First of all, I did the original order, and thought I did it all correctly, but accidentally I ordered 60% blackout while I needed 100% blackout. I thought I will need to reorder, but almost immediately, representative reached out to me via messages to verify the configuration. I told them that I need 100% blackout and not 60%, they confirmed and initiated the production. I can verify that ultimately the curtains that I received are 100% — great service!
The configuration that I ordered included the USB-C solar panel, and Z-Wave capable motor (SW401). I already have a Home Assistant-powered hub with a Z-Wave USB stick to control the Z-Wave motor. It works fine, I can control it form the exiting pre-fab controls, I can set percentage, move up/down and stop, check the battery life. All great! There is a problem with my stick, sometimes the SmartCurtain motor doesn't respond to commands, I initially thought it is a problem with the motor, but the problem goes away after I disable/enable the Z-Wave driver in the hub – so this is a hub problem, *not a problem with this product*. Another proof for that, is that the curtain still operates perfectly fine and responds to the remote controller that comes with it just fine.
I should note, that the honeycomb shades/motors are slower and a bit louder than roller shades, you should keep that in mind when choosing a product. I checked multiple different products from different manufacturers, and they have approximately the same level of noise when activated, so this is not a problem with the product – and roller shades have their downsides, I ultimately chose honeycombs, even though they are slightly louder (typically rollers are less stable, prone to deformation, easily wave and let light through, etc.). Check out the operational sound on the video I attached.
Another thing is that honeycombs are slightly slower to open/close, it takes ~30 seconds to open/close my 47" H window. Again, this is slightly slower than the roller shades, but with all the other benefits of honeycombs, and whether it's 10sec or 30sec operation I don't really care.
I am using the product for 2 weeks already each day every day, and so far I am very happy. The battery level is at 100% all the time, since the solar battery is enough to charge the battery during the day. I am in LA California though, it's very sunny here, so take it with a grain of salt, but I'd assume even in cloudy scenarios it should be enough. This is a very good idea to sell solar panel along with the curtains. Keep in mind the solar panel will block a small bit of a window – check out the video I attached to see the exact configuration.
Verdict: I really like the product, I will be ordering more in other rooms. The packaging is awesome, all the small boxes have illustrations and titles on them, feels premium! The product is solid. You can configure it as you wish. The Z-Wave works great, and pairing can be done from the remote control (don't need to reach to the motor itself). The installation is relatively easy.
Attached files:
1 – packaging,
2 – light blocking capabilities (with the auto-exposure, see how good it blocks the light, the bleeding at the sides is actually faint, and can be further blocked by the side guides as per usual),
3 – the configuration on my window: the shades, the battery to the right attached to the shades, and the solar battery just below,
4 – video of closing, with the light blocking capabilities and operating sound.
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