Loxone or Digitalstrom

[Bob J]

Hi everyone, I'm in the midst of massive renovation with walls and ceilings all open up, and I'm planning to use this opportunity to make my "new" house smart home. I've done a bit of research and so far, Loxone and Digitalstrom are the 2 I'd like to choose from.

 However, not sure which one to choose (nudging towards Loxone a bit though) but not sure why I should choose Loxone above Digitalstrom. I read and heard that Loxone has close ecosystem and difficult to integrate 3rd party system /devices into it (Lock in strategy?) would this hurt me in the long run when I need new things or better technology comes into the market and I can't change without massive renovation of my smart home? Digitalstrom is maybe less flashy in terms of design and also it seems that you need an expensive filter in order to stabilize the functionality of the system (not mentioned at all by digitalstrom anywhere)

So, still in limbo a bit as to which one to choose, hence would like to know more about Loxone (practically, any hick ups, pitfalls, stability, etc....) and why to choose it above Digitalstrom (assuming budget is not the main issue)

Any advice and tips are welcome, thanks a lot 

[Dpin]

Hi Bob

how about a KNX wiring as physical layer, as you can have access to a huge variety of brands (sensors, actuators/panels) then if required adding a visual layer like Loxone, Comfortclick or Digitalstrom, which can allow further integration with new devices/gadgets, solid setup, future proof, open protocol umbrella

thanks

Diego Pinto

[Bob J]

Thanks Diego, I checked KNX and it seems that Loxone and Digitalstrom are newer technology (not sure if that's true though, it's more a feeling), but also KNX is much more expensive than those two. Even though I'm willing to spend on my smart home, still need to see if KNX is value for money. 

[Scott F]

While KNX is older is is a far more established system and KNX is a standard meaning that it has been thoroughly tested and certified by industry bodies. KNX is an incredibly stable platform and it is not locked down to one manufacturer because KNX is the communication protocol that the devices are based on. Due to it being a standard and devices being certified you will see that higher cost of the individual devices. I think you need to consider how flexible you want your installation to be and how locked in you want to be to a specific architecture. Loxone is great in the fact that you can install modules that communicate over the different types of system such as DMX, KNX, DALI etc so you can have the ease of configuration and integration of visualization interfaces such as tablets without needing extensive programming experience but can also have the freedom to choose your system devices such as lights, switches etc from a wide variety of manufacturers where you are assured you will be able to find something that fits the aesthetic you are looking for with the installation. There are also other options out there such as Vimar's ByMe bus system which provided a really great interface but is then limited on the end functionality but is much cheaper than a KNX system and i think also cheaper than Loxone but is also rather tedious to program. I chose Loxone because of the integration i mentioned previously with other systems such as KNX, DALI etc and the easy and intuitive programming that is license free unlike KNX where a license to install a system with any more than i think 50 devices is €1000 for the software and a dongle. Another part of why i chose Loxone was for the caller service which is one of the things i am not sure many if any of the other systems provide. For me this was a big eciding factor as i work overseas and wanted a system that could sent security alerts and call keyholders in the event of an emergency while i was away and when you compare the cost of the Loxone offering to something like an independent security call out system like ADT it is vastly cheaper:  the Loxone caller service is less for 10 years than ADT charges for 1 year and if you get more than 2 false alarms in a year ADT will actually just ignore any further alarms it gets from your property.

[John Verdicchio]

I built my extension between 2015-2020 (took my time). I put Loxone in around 2017. Since then it's been flawless. I like Loxone as you have the nice looking touch switches, the great user interface and app and the ability to do it all yourself if you want to. I could also mix and match control systems. e.g. I'm using DNX for all my lighting but you could go Loxone Tree if you're feeling rich enough. I have some Tree and some Air for places where Tree would be really hard to get at. Actually, speaking to a local Loxone installer, if you're paying someone to do the install, then he believed that once you factor labour costs in, Loxone lighting is about the same price to the customer as a more traditional route - i.e. only 1 run of cable etc.

I've also used some Sonoff TH10 for temperature measurements, humidity sensors and lighting control as well - but all the logic is controlled via the Loxone interface.

For what it's worth, every time I've looked at KNX, it just seems really expensive in comparison.