Great price on a really handy home automation device.
Only catch is you'll need to be an origin energy customer with their new "spike" feature enabled to view and purchase. Limits the deal a bit but hopefully there should be enough origin customers around for it to still be worthwhile posting.
Have 2 of these from a previous deal and can highly recommend!
Referrer and referee get $10 of Spike Points
I'm not with Origin, but have 5 of the black Sensibo Sky units on our AC at home. Excellent product, reliable, and very user friendly so definitely recommended from me
Perhaps I misunderstood your comment, but it sounds like you have 5 units for one AC. I've never seen this product before. If that's what you meant, what's the benefit of having multiple units for a single A/C?
doubt. if they have 5 sensibos chances are they have 5 air con units.
We installed 5x split units in the house. I don't think this would be great with ducted.
The Sensibo units are a little usb powered hockey puck that connects to Sensibo cloud platform via wifi, and controls the AC by infra red. That means it can work with just about any AC for the last couple of decades.
Where ducted or split air con would give basic control per room, this is a lot smarter and more accurate.
E.g. I use Climate React in my 2yo kids room to maintain temp between 22.5 and 24.5 deg, and can control from anywhere, or set timers, schedules, geofencing, filter clean reminders, etc. Stuff that should really come from manufacturers today but is generally poorly implemented.
I suspect Origin is doing the promo because it helps save power in peak times by not just cranking AC to Max and forgetting.
Ideally this would be the RRP for these. They’d sell a stack more. If you have three or four splits it’s overpriced @$149.
I’ve got one and will pick up two or three more if they’re ever priced like this deal. I’m not with Origin.
@fookos: I bought my 5 for $128 each with stacked ebay codes and a sale. Agreed for the tech inside it is overpriced at RRP, but very good value at this price. I compared it to other similar products a couple of years back and it was the best reviewed vs equivalent products. The app is much better since a major update last year too.
thanks TheLurker, useful info. Instant buy for us!
This only works with smart ac right?
my ac can IR control, but the controller knows nothing of the state/setting
so you can't know if it's on/off
@furyou: It's pretty good at handling that. We're in the habit of just usng the app. Climate React works really well if the Sensibo is in the right place in the room to pick up actual temperatures. If it's confused it prompts a button 'my AC is actually off/on' and sorts itself out. Our Panasonic splits do a short beep for on and a long beep for off so it is easy to tell if the command worked even if in another room. Helps to keep a 2yo asleep without opening doors.
I can't confirm this, but I think it actually picks up standard remote IrDA signals to set its state too. Certainly it's not dependent on your existing AC being 'smart'
Can we use for ducted AC or central AC System?
Want to know this too
No, can’t use the sensibo for ducted but depending on your system you can get different modules. I have brivis ice and installed a Rinnai wifi module for about $300
I see no reason it wont work for ducted for basic functions as long as you have an infra red remote and not just a wall panel. If in doubt send your model number to Sensibo support and they are pretty quick to reply.
You could turn the AC on and off remotely, and maybe set temp and fan speed. It's unlikely you'll get any zone control ability so it's value is limited with ducted AC. Still having a geofence automatically turn the AC on when it's hot and you're 5 minutes from home can be nice
One more tip for ducted… there is an interface port which uses a connector that can theoretically connect to the internal ports on an AC (can't recall the standard) and control directly. I tried setting this up for internal connections for ours but Sensibo wouldn't support it and don't have comms standards published. Hacking this for wired connection to a ducted panel is likely impossible. IRdA infra-red only.
For best performance, put it in a place in the room where it can measure temperature accurately. The line of sight to the AC indoor unit is important but I've found it reflects off walls very well and still works when the wife has put clutter in direct line of sight as long as not too close.
If you plan on continuing to use the remote as well, you really want to put the Sensibo near the aircon for the best results. If you put it elsewhere in the room, it may not pick up the remotes signal, and the Sensibo unit gets out of sync.
What about multihead air conditioner? Do I need 1 each for every indoor unit? Thanks
Yeah, it controls in indoor unit. Think of it like a universal media remote for your aircon, it needs to see it to use it.
Would anyone with an account be so kind to help purchase this for me? Please PM me. Thanks :)
same here. Is anyone in Perth happy to help out?
I dont think you can get this in Perth since the only residential electricity supplier is Synergy? Origin only offers gas here.
I can if you like
PM’d
Same for me - please PM.
In Melbourne.
Thanks fellow OzBairgainers!
Worth updating tag with 'Targeted'?
Sort of posted earlier but my understanding is this will work on my AC unit. I do have ducted air con but it accepts and infra-red signal and has a remote. Would I be correct in thinking it would work for me?
I believe it is an IR blaster so should work
Subscription to sensibility is $40 per annum. I’m staying with broadlink.
Edit: not mandatory. Anyone has it without the subscription?
I suspect most have it without. I have two units, and didn’t know a subscription was even available.
I use just about everything without subscription incl somehow getting filter clean timers when it is a paid feature. Very usable without subscription.
I didn't even know there was a subscription. Bought these when they first came out and was really happy with them, since moved to AC with built in control but these have some advantages over that and so will go back to plugging them in at some point for the simpler Google Home integration. RRP is quite a lot for these but was very very happy with them having paid $120-130 ish many years ago (the broadlink stuff wasn't even an option at that point much less this easy to use).
A lot of the stuff like schedules and climate react stuff is just really easy for non-techy people to use.
Might grab 2 if someone can help me out to purchase, thanks in advance!
Not HomeKit compatible…
Nerds with a Raspberry Pi at home can make it compatible with HomeKit using Homebridge. It will work as if you had a HomeKit enabled aircon at home.
That's what I did, works great! Love switching my aircon on using Siri when driving back home.
You can use Syno too…
Edit: actually any NAS that supports Docker.
Nerds know these are obsolete and would use an RM4 Pro "S" for 30% less.
That is sadly the case with many many smart home devices.
Apple make it very difficult and many manufacturers have simply given up.
RIng for example was always going to support Apple, but just prior to being bought by amazon they advised they abandoned plans due to the difficulty in working within the apple ecosystem.
Thats why Home Kit compatible devices are few and far between
You can set up a siri shortcut though.
i ask siri to turn on air con and my sensibo fires up my air con for me at temp i have set in the shortcut
Will these work in a similar way though?
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/AU-Smart-Wireless-WiFi-IR-Remote…
There's loads of cheaper options, this just has a layer of polish and ease of use most others don't. For RRP that's a hard sell for anyone capable of setting up other options, for this price I'd recommend just paying the extra for the better user experience, especially if you're only buying one and/or want to convince less tech savvy users to use it.
I have a spike account but don't need any more sensibos, pm me if you want me to buy you one or some!
PMed
Thanks jjsnacks for helping me out so quickly, much appreciated!
Being with Origin is a deal breaker. Worst power company ever.
FIT is awesome…
Disagree with that. 20c FIT or 15c with 23% discount on daily usage charges. No one else comes close.
+1 best you can get for Qld by far at the moment
Hi dwhes..
How long ago where you able to get this FIT with Origin..
My parents recently installed solar and only receive 8c fit and 18% pensioner discount ??..
Which plan are you on ??..
Cheers..
Always search ozbargain mate haha, deal is still going though. I actually switched just last week from the 20c fit to the 15c with 23% discount option, as after learning out usage better it will suit us better. here you go https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/538080
Agreed, Overpriced, poor CS and blatant (and legally proven) rip off merchants
We currently are in $800 electric bill credit due to battery and solar, I disagree with overpriced. Origin in one year has paid for 1/6 of the battery towards our gas bill
Solar / Battery has nothing to do with Origin
We get decent FIT from others and Origin was def not better for us.
They have been proven to be deceptive and to have poor billing practices, i would not touch them even if they were going to be paying me.
Rewarding dodgy practices is foolish but feel free to down vote me for having an opinion contrary to yours.
@jimbobaus: Ok you’ve had a bad experience by the sound. If I had I’d move on too. But the reality is plenty of people haven’t. All companies are rubbish at times. You’ll find some have good experiences, others have terrible. Doesn’t seem like origin has anymore than anyone else. I’ve got no reason at all to defend them, no loyalty to an electricity company. I’m purely going by my experience and that they are offering the best deals atm. Please show me where I can get 20c fit elsewhere?
Disagree - have had excellent CS from Origin, app is excellent and couldnt find a cheaper deal after many hours of trying.
Same here mate. Their CS was excellent for me on the phone and I could not get anyone to come even close to their solar boost deal.
Can we get a smart meter installed by origin?
I seems you can in most palces except WA and Victoria:
https://www.originenergy.com.au/for-home/electricity-and-gas…
Ok after reading the website and watching reviews, I still can’t see why people would buy this (even at $70) compared to a $20 Broadlink RM mini or similar. Anyone care to explain what I’m missing? The setup doesn’t look any more simple than with the broadlink and I can’t see any additional features?
I have both.
Sensibo works way better and integrates with Google Home really well.
Broad link works with google home just fine
I couldn't get Google Home to recognise it as a thermostat.
I don't think it has an internal temperature sensor either? Could be wrong.
@1tightwad: Yeah my IR switch from Kmart is dumb-smart it just sends on off commands etc. google doesn’t register it as an aircon but I’m guessing sensibo does
RM4 Pro S, you can control the temp/humidity/AC logic without Google or Alexa getting involved.
But I want to be able to control it like a thermostat through Google Home.
If not I might as well just pick up the remote instead of my phone.
It looks like Origin can turn off your AC during peak demand periods with this thing?
I don't think so. They would have no control over the device itself, as it will be controlled by the signed-in user only.
The idea is probably that their customers will have better control over their AC, and therefore reduce spikes and over-use of the grid.
Ah my bad - you get Spike points if you reduce your usage during peak times. It doesn't look like they have control over your AC
only if you let them, the spike app has an option to allow smart devices to be controlled during certains periods (which they email and sms you about in advance)
if you beat the forecast of low usage you get points, i think 1000 points gets you a 10$ gift card
More user friendly, better app, better integration, humidity and temperature sensors. I had trouble finding my aircon/remote in the broadlink app and had to manually add my own buttons/presets. Sensibo found it straight away no issues.
It’s just overall a nicer experience.
Why buy a Mercedes when a Toyota still does the exact same job?
Yeah I can kind of understand if you have trouble finding your model. Mine took all of about 20 seconds to find and setup, so couldn't really see how this would work any better. Surely most on ozbargain would be fine though spending 2 minutes programming a remote to avoid paying an extra $50
No idea either I have a number of Broadlinks for about 2 years, they have been excellent and control my aircons, TV's, stereo, fans, DVD player, sat box by voice with Alexa. No idea why people pay double and can only control an air conditioner.
Decent Price
Do the whole ozB thing and be like
Its been cheaper elsewhere before.
Cheapest i got them for was $52 for 4 units (I actually ended up with 5)
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/594107
I'm registered with Spike and can get these units in Sydney if anyone requires one. I've got ducted with the MyPlace automated setup so already have remote wireless control. Appears I can add multiple units to my cart so PM me if interested.
PMed thanks
Thanks Ozburn for assisting and make this so easy, I ‘ m so appreciated your help and you are so helpful even respond my message at 2am and you are my model and sprit which make the OzBargain community so viable. Hope you have a great weekday. If I have any help, I would give back in future :)
Thank you @ozburn ! You’re a legend! It was great dealing with you. Many thanks once again. I love the OzB community!
@ozburn Thanks mate - much appreciated - really helpful and easy to deal with!
Absolutely amazing! Thanks so much for helping me out with getting one of these.
Really appreciate it, you're brilliant!
Thanks @Ozburn!
Great OzBairgainer
Got a free one from AGL, plugged in but never used. Just seems like an expensive remote control
It depends how much you use smart devices and will probably seem like a strange purchase to those who aren't already invested in smart home. Having a Sensibo, extends the existing functions by a great deal by way of the google assistant integration. This isn't just about remote control, but the ability to set up customer controls/routines and interface with your existing smart home, none of which can be done with the stock remote. Think of it as the Chromecast of Air Conditioning. :)
I have a fan and aircon with ir remote control in the lounge, does anyone know if I can use the same device for both appliances.
Does anyone know of another product which I can use. I don't really want to buy two devices
Their app doesn't have any ability to control fans or lights. If you used any other IR blaster for the fan, and this for AC, then you should be able to control both with Google Assistant, Alexa, IFTTT etc using another control app.
Have a look at the Broadlink RM Pro or RM Mini.
The app is not super intuitive, but the hardware is solid. Once you're set up, it's pretty easy to use.
Can broadlink rm pro or rm mini do both the air con and fan in one device? Or are they just cheaper alternatives to this one.
Broadlink and pretty much any other IR blaster can control any IR device
Have you tried the new Broadlink app? Heaps better than the original 'ihc' app
To answer some of the questions here re : ducted aircon compatibility…
Our house came with ducted Temperzone aircon unit with separate panel for zone control located in the living room. Before Sensibo, we had to walk out just to turn on the aircon, then set manual timer everytime.
We have been using this Sensibo unit to control aircon power, fan speed, temperature, setting timer and climate react using the phone app. And since the zone is controlled via a separate panel, we just turned on the zone that we want manually. It's always the same zone anyway so doesn't bother us.
We added Amazon Echo in the ecosystem 2 years ago and the kids can use voice control now.
Not as full featured vs split system but suitable for our use case.
How does Sensibo communicate with your aircon unit? Does your ducted aircon unit have infrared remote control?
This item might take the crown…
Don't waste your money on this. Get a broadlink rm4 mini. Simple and works with Google home. I paid $31 for mine.
Google Home won't recognise it as a thermostat though.
Just so people know, this is a new type of business model.
Basically, you get rewarded by your electricity retailer for letting them turn off(/down?) your air conditioner when the grid gets overloaded, and you are giving some control of your appliance to them (Origin).
This is going to become very common.
In exchange for the low price of this device, you give up being leave your air conditioner on all day during the one or two days per year where the temp is 44 and the power grid is struggling/suburbs being turned off for load shedding.
With the knowledge of that, people may be interested. I think it is a good offer. Most energy retailers will be looking into this.
Part of the reason is the wholesale electricity price (the price retailers pay) might normally be around 12c/kwh. In those super high demand periods, it has gone up to 18$/kwh.
If Origin can turn off people's devices it will help reduce outages in the network, save money for them, and probably has some environmental benefit too.
Can I suggest that the OP updated to include something about how you have to make this agreement with Origin? Most people won't read the fine print like I did..
Cheers
Just FYI, you don’t need to connect the device to Spike. Origin has no control at all unless you do that. While they encourage it, because it makes it super convenient to participate in Spike hours and earn points, there is no obligation to.
Montassis you are spot on.
Origin are trying to make it easier to automate turning off equipment so you can just schedule it yourself or if you wish, give access to origin to do it for you. Not a requirement in buying this.
I joined spike a few days ago. haven't got my result for my spike hour yet. but I had tp link plug that spike could control , not sure if they did though. I'd add this too. this is my first house with solar and I'm loving seeing the usage and savings so far
I'm in the energy/energy trading industry and got onboard Spike early on. However, have since stopped.
It's the frustrating when you have solar, and they give you a negative target, and it happens to be a overcast day. No possible way to achieve, and you lose your streak/bonuses.
Had a lot of correspondence with them around it, but they have no interest in changing.
I don't have a battery, but for those with a battery, there's some reasonable money to be made by playing their game.
Yeah one of my targets was -2.2kwh, fortunately it a sunny day and we pulled in over 4kwh. But it could have burnt us if it was overcast or raining
Bugga. Even though I'm an origin customer, I couldn't register to spike because I don't have a smart (digital) meter….