Zemote System: Review

Zemote System: Review

Rating: 4.5/5

System Price: 50,000+

Our verdict: Offering unlimited flexibility and customizations, the Zemote product range is the most versatile product range in the industry, perfect for the savvy homeowner who is not afraid to get their hands dirty and dive into custom made smart home solutions for their home.

Priced in the mid range, the Zemote range of products fit well within a decent budget and are a good pick for homeowners looking for smart solutions that cater to the unique needs of their homes.

About the company

Launched in 2014, Zemote offers a range of smart home products based on the latest innovations in IoT technology in the Indian market. Based in the city of Ahmedabad, Zemote focuses specifically on the needs of a typical Indian smart home, designing products keeping the Indian consumer in mind.

Zemote products are able to operate well even on low internet speeds and are designed to handle electrical power surges well.

Boasting of a development process of their technology developed over a period of 3 years with extensive research and keeping innovation in mind, Zemote manufactures all its products in India, making it one of the most reliable smart home device success stories in the market.

Zemote Products

If you are a smart home owner looking for products designed for your specific needs, then the Zemote touch switches are the answers you have been looking for!

A big differentiator and arguably the biggest unique proposition of the Zemote touch switches is that you can pick and choose the functionality you need with the Zemote Touch Switches.

While normal smart touch switches possess a predefined layout and fitted modules that perform specific, non customizable tasks, with the Zemote Touch Switches, you can personalize the functionality offered by your touch switches.

Simply choose the different blocks corresponding to the different functionalities and assemble them all together to form your very own unique and customized touch switch that is tailored to your needs.

So for example, if you are looking for a module to control your curtains as well as the lights, you can choose a module that supports curtain control and pair it with one that supports light control. And if you need dimming capabilities for your lights, you can choose to add the Zemote dimming block to form one module that gives you all the functionalities that you are looking for.

This makes sure that you are only paying for the features that you wish to use, instead of having to purchase different blocks for different functionalities, all of which you may or may not require.

We are absolutely loving this level of freedom and customization that Zemote offers and would give it a huge thumbs up from our side.

Zemote’s Product Range

Lighting 

Zemote has quite a few offerings in the switches range. The Zemote Backend modules are smart modules that can be installed behind your existing switchboards to enable you to control your smart devices from your smartphone. If, however, you are looking for a more sleek, elegant and beautiful exterior to your smart switches, the Zemote Touch Switches are what you are looking for.

Backend modules

The Zemote backend modules come to your rescue if you wish to make your home smart but retain your existing structures and switchboards. Simply install the backend modules and install them behind your switchboards and control your smart devices without causing any damage.

Light Fan Module (with Light Dimming)

The Zemote Light Fan module connects over Wi-Fi and lets you control your fans and all kinds of lights from your smartphone. The Zemote Light Fan Module also offers light dimming facilities.

What we loved about the Zemote Light Fan Module is how easy it makes the automation of existing lights and fans, which is a huge relief since it is not only cost efficient but also helps you to avoid the hassle of having to revamp your entire lighting system as well as all the fans in your home.

Another USP of the Light fan module is that it is completely silent and humming-free, specially designed keeping the requirements of a typical Indian home in mind.

Light Module (2 channel with Light Dimming)

Designed on similar lines, the 2 channel lighting module (with light dimming) helps you to make up to 2 lights smart with a simple installation of the 2 channel module behind your existing switchboards.

In case you have non dimmable lights installed in your home or do not require dimming capabilities, Zemote also has a 2 Channel and a 4 Channel non dimmable lighting module that perform the same tasks as the Dimmable light modules, without the dimming, of course.

Curtain Controller (4 Channel)

A smart home sure is incomplete without the added convenience of a curtain controller.

A major distinguisher of the Zemote Curtain Controller is that it consumes a very miniscule amount of data for all the work that it does, controlling your curtains throughout the day – a mere 3 kB of data per month.

If you do not have a requirement of a 4 channel curtain controller, you can also choose the 2 Channel Curtain Controller, which offers the same functionality as the 4 Channel controller, but for 2 curtain channels only.

RGB Strip Controller

A very cost efficient, yet competitive enough to compare to more expensive products in the market, the Zemote RGB Light strip controller lets you conveniently and efficiently set the right mood by turning your RGB light strips on or off and even changing the colors at your command.

The programmable options feature is worth a mention, simply owing to the flexibility of usage that it offers you.

12V LED Strip Dimmer

Designed to control a maximum load of 150W, the Zemote 12V LED Strip Dimmer stands out in that it is compatible with all LED Strip lights available in the market.

The response time was quite satisfactory and the commands were executed flawlessly by Light strip dimmer.

Touch-switches

If you are looking to take a step further in making your home smart, Zemote has some really elegant, modern looking solutions in its kitty.

The Zemote Capacitive touch switches have a fairly acceptable response time and satisfy all the basic requirements of a touch switch.

The touch switches can be personalized and are programmable from the Zemote App.

The variants offered by Zemote in the touch switch category include the following:

• Base Plates

• • 2 Module Base Plate
  • 3/4 Module Base Plate
  • 6 Module Base Plate
  • 6 Module Base Plate with Socket and USB 8 Module Base Plate
  • 8 Module Base Plate with Socket and USB Zemote Block – Light On/Off

• Blocks

• • Zemote Block – 16A
  • Zemote Block – Triac Dimming
  • Remote – for Touch Switches
  • Zemote Block – Fan Regulator
  • Zemote Block – Zemote Dimming
  • Surface Block – High Grade Plastic
  • Zemote Block – Curtain
  • Zemote Block – Two Way Input
  • Surface Block – High Grade Plastic Plus Printing ** Surface

You can mix and match the base plates with the different blocks to create your own module that is suited to your specific requirements for your room.

While there is nothing truly remarkable or different about the Zemote capacitive touch switches, they work as they are expected to work so you can’t really go wrong with them.

Mood Lighting

RGBW Controller

The Zemote RGBW controller is a handy module that helps you control your RGBW light and light strips.

You can change the colors, turn the lights on or off and even schedule the lights to turn on or off at a pre-scheduled time of the day. It is quite easy to set up and works pretty much independently, without requiring too much monitoring and maintenance.

Scene Controller

The Zemote Scene controller is one Zemote device we remain most impressed with. The sheer level of customization and personalization that the Scene Controller allows the user to have, makes it stand apart.

The Scene Controller is essentially a 4 channel touch switch with an aesthetically pleasing, modern looking touch exterior.  It is completely programmable from the Zemote App and lets you create and recall multiple scenes with a single tap.

We installed the RGBW controller near the door at the entrance of the house and found it very convenient to turn all the lights off on the way out and even turn the lights and the AC on with a single tap.

The Scene Controller is offered in two colored variants – black and white.

Multimedia

Smart Universal Remote

The Smart Universal Remote is a plug and play device that you can use to control all your IR enabled devices in your home including your Set Top Box, TV, DTH, Home Theatre and any other device that can be controlled with an IR controller.

We are loving the channel guide offered by the Zemote Smart Universal Remote as it offers a guide for most major DTH companies as well as the channel search feature which makes navigation to your favorite channels super easy.

Smart Universal Remote Plus

The Smart Universal Remote Plus is basically a wireless version of the SUR Pro model offered by Zemote.

The Zemote Smart Universal Remote Plus is the most affordable Zemote IR control device, offering convenience and decent functionality for use around the house.

Smart Universal Remote Pro

The Smart Universal Remote Pro is probably the most advanced of all Zemote multimedia products.

You can control your TV, AC and the DTH of one room with a single Zemote Smart Universal Remote Pro. In addition, the same single remote can also control the Air conditioners installed in 4 other rooms as well.

The Remote Pro is a good choice if you are looking for a product to make your entire home IoT enabled.

Smart Universal Remote Mini

The Zemote Smart Universal Remote Mini offers functionalities similar to the Smart Universal Remote, but packed into a smaller, more handy device.

Safety and Security 

What we like about the Zemote door locks is that they are all Deadbolt locks which is great for extra home security. The stainless steel body of the locks is also a plus as it looks quite aesthetically pleasing.

All Zemote locks except the FS04 enable access through a password, fingerprint and the Zemote app.

The locks also allow you to permit permanent, temporary and time bound access to different users, which is a great feature to have if you need to grant access to your friends, family or househelp in different situations.

A unique feature of the Zemote Door locks is that in addition to providing security to your home, the locks also have a feature that enables you to maintain a record of the daily attendance of your househelp or your office employees, accessible directly through the app.

In addition to the similarities, each Zemote lock has a few differences which make them unique. Let’s take a look at these differences one by one.

IoT Smart Lock FS01

The FS01 also offers access through a computerised mechanical key, which is great in emergency situations or when the lock battery runs out.

IoT Smart Lock FB02

What sets the FB02 apart is that it has a beautiful in-handle fingerprint reader, which is as handy as it is sleek and modern looking.

IoT Smart Lock FS03

The capacitive fingerprint reader installed is what sets the FS03 apart. Highly responsive and fast to the touch, the capacitive fingerprint reader get a thumbs up from our side.

IoT Smart Lock NFS04

As an additional security measure, the IoT Smart Lock NFS04 has an automatic permanent locking from inside feature, which enables you to lock the door from inside and prevent outside access for anyone including users that are registered and can usually unlock the door.

Zemote – The App Experience

At first glance, the Zemote App looks similar to other smart home automation and control apps available.

However, once you start adding your smart devices and start using it, you realize that the Zemote App is quite user friendly and easy to navigate. The different added smart devices are organized in one neat dashboard and grouped devices installed in specific rooms can be clubbed under one group (for example: living room devices, bedroom 1 etc) for easy control and access.

Zemote also has a large number of detailed videos on their Youtube channel to help you in the easy navigation of their app as well as unlock all the functionalities that can be beneficial for you.

Alexa & Google Home Integration

Products in the Zemote range are compatible with Alexa and Google Home, giving you the convenience of using voice commands to control your devices.

In our experience, the response time after giving a voice command was fast enough and most commands were picked up and executed correctly.

Installation

You will need a couple of basic handyman tools to install the Zemote modules. A splitter, a screwdriver, a tester, a couple of wires and the module you wish to install are the basic tools you need to install the modules.

Simply remove the outer panel of your switchboard and unscrew board holding the switchboard. All you need to do now is identify and cut the wires behind the switches you wish to automate and connect them with the wires connected to the micromodule.

If you have ever performed any simple wiring, installation or maintenance of the switchboards in your house, this should not be too big of a task. Zemote also has all the installation instructions explained in the form of detailed videos on their YouTube channel, which can be very helpful even if this is your first experience with wiring modifications around the house.

If, however, you wish to get the installation done by a professional,You can also look up an installation partner for Fibaro (only for India) to connect you to a handyman or an electrician in your locality who can visit your home and complete the installation in a jiffy.

Zemote: Pricing & Cost Estimation

A quick estimation of the total cost of installing the Zemote System products in your smart home throws the following:

For an average room equipped with the basic smart devices from Zemote including a $ switch controller, an IR module and a curtain controller, the cost estimation is around Rs. 20,000.

Going by a similar estimation, we can safely arrive at an approximation of around Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 60,000 to install smart home devices in an average 3 BHK home.

To give you a comparative idea of the prices of the products, the Zemote range of products are priced slightly higher than your average DigiLife range of smart home devices, while they are priced lower than SmartNode and Fibaro products.

Conclusion

All things said, the Zemote range of products offers personalization and customization like no other brand in the market. If you are a smart home enthusiast, then the Zemote range of products is a dream come true for you as it allows you to get into the nitty gritties of the system and personalize every aspect of your smart home to suit your own unique needs.

Lying in an economical range, there is a Zemote device to suit every budget, giving great functionality under a budget for all smart home owners. The fact that the entire range of devices is hubless is another cherry on the cake.

If you are a smart home owner looking to equip your home under a budget, then we would definitely recommend you to check out the Zemote range of products!

Check out our in-depth review on Yale’s product range here.