1. Other devices operate in the 2.4 GHZ band, will they cause any problems for ZigBee Home Automation products?
2. ZigBee uses Mesh-Networking, what are the advantages compared to other approaches?
3. How easy is it to add devices to a ZigBee network?
4. Is Z-Wave really a standard?
5. How does ZigBee address security for homes given that information is literally flying through the air?
6. If I purchase certified ZigBee Home Automation devices from different vendors will they communicate and interoperate with each other?
7. Does ZigBee Home Automation coexist with Wi-Fi?
8. As an OEM/ODM what are the advantage of the ZigBee solution over proprietary solutions?
9. How easy is it to develop ZigBee Home Automation products?

1. Other devices operate in the 2.4 GHZ band, will they cause any problems for ZigBee Home Automation products?
   ZigBee is very robust and has demonstrated superb tolerance to extreme interference. The Las Vegas Convention Center is one of worst places for wireless devices, especially during the annual Consumer Electronics Show. Interference at that show often impedes many cell phones and Bluetooth headsets from operating correctly. ZigBee has always performed flawlessly in these extreme environments. For more details, please see the results of extensive coexistence research in the white papers section of the ZigBee website.
   
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2. ZigBee uses Mesh-Networking, what are the advantages compared to other approaches?
   Radios in a mesh network can talk to many other radios (devices) in the network, not just one. The result is that each data packet communicated across a wireless mesh network can have multiple possible paths to its destination. This flexibility makes the mesh network very flexible for accommodating interference in the radio spectrum or something blocking the radio path. Wireless mesh networks also enable networks to grow in size and cover greater physical distances. Point-to-point and point-to-multipoint topologies mean the data packet only has a single path to follow and is therefore more vulnerable to interference or blockage. Their ability to cover greater physical distances is limited and the access point in star networks can only talk to a small number of radios on the network.
   
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3. How easy is it to add devices to a ZigBee network?
   Very easy. ZigBee's pairing process allows for fast and easy association between devices. Additionally, ZigBee offers a variety of routing algorithms for data packets to find the correct destination, including hierarchical tree, neighbor, and table-based routing. These approaches result in a high degree of flexibility and stability ensuring that devices in the network stay connected and that network performance remains constant even as it is dynamically changing.
   
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4. Is Z-Wave really a standard?
   Unlike ZigBee, Z-Wave is based on technology owned by a single company. This proprietary technology is not available on equal competitive terms to multiple semiconductor manufacturers and limits competition and constricts the supply chain. ZigBee is an open, publicly available standard equally available to all. As a result there are multiple competitive sources of supply for ZigBee semiconductors creating more choice for product manufacturers. ZigBee also offers more performance at a lower cost, and provides more standards for use in other markets including health care, energy management and home automation.
   
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5. How does ZigBee address security for homes given that information is literally flying through the air?
   ZigBee was developed with many layers of security. At the strongest level, ZigBee uses AES 128 encryption (government, commercial and military grade encryption used across the Internet). In addition, ZigBee defines a security toolbox for key generation and distribution that can support multiple modes for residential, commercial, and even industrial applications. The ZigBee Health Care standard has specific security features for rapid key generation and distribution suitable in the medical environments insuring privacy and integrity. No other solution offers a comparable security system.
   
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6. If I purchase certified ZigBee Home Automation devices from different vendors will they communicate and interoperate with each other?
   Yes. ZigBee has developed a rigorous certification procedure for each of our standards. The certification procedure is performed by independent third parties on an anonymous basis. This testing ensures full interoperability between ZigBee devices using the same standard. Please view our list of certified products for ZigBee Home Automation.
   
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7. Does ZigBee Home Automation coexist with Wi-Fi?
   Yes. All ZigBee standards and Wi-Fi are designed to operate effectively in the same environment. ZigBee takes full advantage of IEEE 802.15.4 proven interference avoidance techniques and features a unique channel agility mechanism.
   
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8. As an OEM/ODM what are the advantage of the ZigBee solution over proprietary solutions?
   The main advantages include product interoperability, vendor independence, robust supply chain and accessibility to broader markets. Your customers can expect increased product innovation as a result of the industry standardization of the physical radio and logical networking layers. Instead of having to invest resources to create a new proprietary solution and customizing it for each country, companies will now be able to leverage ZigBee standards and focus on serving customers.
   
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9. How easy is it to develop ZigBee Home Automation products?
   Companies can easily, and cost-effectively, develop products through the use of small, low power, wireless ZigBee modules. The growing wide-spread availability of ZigBee solutions dramatically reduces the cost and complexity of integrating embedded RF into the typical product design. Vendors provide software tool kits, including standard templates, to enable OEMs and end users to efficiently create application layer solutions at low cost and reduce time to market.
   
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