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Home Automation Bargain Alerts thread - No General Chat

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  • Registered Users Posts: 331 ✭✭Zilog


    Have not tried these myself yet....they seem cheap and compatible with Alexa and Google....€8 per bulb in Dealz.
    Bought a couple of the Dealz light bulbs to try them out.
    As suspected they are Tuya compatible, so was able to pair with Tuya app rather than downloading another control app. Switching power on/off 4 times, then on, put the bulb into pairing mode.
    I was unable to install custom firmware using 'Tuya-convert' unfortunately; hopefully the API/key for this gets sorted sometime in the future. I haven't tried taking the bulbs apart to see if they are flashable.

    In the meantime these LED bulbs seem to work well, are dimmable (using app only, not by wall dimmer), reasonably bright and white colour temperature can be tuned from warm to cool white. Replaced 2 older CFL bulbs in my study with them.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,315 ✭✭✭snowstreams


    I might get a few next time I'm in there. But I stopped going to them because they usually sell things that have had too many corners cut in hnt manufacturing process. Look at their power-packs or usb cable for example.
    But for 8 euro they might have made something genuine this time.


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,019 ✭✭✭thecivvie




  • Registered Users Posts: 533 ✭✭✭chuck eastwood


    thecivvie wrote: »
    Mad money for that. I got one on Amazon for about €36. Also Littlewoods have a no return policy on this item


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,615 ✭✭✭grogi


    Mad money for that. I got one on Amazon for about €36. Also Littlewoods have a no return policy on this item

    You got echo dot. This is full echo...


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  • Registered Users Posts: 533 ✭✭✭chuck eastwood


    grogi wrote: »
    You got echo dot. This is full echo...

    You sure... Because I have a few dots here aswell. They are all dots in this category. This is the 4th gen and it's not a hub as you called it


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,548 ✭✭✭Leftwaffe


    You sure... Because I have a few dots here aswell. They are all dots in this category. This is the 4th gen and it's not a hub as you called it

    He’s right there’s a new echo 4th gen. it’s not a dot. Have one myself and costs around 80-90 quid


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,836 ✭✭✭Gregor Samsa


    You sure... Because I have a few dots here aswell. They are all dots in this category. This is the 4th gen and it's not a hub as you called it

    This is the full sized Echo 4th gen Littlewoods are selling in the above link. It has a Zigbee hub and temperature sensor built in. The speakers are bigger and better than the dot.

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B085G58KWT

    And this is the smaller, cheaper and less featured 4th gen Echo Dot you have:

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B084DWCZXZ

    They’re not “all dots”, only the smaller one is a dot.

    All that said, Amazon have it for the same price as Littlewoods (give or take a few cents on account of exchange rate fluctuations).


  • Registered Users Posts: 533 ✭✭✭chuck eastwood


    This is the full sized Echo 4th gen Littlewoods are selling. It has a Zigbee hub and temperature sensor built in. The speakers are bigger and better than the dot.

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B085G58KWT

    And this is the smaller, cheaper and less featured 4th gen Echo Dot you have:

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B084DWCZXZ

    They’re not “all dots”, only the smaller one is a dot.

    I stand corrected. What would be the benift of having a hub built in ? Larger speaker would definitely be a great upgrade. Just checked the speaks, twice the size


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,615 ✭✭✭grogi


    I stand corrected. What would be the benift of having a hub built in ? Larger speaker would definitely be a great upgrade. Just checked the speaks, twice the size

    Hub allows to control Zigbee Philips Hue bulbs without Philips Hue Bridge.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 1,070 ✭✭✭dam099


    Just checked the speaks, twice the size

    Not just bigger, it has 2 tweeters so is capable of doing stereo sound from one unit now (though I'd wonder how much separation you would get in the sound field when they are that close together).


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,615 ✭✭✭grogi


    dam099 wrote: »
    Not just bigger, it has 2 tweeters so is capable of doing stereo sound from one unit now (though I'd wonder how much separation you would get in the sound field when they are that close together).

    Such "stereo" would just be a gimmick.

    It is a very well calculated enclosure, the sound coming out of it is big taking account the size of the unit, going as low as ~40Hz (sic!).
    The response isn't flat tough - there is a significant bump in the bass response while midrange suffer a bit. I have no doubt this was done for the speaker to "impress". But still is impressive for the size and one should be able to EQ it to decent levels from Alexa app.

    Amazon-Echo-4th-gen-Frequency-Response-1024x672.jpg
    Source: https://www.soundguys.com/amazon-echo-4th-gen-review-42618/

    Get two of those, pair them for stereo sound and you'll be surprised as hell what a set like that can produce.


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,456 ✭✭✭deezell


    T


    ....They’re not “all dots”, only the smaller one is a dot.

    All that said, Amazon have it for the same price as Littlewoods (give or take a few cents on account of exchange rate fluctuations).

    Is Amazon.uk still applying Irish VAT for Irish orders. It it llikely to be stopped at the post office or is it being shipped from 'Amazon EU Sarl' whatever that is.


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,836 ✭✭✭Gregor Samsa


    deezell wrote: »
    Is Amazon.uk still applying Irish VAT for Irish orders. It it llikely to be stopped at the post office or is it being shipped from 'Amazon EU Sarl' whatever that is.

    If you order an item sold by Amazon itself to an Irish address, you're charged Irish VAT at the checkout. It won't be stopped by Customs, and there won't be any additional charges on receipt, assuming the paperwork is correct. Amazon have integrated the CN22 form into their standard shipping label, so there should be no issues in that regard.

    'Amazon EU Sarl' is Amazon's European entity, based in Luxembourg. They've been shipping items under that entity for years.


  • Registered Users Posts: 5,178 ✭✭✭killbillvol2


    deezell wrote: »
    Is Amazon.uk still applying Irish VAT for Irish orders. It it llikely to be stopped at the post office or is it being shipped from 'Amazon EU Sarl' whatever that is.

    No VAT under €22. Irish VAT applied as usual up to €150. VAT and duty on items over €150. No issues with customs or post office but much longer shipping times recently (which may or may not improve).


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,432 ✭✭✭BobbyT28


    So when would it be stopped by Customs? Is it stopped when it's over a certain amount like £22?


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,456 ✭✭✭deezell


    No VAT under €22. Irish VAT applied as usual up to €150. VAT and duty on items over €150. No issues with customs or post office but much longer shipping times recently (which may or may not improve).

    Duty over €150? So goods are being shipped via UK?, despite the Luxemburg thing.


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,670 ✭✭✭Bluefoam


    deezell wrote: »
    Is Amazon.uk still applying Irish VAT for Irish orders. It it llikely to be stopped at the post office or is it being shipped from 'Amazon EU Sarl' whatever that is.

    My experience with Amazon since the Brexit has been that they are delivering as per the price you pay at checkout... I haven't recieved any surprises or COD's subsequently.

    I did recieve a parcel from another online store that arrived with a tax & handling bill (COD, which was almost equal to the cost of the product) and the shipping company are now holding it as ransom... won't release it to me without paying the charges, and won't return to sender with them paying additional charges. It was purchased prior to Brexut but delivered after...


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,836 ✭✭✭Gregor Samsa


    BobbyT28 wrote: »
    So when would it be stopped by Customs? Is it stopped when it's over a certain amount like £22?


    Scenarios would include:
    • If it doesn't have a valid CN22 form on the outside of the package
    • If Irish VAT, or any Irish Customs Duty wasn't already collected at the checkout.
    • If it was deemed to contain items prohibited for import into the EU without licence.

    The €22 limit is just one that the EU currently has, saying VAT doesn't have to be collected on items under that amount. It's being scrapped in the Summer (it was supposed to be scrapped on Jan 1st, but they pushed it back because of delays to the system caused by the pandemic).


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,615 ✭✭✭grogi


    deezell wrote: »
    Is Amazon.uk still applying Irish VAT for Irish orders. It it llikely to be stopped at the post office or is it being shipped from 'Amazon EU Sarl' whatever that is.

    Amazon is applying all relevant Irish taxes at checkout. Your parcels will not be stopped anywhere - they are delayed by regular COVID siht.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 8,836 ✭✭✭Gregor Samsa


    deezell wrote: »
    Duty over €150? So goods are being shipped via UK?, despite the Luxemburg thing.

    They're still being shipped from the UK. Amazon doesn't have a warehouse in Luxembourg. That's just part of their legal setup for selling in the EU.

    That said, Amazon in the UK are set up to collect EU VAT and Customs Duty at the point of sale (and then send it to the revenue service of the importing country in question). So there's no further charges.

    This does not apply to 3rd party sellers who use Amazon as a platform - those packages are likely to be stopped by Customs and subject to VAT/Customs/Handling charges, as it is those sellers that will have to be individually set up - and the vast majority of them are not.


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,615 ✭✭✭grogi


    Bluefoam wrote: »
    My experience with Amazon since the Brexit has been that they are delivering as per the price you pay at checkout... I haven't recieved any surprises or COD's subsequently.

    I did recieve a parcel from another online store that arrived with a tax & handling bill (COD, which was almost equal to the cost of the product) and the shipping company are now holding it as ransom... won't release it to me without paying the charges, and won't return to sender with them paying additional charges. It was purchased prior to Brexut but delivered after...

    If the goods were shipped before Brexit (the movement of the goods) (they didn't have to leave UK before), there should be no charges (as they should be treated as transport of goods inside the custom union).


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,456 ✭✭✭deezell


    Which is why you should buy the op's gadget from littlewoods .ie site. Save a lot of possible grief, especially uf you ordered 2.


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,836 ✭✭✭Gregor Samsa


    deezell wrote: »
    Duty over €150? So goods are being shipped via UK?, despite the Luxemburg thing.

    Regarding Duty - note that the €150 threshold is one under which no duty is ever charged.

    There's many items that attract no duty even if they are over €150. The rules are sometime complicated - relating to the original origin origin of the goods or even a certain percentage pf the components of them. But you can check what the duty wold be using this website:

    https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/dds2/taric/taric_consultation.jsp?Lang=en

    Hit browse, drill down to the classification of your product, select it, choose United Kingdom as the country, hit "retrieve measures". For products made in the UK, see what the UK rate is. For products made in another non UK or non EU country, like China, see what the "third country rate" is.

    For most domestic products, including electrical stuff, it's 0%.

    There is some duty on clothes made in Third countries like China.


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,836 ✭✭✭Gregor Samsa


    deezell wrote: »
    Which is why you should buy the op's gadget from littlewoods .ie site. Save a lot of possible grief, especially uf you ordered 2.

    No grief at all ordering an Amazon product from Amazon - they really have their system set up properly. I've ordered loads of stuff from them since the 1st of January. For items sold or fulfilled by Amazon, it's the exact same process as before Brexit.

    Duty on speakers (smart or not) is 0%, no matter where they’re coming from or what cost they are.

    I'm not saying Littlewoods don't have their Brexit stuff together- they claim they have, and I’ve no reason to think they don’t.


    Out of interest, do Littlewoods ship from a warehouse in Ireland, or does it come thought the UK like some other UK chains (even if they have a .ie site)?


  • Moderators, Business & Finance Moderators Posts: 6,162 Mod ✭✭✭✭Sheep Shagger


    deezell wrote: »
    Which is why you should buy the op's gadget from littlewoods .ie site. Save a lot of possible grief, especially uf you ordered 2.

    Beware just because it has an .ie address doesn't mean you are safe. Currys customers are getting stung with duties on stuff purchased on the .ie site (in error).

    Does Littlewoods stock come from the UK?

    Amazon is safe if you are buying an item fulfilled by amazon - price you pay is final, no suprises on the doorstep regardless of value.


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,456 ✭✭✭deezell


    Beware just because it has an .ie address doesn't mean you are safe. Currys customers are getting stung with duties on stuff purchased on the .ie site (in error).

    Does Littlewoods stock come from the UK?

    Amazon is safe if you are buying an item fulfilled by amazon - price you pay is final, no suprises on the doorstep regardless of value.

    Littlewoods state on their site its an irish registered company, so from consumer perspective its an irish transaction, up to them to deal with tge Brexit crap.


  • Moderators, Business & Finance Moderators Posts: 6,162 Mod ✭✭✭✭Sheep Shagger


    deezell wrote: »
    Littlewoods state on their site its an irish registered company, so from consumer perspective its an irish transaction, up to them to deal with tge Brexit crap.

    Indeed they should but the Currys example shows this is not always the case.

    John Lewis has local VAT numbers in various EU countries including Ireland but they too are having issues. Hopefully temporary.

    For the here and now Amazon are a good place to use, no suprises on the door whether the item yiu are buying is €10 or €1000


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,456 ✭✭✭deezell


    Indeed they should but the Currys example shows this is not always the case.

    John Lewis has local VAT numbers in various EU countries including Ireland but they too are having issues. Hopefully temporary.

    For the here and now Amazon are a good place to use, no suprises on the door whether the item yiu are buying is €10 or €1000

    But the duty thing? Would you buy a tv from them?


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  • Registered Users Posts: 8,615 ✭✭✭grogi


    deezell wrote: »
    But the duty thing? Would you buy a tv from them?

    No, but not because of the duty


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