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HomeInsteon ProductsControllersSwitchLinc INSTEON Remote Control Dimmer, Almond |
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|  | | | Used and New: | | |
| All | |
| $24.11Shipping Free | Used
- Mint | | |
| $49.99 This item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. | New | | |
| $49.99+ $7.55 *Shipping | New | | |
| New | |
| $49.99 This item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. | New | | |
| $49.99+ $7.55 *Shipping | New | | |
| Used | |
| $24.11Shipping Free | Used
- Mint | | |
| | Customer Reviews: | | | Average Customer Review: ( 20 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 13 found the following review helpful:
 One of the best investments i've ever made Jan 22, 2011
By loutious
This is a one-of-kind dimmer. You can set preset on-levels and ramp rates (speed it takes to go to on-level) both locally or remotely from any controller (each controller can initiate different "scenes").
I've got a bunch throughout the house and remotely control them from...
-the Web via SmartLinc (I use my iPhone running the MobiLinc app - it's awesome)
-Wireless remote via RemoteLinc (need at least one Access Point here)
-Wall keypad via KeypadLinc (great for the front door and master bedroom)
-Wireless Motion sensor (I use this in the garage and for triggering backyard lighting - again, need at least one Access Point)
The SwitchLinc is incredibly flexible as is the entire Insteon system. No issues with communication although I did start by adding a couple Access Points at the beginning of the installation - these perform a few different functions but mostly they just increase reliability.
A couple of notes...
1. Be sure to check for neutrals in your switch box before purchasing. Most homes these days have them but older homes (built pre-80's) may not.
2. You can program these by hand but I found it much easier to do it from HouseLinc software. Not only is it cool to program your lighting from a computer (total Jetsons fantasy of mine) but it's also nice to have all the devices and their respective links centrally managed.
3. I called the company regarding power consumption of the dimmer since the other reviewer here expressed concern. They indicated that a new power supply was introduced recently that dropped power consumption down to 1W.
Hope this helps.
12 of 12 found the following review helpful:
Awesome!! Mar 02, 2011
By Dominic
I am a big tech freak and I absolutely love these dimmers. I first heard about the insteon automation controllers while doing some rewiring at my music production studio. We used to have to use Variac dimmers which were massive dimmers that didn't cause any noise when dimmed. With the research I did I decide to give insteon a try and since installing them we have been extremely happy. They don't cause any noise at all. For my home I have installed about ten switchlinc dimmers in my home as well as a bunch of other insteon automation devices and they work flawlessly. I have started to connect all of my devices with Homelinc which is the software that allows you to link and synchronize all of the installed devices. So far the programing has been a breeze and I can control any light from any location in the house either from a keypad or a wireless remote. They were relatively easy to install and Smarthomes customer support line was very help full with the few questions I had. I would highly recommend these dimmers.
11 of 11 found the following review helpful:
Good product, easy to install Jan 21, 2011
By Humpty - Pronounced with an Umpty
I purchased this item directly through the manufacturer. Dimmer is pretty easy to install for the entry level DIYer. It's also simple to link to the rest of the INSTEON products I purchased. No worries here. Would definitely recommend.
25 of 30 found the following review helpful:
 Great features, very high failure rate Oct 25, 2010
By Eric Varsanyi
I originally bought about 70 of these when Insteon first came out (around 2003). Over the years I've bought another 20 or so. Of the original batch almost every single one has failed, either with a paddle problem (the paddle stops working) or by just failing completely (no power, no sign of activity -- just as if the power were not connected). I have two stages of whole house power filtering (bought from Smarthome of course) and many other technology devices without similar failure rates.
There were a lot of firmware problems in the early units and they designed them so they could not be field upgraded. Mixing early with newer units in the same installation causes instability (it seems as if the signal isn't 'getting through' but use of noise blocks and detailed analysis with an oscilliscope and insteon protocol analysis software indicates the units are transmitting over each other in violation of their own protocol spec). They appear to have fixed all these problems in newer units but if there are older units in the installation they intermittently 'jam' the signal and the subsequent automatic retransmissions causing user visible instability. I haven't seen such failures in isolated tests of groups of newer units (the ones they started sending out in 2008 or so), the old units worked acceptably together as well, the big problems only occur when you mix old with new. These problems are well documented and discussed in the community, SmartHome claims they've "never heard of that sort of issue" right before the offer to sell you additional noise blocks. Noise is definitely a common issue even with Insteon, putting in noise blocks to solve specific problems is not a snake oil solution by any means, its just not a cure for buggy firmware.
The Insteon technology is much better than the ancient X10 technology. It is more reliable, responds faster, and has good scene control. Other vendors (such as Leviton) have much better made implementations of X10 units (build quality, reliability) than SmartHome, but they implement the X10 technology and suffer its defects.
Up until this year SmartHome was very generous and replaced the early units that failed even out of warranty. They changed this policy recently (per their new 'Insteon Gold' program) and no longer cover the original almost-out-of-beta quality units they shipped up through 2006-2007 except for failing paddles.
Despite the continuous drumbeat of replacing failed units over the years (under warranty or not) this is a good product and unless I was building a new home (where I could use a proper hard wired system made to more professional rather than consumer grade specs) I would install them again. I have recommended them to colleagues and friends for many smaller installations (<20 units) and they excel at that application. I learned to always keep one or two of each unit type in stock to have an immediate replacement for frequent failures. In a larger installation you will go insane reprogramming failed units w/o something like an ISY99 to manage the configuration (they are exponentially tedious and error prone to program manually as the installation size grows, especially if you are using KeypadLincs in the configuration).
I'm disappointed that SmartHome abandoned their original developers and customers as they tested their technology at our expense. I would not recommend buying any newly developed products from SmartHome/SmartLabs until they've been out a couple of years and they have had a chance to make them work.
There is currently nothing this cheap (to buy or install) with similar functionality on the market.
4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
Nice Dimmer Oct 27, 2010
By Mike
I have a few pieces of INSTEON product in my house and they all work well. Though I have keypads, outlets, etc. I have more Switchlinc Dimmers than anything else and they all work as expected.
See all 20 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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