Home Assistant Goes Z-Wave Happy with the Connect ZWA-2, Boasts Standard and Long-Range Support

Home Assistant has announced the launch of the Connect ZWA-2 — a pole-like Z-Wave adapter that, it claims, delivers peak performance from its Silicon Labs ZG23 Z-Wave 800 chip, including support for simultaneous use of both Z-Wave and Z-Wave Long Range.

"In late 2022, we launched Home Assistant Connect ZBT-1 (formerly SkyConnect), a USB adapter for Zigbee and Thread. It made both protocols much easier to get started with, and sales helped fund Home Assistant development," Home Assistant's Paulus Schoutsen explains. "We knew the next standard to tackle was Z-Wave, and after another couple of hardware launches (Home Assistant Green and Voice Preview Edition), we finally had the time to do it right."

"Doing it right" appears to involve skipping a number: "Making this device was the start of us leveling up the Connect platform and establishing our second generation," Schoutsen says of the new device's unexpected numerical suffix, "which is all about building the most performant and open design. That is why we jumped straight to two for this Connect ZWA-2!"

The Connect ZWA-2 is built around an Espressif ESP32-S3, but running as a USB controller — there's no Wi-Fi connectivity, and no support for the ESPHome firmware. Instead, it's driving a Z-Wave 800 controller connected to a surprisingly-long dipole antenna that sticks up from a freestanding base. "You need an antenna that's the right size for your wavelength," Schoutsen. "As Z-Wave is in the sub-GHz, this means the antenna has to be longer than your average Wi-Fi antenna (about 33 cm or a foot is the sweet spot). While some Z-Wave adapters may claim they can hit the maximum transmit levels with their postage-stamp-sized antennas, that can sometimes come with a lot of interference. We've engineered away that problem."

The ZWA-2 supports running traditional Z-Wave and the new Z-Wave Long Range — tested, Schoutsen says, out to a near-mile range "under less than ideal circumstances" — simultaneously, though the latter is only available in North America and Europe. Naturally, the device is designed to be plug-and-play with Home Assistant, including over-the-air firmware updating, and the company has released firmware files and full documentation for those who would like to tinker.

More information on the ZWA-2 is available on the Home Assistant website, while the device itself is available for purchase from resellers now priced at $69 — though the company warns stock may be limited.