergen free, turning them off when people are around and running them in vacant areas at night and when no one is home. As a bonus, energy bills have diminished a bit despite living in data center land. Take that AI.

I was going to rate this 1 star and return it. I followed installation instructions to the tee... then when it failed, i checked the company's website for a forum but found nothing useful. I was getting stuck in a firmware update loop... the website and manual says, during the installation process, after you get the notification that it needs to update it... to unplug it for some time (i think 10 seconds or so) and plug it back in... and then when it reconnects: it should go to a screen saying it is updating and will be done in 8-10 minutes (or something along those lines). ...well, that was not happening. It was going back to the screen that days you need to unplug it and plug it back in. I went through this loop in the vicinity of 10 times and began to lose my patience... so the last time it told me to plug out and in... I left my phone and the device and went to cool my head and think... and when I came back roughly 30 minutes later, it was installed and working just fine. Now that it is installed, I love it. I have used z-wave devices and other wifi-app-controlled devices... but this one has, so far, not done anything crazy and easily connected to the other device I had for it. Initially was going to be one-star... and then was going to give a lower rating when I got it working because of the initial installation issues... but it just works so darn well compared to the other devices I have used... that I just can't give it less than 5 stars. But hey, Lutron, if you are reading this, please fix your installation instructions or guide or whatever. A lot of people online seemed to give up after getting stuck in the update loop... at least give them the warning that your device may tell them they nees to reset it again... but in reality they just need to let it be for a bit.

Easy set up and worked great. Have had for several months with over 70 devises in my house. I had to order a second bridge because one bridge can only handle 60 devices. This works great with HomeKit since each bridge needs it own account, HomeKit can control all devises on both bridges seamlessly. Only complaint is that I needed 2 bridges.

I bought the Lutron Caseta Wireless Smart bridge along with Lutron WiFi and non WiFi light switches. I have to admit at first I was a little nervous but after reading the he instructions and watching a YouTube video, I was ready to rock and roll. I ended up changing out the front porch, back porch, and garage/driveway light switches. Then installed the bridge to one of my mesh network routers. So far it has been working like a charm. You have to download the app and then follow the instructions. Name the areas and schedule times to turn on and off lights. (Optional) Or you can simply use your smart phone or tablet to control the on off feature. I will end up getting dimmable bulbs and then Lutron dimmable WiFi switches as well as WiFi fan switches. That will allow you to have full control of your lights and fans all throughout the house. For the three switches I changed out it took about 40 mins because I had to go outside to turn off the power to the different areas of the house as I was doing the work. The overall process is fairly simple and straight forward. We’re extremely happy with this purchase and will be purchasing more Lutron Caseta products in the near future.

Overall I like this device, because of the price, form factor, ease of physical installation as well as how simple it was to integrate the switches that I got, BUT would only recommend it for a person starting to get in to making their home smart or one that does not have a significant investment in smart devices to begin with unless you know that they are compatible with this hub. This is fairly Lutron specific and pairs with Lutron device and a few outside vendors such as Ring and Sonos to name a few, but does not seem to have compatibility with Leviton. If you have a lot of investment in other smart devices which are not compatible this might not be the device that you want. (Please see the end of this review for some additional on a possible working alternative.) PROS: Less than $100 VERY easy to set up and configure Simple to pair devices to it CONS: Does not seem to work with Leviton smart device and some other manufacturers as well. ADDITIONAL: To be able to use Leviton and Samsung Smart Things it seems that you need the Lutron Caseta L-BDGPRO2-WH - SmartBridge Pro Programmed Via Lutron App ($190 vs $90) or you need to buy a dimmer switch ($60-$80 for each one) or swap out incompatible devices such as your existing Leviton devices ($?) or a Lutron Caseta L-BDGPRO2-WH - SmartBridge Pro Programmed Via Lutron https://a.co/d/5yqNY1n ($190) It was also not obvious to me that there were IFTTT (https://ifttt.com/explore/smart-home-automation-ideas) features in this device or at least nothing that I found via research or in the device interface. IFTTT is a scripting methodology which lets you set certain conditions for conditions or events being met like turning all the interior and exterior lights on in when a linked smoke alarm or CO alarm goes off, or closing an automated water valve off in the event that a flood sensor feels water. Given that the Caséta Smart Hub is already about $90 and the dimmer is about $70, for a $20-$30 more, in theory, the SmartBridge could be the better option for some, like me who have invested in devices from a few different vendors such as Leviton and others or where it would cost significant money, time and effort to replace them with compatible equivalent devices if they are available. (I have the SmartBridge on order so I will be testing all of this in the next week or so.) https://a.co/d/iPjRRqK

EXCELLENT, I HAVE THEM IN ALL OUR HOMES,, THE GREATEST