I am a big fan. 50+ devices in my home. Not new to Sonoff. I bought 5 of the new SNZB-01P switch buttons. Added them to Echo 4th gen ZB hub (ZB 3.0). Didn’t work. Added them to iHost, could then add routines. But that’s was not the goal. (Those were simply small steps toward goal).
Advertised to work with Alexa routines. Nope. Sneaky.
Submitted ticket. Told, only works with Alexa when set up through the SNZB Bridge. (Another $30). Far as I can see, only works with SN ZB Bridge then. The ad explains about half. Not a full disclosure.
I am also a big fan of the Flic 2 button. Wonderful. Works great with Alexa. But they cost $25 each versus $10 Sonoff button. Really disappointed with SNZB-01P
(P.S. SNZB-01 are terrible. Dropped off line daily. Gave up and gave away)
We apologize for any confusion caused by the compatibility of the SNZB-01P switch buttons with Alexa Zigbee Hub. While we anticipated that the SNZB-01P would be compatible with Alexa Zigbee Hub and could be connected directly, however, it appears that the wireless button type is not currently supported according to the information provided on Amazon’s official page: https://developer.amazon.com/en-US/docs/alexa/smarthome/zigbee-support.html#echo-plus.
That’s why we add a “Requires SONOFF Zigbee Hub” remark in the Alexa routines section as below shown.
As a responsible manufacturer, we understand your disappointment and frustration. In response, we will reach out to Alexa in an effort to enhance their Zigbee compatibility and explore the possibility of integrating the wireless button (like SNZB-01P) into their system. However, the final decision lies with Alexa.
Regarding the comparison with the Flic 2 button, as far as I know, the Flic 2 utilizes Bluetooth connectivity and requires an additional hub to connect with Alexa, rather than directly linking with the Alexa hub. We appreciate your feedback and apologize for any inconvenience caused and thanks for your understanding.
Don’t get me wrong. I like Sonoff products and use many of them. Now bitter words come. Many Sonoff products are/were advertised promising functions that they don’t have or don’t provide due to certain limitations. It also goes to technical characteristics (manuals!) and electrical builds. The biggest mistake of your product team was iHost. Advertising was done in a tricky way, and many customers understood your intentions misleadingly. That can be easily traced here on this forum. I strongly believe that you should rethink your strategy and the way you communicate with customers.
Another important issue is the eWeLink and Sonoff projects. Some look abandoned even though they were enthusiastically introduced at the beginning and promised a lot. Examples: NSPanel and eWeLink Remote. Are they still supported? Is something going on or have they been shelved indefinitely?
Your valuable feedback propels us forward, and we deeply appreciate your thoughts on Sonoff products. While the advertised product page may not provide every detail about the product, it’s important to note that many features depend on third-party ecosystems like Alexa or Google Home. We have a dedicated Q&A section and round-the-clock customer support available to address any doubts you may have before making a purchase.
The eWeLink Remote feature of iHost will be supported in Q3 with an expected release in September. Additionally, the eWeLink Smart Home Addon has already supported NSPanel as a dual-channel switch, enabling seamless synchronization with iHost in your local area network (LAN).
Hope this information clears up the misunderstanding
That’s fine but you should just pay more attention. For most people, it’s the first impression that matters. If you say that this or that product works with Alexa, it means that it works out of the box and not with add-ons or after rain dancing.
As far as NS Panel and eWeLink remote are concerned, I didn’t use them as examples in conjunction with iHost. My S-Mates have problems with connecting and from my point of view, eWeLink Remote isn’t any better than plain old RF remotes. There are no improvements to this newly introduced protocol that was supposed to be superior to RF or Zigbee remotes. Well, it is not.
Well said. I agree with you. Excuse my failing for not being able to agree with the NS Panel and S-Mates part. But I absolutely agree with shortcomings in describing those “parts that are missing”. Hey, if they want to require we use their ZN-Bridge-P to get sensors or switches to work, that’s their choice. But be up front about it. Don’t say or use a sneaky implied suggestion that ZB 3.0 protocol works with other hubs when it does not. That’s the case here.
I bought the SNZB-01P because it worked with existing Echo 4th gen ZB hub and would allow me to run Alexa routines. And love that its $10 and have been telling everyone. Then, after attempts, I contact T.S. for help. That’s when they too implied it would need the ZB-Bridge. So, got it, and it works. Just be upfront so we don’t go through frustrations and waiting on product to arrive. Just tell all the truth at once.
I too am a big fan of Sonoff, but I have trouble with their zigbee bridge remaining on my network, and I have to turn it off/on to get my zigbee switches etc to respond. That is why I was hoping the Alexa Zigbee would work with the SNZB 01P. I have managed to get it to find the switch and pair to it, but it says “unresponsive”. So what are we to do, wait for Amzon and Sonoff to get together and find a solution for us, the end user, or just accept that neither one wants to take ownership of the problem.
Getting Sonoff & Amazon Echo to work together is too much to expect until (maybe) Matter arrives on both.
But I think you might have a “device limit exceed” problem on your router. That is possibly why your device is dropping offline. Google your router spec and try a product like Fing (free) for iOS and Android to get a network count. If your network count is too close or exceeds your router device limit, you must offload devices or replace your router with one with higher device count. Its not something that we see a message that warns us.
Good to know I won’t bother buying one to test out as I am trying to get iHost to recognize the five buttons from Flic, two generation 1 and three generation 2. All working great with a Flic2 LR Hub.
