Okay...so there are pretty mixed reviews on this device, but mine is a firm and solid 5 stars and would be more if they would allow it. What an innovative and genius company with ingenious products. People are correct that, if you are looking to replace a single light switch with one of these units, you are looking at around $60 for the touch panel and the required micro switch. Really, if the cost efficacy is a major concern, home automation is not a necessity. If you don't mind spending a little more money for something well worth the cost that looks really cool and makes people wonder "WTF?" this is the way to go. Albeit mostly plastic, it is well constructed and attractive. The integrated square LED can be individually controlled for darkened rooms where it would be distracting via a switch on the bottom of the panel. What Aeon calls a "chime" is actually more of a "click" which was a little disappointing. I hoped for some type of futuristic "chime", but it's cool nonetheless. This can also be controlled via a switch on the bottom of the unit. It responds well to a touch and I have not needed to sit a poke at it like some capacitive switches. Even my wife, who is quite accustomed to random goofy looking controls, receptacles, and switches showing up, commented positively about it. It is a rare occurrence to get more than the aforementioned "WTF is that?" from her. They claim you require the Aeotec Micro Switch, however you can use this push button for other uses. It requires a little more advanced understanding and most people probably wouldn't be interested. I will be interfacing a few of them into my alarm panel as zone triggers for different purposes, now having figured out exactly how it works. The associated micro switch is also a pretty great device. It is very small as these z-wave nodes go and fits great inside the box. The touch panel even has clips to hold it in place. The touch panel is not required for the micro switch, as is vice-versa. It will work with any momentary or constant switch and is easily configurable for either. Some people have complained of not figuring out how to change parameters in the switch or having difficulty getting the switch to recognize it's interface, but if you follow the directions, it's pretty brainless. You can trigger the inclusion/exclusion modes with the switch still in the wall by toggling the interface 10 times successively or you can hold the internal button down to put it back into interface recognition mode or factory default. In fact, it is totally brainless. Additionally, if you have a compatible controller, you can change parameters manually. There are not instructions included with the unit to do this which is probably a good thing, as there would be even more bad reviews from people getting them and changing parameters they don't understand. All of the necessary basics can be done without advanced interfaces and with just the button integrated into the unit. Really, if you can read and follow very simple instructions, including looking at a picture of wires and duplicating it, this product is highly recommended here. If you cannot and will leave a poor review of a product based solely on that inability, steer clear of z-wave, zigbee, insteon, automation, computers, wireless fidelity, and probably electricity all-inclusive. The bottom line is this: If you're not a total moron, you need to try one of these touch panel / micro controller pairs! I do recommend the following: Install into a metal box, as the bracket that the switch slides into is not very stout and the box may be necessary for extra support. Additionally, make sure it is included, programmed, and working the way you want before tucking the wiring up into the box and mounting it just in case you need to get to the button. I attached a couple pictures of the unpackaged product.
