I was looking at a sensor package (light, temp, humidity, particulates) earlier and it comes with a cellular modem and a free SIM with a modest data allowance for 2 years to send readings to the cloud.
I wish Zwave/zigbee were more practical to use. I'm not too worried about someone local pulling readings out of the air, but giving all of this crap access to my wifi, relying on cloud services that could go down at any time, and even adding a bridge straight in (your SIM comment) is just rediculous. For things like cameras or other high bandwidth applications wifi makes sense, but for the usual sensor/switch stuff, there's no need for a full IP network.
Plus, all of the stuff controlled locally means the latency is sooooooooo much lower. It's awesome being able to hit a switch in the homeassistant app and have the corisponding plug or light turn on instantly. It's like you're flipping a physical switch.
Can you recommend specific parts? I'm hoping to build out a smart home lighting and sensor solution soon using local protocols. Part of it will be an IoT wifi network & VLAN without internet access but I'd like to experiment with Zigbee/Zwave as well.
Not OP, but I’ve been happy with everything made by Aeotec. My whole house is outfitted with their products on a raspberry pi + homeassistant setup. Entire process was really simple and easy, no need to “experiment”. You’ll be done in half an afternoon.
Plus, all of the stuff controlled locally means the latency is sooooooooo much lower. It's awesome being able to hit a switch in the homeassistant app and have the corisponding plug or light turn on instantly. It's like you're flipping a physical switch.