Expose official API and publish documentation
There are multiple home automation platforms available. Some of them make use of reverse engineered API and the main concern is such access would be blocked by Tado at some point or changed.
Dear Tado, be brave! People like open products and your market share and brand rating would definitely grow with such API officially published.
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That doesnt address the OP concerns (and mine). The "api" just gives access to Tado cloud for a limited number of functions (no setting of home/away, no access to schedule, only manual temp overrides,..) and only for as long as they allow it and when their cloud is up and reachable. And tado wont even commit to the API staying in place, its "unsupported".
This is the case with (far too) many IOT devices, I really hate that trend. But if a 20 euro light bulb or socket stops working because some chinese cloud is taken offline, thats one thing. If I lose control over my heating after I will have invested 1000+ euro, thats another story entirely.
Whats needed is the ability to run any cloud we want, or none at all, including our own local hub so at least the heating stays on schedule when internet goes down, so we can decide who gets what information. We should be free to use the hardware in any way we want. If we want to integrate other temperature sensors, we should be allowed to do that. If someone wants to write a better app than tado, he should be allowed to do that.
To be blunt, if I had known Tado was such a walled garden, cloud-only solution, I would not have bought it, and I will not recommend it as long as this is the case. Ive meanwhile seen an alternative solution is less than half the price and fully controllable over open standards (zigbee). You can then use whatever the heck you want for software, smartthings, google home, openhab, something someone is yet to make, or anything else, and mix and match devices as you want, like combining cheap temperature sensors, window/door sensors, passive IR sensors, or more advanced room entry detection systems, NFC tags, to create a logic that works for you, not against you.
I understand there needs to be an easy to use solution for most people, you cant just expect them to figure out openhab, but locking everyone in is not the right approach. Tado needs to decide if they want to sell hardware, which I will gladly buy from them, or if they think they have a future as a service provider charging me a fee to turn my heating on or off. I can definitely do without that.
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(Forum ate my prev post.)
The API guide doesnt address the issue. Its limited in what it can do (no home/away control, no control over schedule, ..), its dependent on Tado cloud being available, and its not guaranteed even by Tado to remain available, they say its "unsupported".
Whats really needed is direct access API, so any platform can talk to the bridge without requiring Tado cloud. That way we can chose to use tado app or smartthings or openhab or a third party alternative to the tado app and a third party cloud service or our own hub. That way we can chose if we want the system to work without internet or not. Decide what information we share with who (rather than forcing us to send geolocation data of every family member to tado all the time). Open protocols and platforms would also allow us to integrate other temperature sensors, window/door sensors, PIR or more advanced presence sensors, NFC tags, physical switches, let someone implement child locks in software, user privilege settings, multi house support or whatever else is missing, and create a system that works for us, not against us.
Had I known Tado was such a closed, wall garden, cloud-only solution, I would not have bought it, and its preventing me from splashing down 1000 euro to install it throughout my house or recommend it to friends and relatives. Ive meanwhile found another solution that is 1/2 to 1/3 the price, and that does support open standards (zigbee) making it infinitely more flexible and future proof. I will probably buy a test unit soon and then decide whether I sell my current setup and switch over.
Now I do understand a simple turn key software solution is needed to make these things accessible to a large audience, not everyone wants to mess with openhab or create complicated solutions, and so a proprietary app and private cloud with some limited hooks to 3rd party solution is arguably acceptable. But removing the choice and having everyone being locked it to that for something as critical as heating your house, is not.
Tado needs to decide, do they want to sell hardware that users have control over (which I would gladly buy) or sell us a cloud service remotely turning my boiler on or off and charge me a fee for it. The latter, I can do without.
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