How do I request to borrow one? I have two of these installed now and both are having disconnection issues on Hubitat
Well send out a link to borrow one once the firmware is finalized (everyone is still reporting no disconnects, so itās looking good) - likely early next week. I want to see at least a 96hr run at this before feeling optimistic.
Weāre also working on trying to convert the firmware to .hex as well as I know @bcopeland has ordered a fan/light and may be working on getting the .gbl format to work for Hubitat. Heās also busy tho so Iām not sure the timeline there.
Either way, once firmware is confirmed to be working, weāll send a link out for everyone.
My hope is that people do be honest and not just steal the Z-Sticks as weāve lost close to 100 of these over the years. But, small price to pay to make sure everyone is happy, so Iām ok with it!
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It is all about trust. Thanks for trusting us to return the Z-sticks. Just curiousā¦ did you put in a paid return shippling lable with the sticks? Maybe that would help?
Yeah no worries ā at the very least we look at it as the cost of business. Just sucks sometimes as weāre a smaller company and those small expenses add up. But on the bright side, itās nice to make sure weāre always putting out the best product and people know and understand weāve got their back 
Good idea on the pre-paid labels ā Iāve done that a couple of times, but typically we just ask for them to let us know when theyāre done and weāll send them one via email. But I can imagine itās a combination of forgetting to send it back and/or just being distracted. Plus we also lose track of who has one! Maybe weāll create some sort of Google Doc or something so everyone can see the status of where the Z-Sticks are at.
Eric if at any point you need mine back just holler or I can send the $ to cover it. I had mine with the agreement to get the dimmers to the next stable firmware then return, but frankly until ST gets OTA working Iād rather just have one on hand.
So maybe on that timeline we can work it out!
Lol, my bad man ā didnāt mean to seem like I was salty about the current Z-Sticks ā weāre good!
There was an issue about 3 years ago where our manufacturer screwed up some firmware on the first ever release of our Gen 1 switches and this is more what Iām referencing. It was a nightmare logistically to get everyone taken care of!
@Eric_Inovelli -Just an option and I know youāve probably thought of it, but what about setting up a refundable deposit for said sticks. Have it charge $30 to cover the sticks and once itās returned, refund the money. Similar to Autozone when you need to borrow a tool.
Most folk will use it and return it because of that credit hold. If they donāt return it, youāre not at a loss and sold another product. Youāre only out shipping which should be minimal with a light package/bag.
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Great idea. I would go for this no question.
Yeah weāve definitely thought of this - I think the problem lies in that this is our fault by not catching this in the firmware, so itās our responsibility to fix it.
I definitely think this is a great option for people who just want to update their firmware on their own, but me personally, Iād be hesitant to drop another $30-40 (even if itās a deposit) on a company that didnāt deliver on what I purchased (inadvertently or not).
Idk maybe Iām being too harsh on us lol
I totally get that and this would be that exception, but for your quarterly updates that just include enhancements should not be on the company. Itās the end userās choice to upgrade. Not every company can foresee some of the issues (whether its compatibility or configuration) brought out in recent months. Thereās just so many variables.
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Appreciate the transparency and heart behind what Inovelli is doing to handle this.
I see all companies as just being run by people like myself that are flawed and not perfect. I prefer to rate the company on not simply the quality of their product but how they respond to honest mistakes. Inovelli is getting a 5+ star rating here. You and your team @EricM_Inovelli has demonstrated transparency over and over again during the development stages, to delayed timelines, etc and now this disconnect issue. I am standing behind you and I believe you are doing the right thing. I think a loaner program and providing a refund to the credit card when it gets shipped back is absolutely acceptable.
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It can be frustrating for the end user and the company as I am self employed and understand the hiccups that happen, I have also worked as an Electronics Tech/Prototyping/Manuals and have had to perform on site fixes now and then. Its a tough call but I think that the offer to provide the sticks to those who need them with a deposit is par for the course.
A few examples that I have dealt with are:
-Leviton offers an Aeotec stick with firmware updates at request(in Canada), but the firmware can be purchased through Homeseer with additional firmware packages in a package. Leviton does not provide any links to their firmware.
-Zooz doesnāt offer a stick and again firmware must be requested with an order number to track which firmware was installed upon purchase.
Maybe offer a package with a stick and instructions in addition to a lender program. I really appreciate the work you have done and keeping in touch with the community.
BTW on a side note am I the only one successfully completing OTA updates on these devices with ST??? Iām not seeing any mentions other than mine lol??
Installed the firmware using Z-wave PC Controller 5, the switch has been able to control the light/fan for the past 24h with no disconnects
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Anyone with Hubitat - as you can see above, the magical @bcopeland has figured out a way to make .gbl to work (since it is encrypted it will take a while to flash).
Edit: Just talked to Bryan and itās in theory lolā¦ The dimmer files for the Holtek file (.bin) is what was working.
If anyone manages to do this with Hubitat, can you report back on if you still have disconnects?
@DTrident - awesome, this is great news!!
Just attempted to update the switch via this Updater, but itās getting stuck on Requesting device start
Can you send the logs?
If you already downloaded the firmware updater ā¦ please re-download itā¦ I pushed an update that was preventing it from applying to target 0
In the interest of data, Iām still running the stock setup with power monitoring enabled ā¦ at this point, the current connection has lasted in excess of 100 hours and I havenāt got even an inkling as to what may be contributing. Weāre back in a heatwave outside, so I imagine the grid is taxed with AC units kicking on, as it was when I first installed and encountered the issue; however, being Saturday, most of the local businesses are closed (Iām near an industrial park).
Iāll test out the Hubitat updater once this session expires ā¦ unless continuing to operate non-updated for a bit might be useful. I may also Just wait till Monday, regardless, when the businesses start operating and see if I drop back to 2 hour connection times before updating.
Will you be incrementing the version after some tests or other criteria so that the package manager will start seeing this as an update? Recognizing that I can of course update manually easily enough.