Samsung - SmartThings Motion Sensor - White

Smarthings - Motion Sensor Good: *2016 models have a longer battery life *Less false detection *Easier sync *Build better *Same size Cons *Replacement battery costs more then the older model *Has the same features as the older model

Got these to set up a security system for my retired parents to keep an eye on their house while they travel. Been using them for about a month and have no complaints. There have been no false triggers. They are very reliable and I get instant alerts if one is triggered. As a bonus, I didn't know they also have built in temperature sensors, so they also report the temperature, which is a nice bonus when you are monitoring your home from abroad. Was somewhat concerned about them using button cell batteries, and one sensor dropped from 100% batter to 90% in the first two days. However, in the month since then, the battery level has remained constant. Setup was extremely easy.

I started my Smart Home with a Phillips Hue hub and two Hue bulbs. I then purchased the Hue Motion Sensor to turn on one of the bulbs when someone entered the room. I really like the design and features of the Hue sensor with its magnetic mount and light sensor. When I wanted to add a Zigbee switch to the system I discovered that the Hue hub only talks to Hue devices. I then purchased a SmartThings hub which will control the Zigbee switch and the Hue hub. The next problem I encountered was the SmartThings hub can only control the Hue bulbs through the Hue hub. It can't access the Hue motion sensor. I decided to see what the SmartThings motion sensor could do. It doesn't have the light sensor that the Hue sensor has, but the SmartThings sensor can report the temperature of the room it is in as well as the status of the battery. I was able to get around the lack of a light sensor by programming the motion sensor SmartApp that turns on a light to only respond to motion one hour before sunset and stop responding one hour after sunrise. I also programmed a SmartApp to notify me when the temperature in the room drops below 58 degrees. I have had trouble with the pilot light going out on my furnace. The mounting plate for the SmartThings motion sensor can be screwed to the wall or mounted with sticky pads. I mounted my sensor in the corner of the room by using a small 3M Command damage-free hook and some wire that I ran through the holes in the mounting plate. This method made it easier to aim the sensor in the direction I wanted. One other difference between the Hue sensor and the SmartThings sensor is the time that passes before the programmed light is activated. The response time of the Hue sensor is about one second where the SmartThings motion sensor is about two.

I have two of these units installed and have had them for maybe a year. They work well sensing motion so that’s the good part. The batteries however probably only lasted six months. They second set lasted less than 1 month (?). The batteries are major pain because nobody carries the CR2477 locally. You have to order them online and they are kind of pricey. I ended up re-wiring them to a battery holder with 2 AA batteries. They work fine now. It is a poor design, they should have used readily available batteries such as AAA’s. The units would not have been very much larger.

I use 3 motion sensors for various purposes, and most of the time it is to turn on lights when I enter the room at a certain time of the evening. It works every time, so I gave it 5 stars. I of course have the Smartthings hub, along with some connected lights allowing me to automate some lights. I also did not know this thing has a temperature sensor in it - so bonus points for that. There are some negatives if you want to call it that - he sensor is very sensitive. It picked up my boys playing from the living room and kept turning the light on. I had to disable that feature. But being overly sensitive isn't necessarily a bad thing.

This motion sensor advertises a fee meters of sensing with a 120° field of view and it lives up to it, I was having problems placing it cause it was so sensitive. I set it up to turn on lights when it detects motion and turn it off when motion is no longer detected, and it works like a charm. I would definitely recommend this product but the only two downsides are price and the smartthings software which doesn't let you specify to turn lights off if no new motion is detected for a few seconds. Otherwise I'd say buy enough to fill your house!

I have a couple of other motion detectors that have been working for years that I have mounted outside in a covered area that work fine. I wanted one to put one at the bottom of my steps by the kitchen. When someone goes down to the kitchen at night I wanted the kitchen light to turn on at a dim level. I wanted a small device that could sit on the desk at the bottom of the steps that did not look bad and this is exactly what I wanted. It picks up the motion and turns on the light before I enter the room and when I go back upstairs the light turns off five minutes later. No more feeling for the light switch next tot the disposal switch in the dark, I have turned that disposal many times feeling for the light switch. I could tell Alexa to turn on the light but that would disturb other people that are sleeping. This is what home automation is all about.

Works well for my purposes to monitor motion in my living room. It doesn't have a great range and seems to be between 8 and 10 feet. Battery after a week has already hit 90%. There does seem to be a few minute cooling period between motion detection. Might get the GE ZWave Motion sensor next because of the greater range and battery life.