Legrand Unveil New US Zigbee Hub, Switches and Plugs

Legrand, the multinational corporation based in France, is set to release a new set of products called Adorne’, using the addition of the ‘With Netatmo’ branding for the US market. This will include updated Zigbee 3.0 versions of the currently available WiFi wired switches, as well as wireless switches and smart outlets.

The new range will all use Zigbee 3.0, which requires a Zigbee hub, that is also available as part of their lineup. The new hub is branded the ‘Smart Gateway with Netatmo’, and due to its design, can be placed where a switch or outlet would normally go. It also uses the standard size faceplate, so it would blend right into the home. The hub comes in three finishes – White, Light Almond, and Nickel. Although there are no firm details regarding wiring, it would appear to require two wires, one of which we assume would be a Neutral wire, along with the option to add a ground wire, so for older houses without a neutral, this would still be usable when added where an outlet is located, rather than a no-neutral light switch.

whilst Lutron already have a lineup of products that matches the Legrand products, and probably goes beyond this range in terms of what’s available, Aqara’s own range, which also uses Zigbee 3.0, doesn’t offer a dimmer switch or a dual outlet suitable for the US, which is something they should be looking at now that Legrand look set to fill that void.

Speaking of Aqara, whilst they’ve rapidly become the dominant force in HomeKit and Zigbee, they’re still to produce a wireless rocker switch that matches their US wired switches, which has now been achieved by Legrand. Their Wireless Smart Switch with Netatmo matches the wired version almost exactly and can be fitted to an existing wall switch, with only the need to connect the existing wiring to be ‘always on’ in order for the wireless switch to control smart bulbs. The main function of these wireless switches, however, is to create a ‘faux’ version of a three-way switch set up, which the wired switches are currently not designed for.

The company have gone a step further with a wireless dimmer switch. Whilst this is HomeKit compatible, as HomeKit doesn’t support dimming capabilities with wireless switches, this product would probably only work as a dimmer when ‘paired’ with the company’s wired dimmer switch. Both the wireless rocker and dimmer switch use a battery with an expected 5-year lifespan.

A four-button ‘scene control’ switch is also slated for release later in the year, along with a wired fan switch with speed control.

To round out the new range, the company are providing updated versions of both their smart plug and the smart dimmer plug, with Zigbee 3.0. The latter of the two would be useful for a standing lamp with a suitable ‘dumb’ LED bulb capable of dimming to allow both smart and dimming control of your lamp.

The range is reported to launch in the next couple of days (21/7/16), although pricing doesn’t appear to be available at the time of writing.

Credit to u/brantmacga for reporting this on Reddit