The Lutron Smart Bridge is the heart of the Caseta system. It can be purchased as a stand alone buy, or packaged, in several different configurations with different dimmers and switches. It’s surprisingly small measuring 2.8 inches by 2.8 inches by 1.2 inches. Very compact!
There’s a LED light band splitting the vertical that runs along the sides and front which “glows” a soft white, to indicate power/connectivity. Note, there are some “Z-Wave” type hubs that support Lutron (notably WINK and Insteon), so you don’t need the Smart Bridge, but the Smart Bridge is more capable, so I would recommend it if you are planning more than just a handful of switches.
The Smart Bridge has two primary jobs. The obvious first responsibility is to talk to, and control all the Lutron devices in your smart home. The second is to interface to your Wifi system so that you can control everything from your smart phones, laptops, etc. And as part of that, setting up schedules and scenes. Lutron’s setup is not mesh style, where each device retransmits commands so that the more devices the more rock solid the network. That said, I need to use two Wifi repeaters to cover my whole home, in addition to a pretty top of the line Linksys wifi router. The Smart Bridge sits only a foot from my router, but has not problem covering my entire house. (That impresses me!)
And perhaps most importantly to many, it can be controlled by Siri or Alexa, the two most popular personal assistants when it comes to home control.
Lutron also works with some other whole home controllers, such as the SmartThings Z-wave Hub I am reviewing which talks to the Smart Bridge. The Wink Hub that we recently reviewed, can talk directly to Lutron switches without a Smart Bridge, but you will have additional capabilities with the Smart Bridge instead. I already mentioned that it can control Lutron shades. Smart Bridge can also work with compatible thermostats.
In other words you can use the Lutron Smart Bridge as a solution for a good range of products, but integrate it into other solutions as well, so that when in conjunction with other Hubs, personal assistants, etc. so that everything smart in your home can be controlled.
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Lutron’s system is proprietary. I don’t have the slightest problem with that, because Lutron is aggressive in working with other companies for compatibility (HomeKit, Echo, Wink, SmartThings, etc.) The way today’s smart home is shaping up is in large part tied to inoperability of systems, which has to be considered a good thing.
In our smart home, thanks to the Smart Bridge, I can control any of the Lutron switches by my Lutron App, my SmartThings App, Siri voice control and or Alexa, whatever is most convenient.
Of course, once the Smart Bridge is set up, you can forget about it. Using the App, the bridge seems invisible. it may be routing the commands, but you only see which devices you are controlling with the app.
Art's been reviewing high tech products and editing their reviews for 15 years. He launched his first website presenting solutions.com (sold in 2003) in early 1995 when there were only a few thousand .coms. He launched ProjectorReviews.com in 2000, and started planning Smarterhomeautomation.com back in 2011.
Art's goal is to provide in-depth reviews on the latest and hottest products that fit into the Smart Home, aka Home Automation, as well as insightful articles to educate people into what's available, what makes the most sense, and where the market is going, so people can better plan, and implement their goals for energy efficient, convenient, and downright "cool" capabilities.
Ancient history: Born in Allentown PA, Graduated 1972. Sold and managed stereo stores (and did a little surfing) in the early, mid-70's before getting into computers and more AV. Managed the first computers store in Pa, starting in 1979 (not the first manager). Moved to selling computers to major accounts. Then moved west to SF area, for a four year stint with Epson starting in 1982, then left for one of the early large venture backed start-ups in the Silicon Valley - Presentation Technologies. Left there to start up Presenting Solutions, which became the first projector focused reseller on the internet (Jan 1995). Married Lori in 1990, and have been enjoying our daughter Lisa, since 1992! Presently living, and working in San Clemente, CA.
