I think what elgato did was to see a hole in the market and they went for it. Lutron and their caseta line does a good job at HomeKit and dimming but they do not offer switches with on-off capacity for applications such as fans or devices that don't support dimming. I was using the RadioRA2 system from Lutron for a few years for my Serena shades and I was a bit surprised when they released a 99$ hub that did a much better job than their 500$ ra2 repeaters.
I'm sure a lot of people felt the same way I did for years. Where I wished for a company to release a decent product that would unite all the different devices from different companies under one system at a decent price.
I know a lot of people who were confused when Hue released white bulbs because they said, "why don't they just use a normal bulb and get a connected switch".
But then on the other side there are the people who love the coloured bulbs and say, all those connected switches are useless because they are all dimmers and hue doesn't support dimming even on their 3rd generation 800 lumen coloured bulbs.
I'm sure if Lutron was to release a caseta on-off switch, they would probably sell more of them than the dimmer.
And once you have a connected on-off switch used with a smart bulb, you don't need a dimmer anyways if you don't mind using the app or Siri because HomeKit knows to turn on and dim the Light. There is also situations where 4-5 years ago a lot of early light fixtures with integrated LED did not support dimming and once again you have a case where an on-off switch is necessary.
And not having to explain to your better half twice a week why she needs to keep the light switch on is a bonus.
For a lot of situations we would be better served by other Options but if you are using a switch in conjunction with a smart build and if HomeKit is important to you, this product will make sense. And we've heard a lot of promises regarding HomeKit compatibility. Belkin back in march had to back away from their plans due to the restrictive guidelines provided by apple. I am in the same situation with Chamberlain who is selling products touting HomeKit compatibility and after two years they still haven't managed to make it happen. The fact that this product is ready to sell is a rare occurrence in the world of HomeKit.
I'm sure a lot of people felt the same way I did for years. Where I wished for a company to release a decent product that would unite all the different devices from different companies under one system at a decent price.
I know a lot of people who were confused when Hue released white bulbs because they said, "why don't they just use a normal bulb and get a connected switch".
But then on the other side there are the people who love the coloured bulbs and say, all those connected switches are useless because they are all dimmers and hue doesn't support dimming even on their 3rd generation 800 lumen coloured bulbs.
I'm sure if Lutron was to release a caseta on-off switch, they would probably sell more of them than the dimmer.
And once you have a connected on-off switch used with a smart bulb, you don't need a dimmer anyways if you don't mind using the app or Siri because HomeKit knows to turn on and dim the Light. There is also situations where 4-5 years ago a lot of early light fixtures with integrated LED did not support dimming and once again you have a case where an on-off switch is necessary.
And not having to explain to your better half twice a week why she needs to keep the light switch on is a bonus.
For a lot of situations we would be better served by other Options but if you are using a switch in conjunction with a smart build and if HomeKit is important to you, this product will make sense. And we've heard a lot of promises regarding HomeKit compatibility. Belkin back in march had to back away from their plans due to the restrictive guidelines provided by apple. I am in the same situation with Chamberlain who is selling products touting HomeKit compatibility and after two years they still haven't managed to make it happen. The fact that this product is ready to sell is a rare occurrence in the world of HomeKit.