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William J Brown
November 17, 2023
Much better than "blinds.com", purchased 5% see through Black with hardwired
CONTEXT: We moved into a brand new home that required a lot of window treatments. We live in Colorado, so its sunny year around. Initially, I ordered roller shades from Blinds.com for 4 bedrooms (around $17k in total). I got either hardwired or solar powered shades for all of those bedrooms. I looked at these shades on Amazon and thought i'd give it a try.OVERALL: I definitely recommend going with Graywind over Blinds.com or three-day blinds or whatever for multiple reasons. This is a higher quality product (includes smart home tech) with a better price tag and faster shipping times.USE CASE: I needed window treatments to block out some of the intense sun that cascades into our south-facing living room that receives a lot of direct sunlight year around. The window/view is awesome, so I didn't want to black it out completely. I also wanted something that would go unnoticed at night/evening/morning when the shades were completely rolled up. I have included some photos of the results: no shades, partial shades, and full shades.BUYING EXPERIENCE: My experience using Amazon compared to using Blinds.com (as in entering the measurement details) was FAR better. The blinds.com user experience is clumsy and really not straight forward. Conversely, the buying process and user interface simply using Amazon was not pretty, but super functional and straightforward.SELECTION: Graywind doesn't have as many color variants as some of the competitors, but I actually thought that was easier/better. I don't need 70+ colors to choose from ... I opted for 5% see through black, which in theory ("black shades") sounds bad, but its not at all, it's a modern good look in my mind. Our taste is "modern" and we have enormous windows. I read a blog post that, ironically, you can see through black shades way better than white ones. White roller shades can look washed out and a bit cheap. I found this to be totally true. These shades offer light protection and blocking without totally ruining the view and/or vibe of the room.PRICE/VALUE: Graywind has better everyday prices than Blinds.com. I quoted what I wanted on Blinds.com and Graywind and they were within 10% of each other WHEN Blinds.com was running a promotion. Graywind has better "everyday" pricing ... which I really liked. I didn't feel the need to wait for some promotion like with the other folks. If you go with a Blinds.com and don't use a promotion then you will be paying at least 30-40% more, which is a lot of more money.PRICE/VALUE SMART HOME INTEGRATIONS: If you go with blinds.com they really really jack up the price when you start adding smart home bridges/integrations and you are left with the Somfy system (which totally sucks and is not the most up-to-date smart home tech). Most of these roller shades offered by graywind automatically come with smart home tech, which is amazing value.SHIPPING/TIMING: Greywind is cutting and manufacturing from China. But everything processed and shipped about a week faster than Blinds.com. Here is my timing: Ordered on 11.4, Greywind reached out to confirm all details on 11.6. manufactured and shipped out order by 11.11, received at my house via Fedex on 11.16. In total the process was 12 calendar days, super fast compared to my experience with blinds.com which took up to three calendar weeks when I ordered this summer.PHYSICAL INSTALL: I am pretty handy so the install was not terrible. I put these up myself (1 person), three units in total in about 2 hours. I used the hardware but opted for my own screws/fasteners to mount directly into the window framing.REMOTE PROGRAMMING: I had to adjust the lower limits on these to not hit molding. That was sort of annoying all around because you have to press the button(s) exactly specifically as the instructions indicate. This was somewhat frustrating but also I have had similarly frustrating experiences with blinds.com roller shades and the somfy systems. Note: I didn't account for molding at the bottom of the windows so that is why the shades were going "too low", that was something I overlooked, not something Graywind did wrong.GRAYWIND APP SETUP: Super duper easy and straight forward. Better than most in the smart home game.ALEXA INTEGRATION: easy because of how reliable the Graywind app is.I pretty much never write these reviews because I buy so much stuff on Amazon. However, I felt motivated and emboldened to share my opinion because these guys were so much better (in all measurable ways) relative to blinds.coms and three day blinds - which I have both used in the past and view as like the "comcast" of window treatment companies, which is why I was excited to find the Graywind solution on Amazon and even more excited when the shades ended up being better all around. I am sure there are little things here or there that Graywind can do better, but compared to the old "big guys"/ legacy vendors/options out there, Graywind is significantly better in all ways (superior product at a lower price and ships faster). Cheers!
✔ Verified Purchase
J
JJohnstone
October 20, 2021
Upgraded to 4 Stars
The shades came in quickly compared to the typical shipment from China. That was a big plus for Graywind. The shades are well made and easy to install. I'm a retired engineer, so I pay attention to build quality, materials and other parts. Graywind uses good parts. I can't speak to durability yet, but initially, things look good.The installation was easy and quick. The install hardware is very good. Programming the remote was about average for these types of RF controls, but some people are going to have trouble with it because the process description isn't totally accurate in the Graywind setup book. The jogging is the key. If you follow the steps exactly and have the correct number of jogs, everything will go okay. You may want to consider pairing the remote and then doing a complete reset (it's easy) and then pairing again. This is a good idea because it's impossible to know what might have been programmed into the motor during manufacturing or testing. If anything is in there, it could cause problems down the line.The shades open and close smoothly and quietly. That's another plus for Graywind.So far, so good. Where the wheels came off was when I setup Alexa. Graywind used a motor with the Zigbee control board. Zigbee is okay, but it has its issues. Some of the Alexa models have built-in hubs that can control "some" Zigbee devices. If your Alexa doesn't have a built-in hub, you'll need an external hub like Samsung's SmartThings.I have a 4th generation Alexa with a hub. I bought it to use with these blinds. I found out that Graywind doesn't have a specific SKILL for their shades. That's not a plus. I had to use basic Alexa functions to control the shades. That's not a plus either. Different Alexa models with hubs use different control protocols. In other words, what works with a 3rd gen Alexa with a hub might not work with a 4th gen Alexa. That's why not having a specific SKILL is a big issue, and a pain in the rear.I've automated my whole house using smart technology and Alexa. I've only used the switches and other devices that work well with Alexa and avoided the ones that are flaky or have protocol issues among other things. Believe me, not all smart devices are smart. My favorite dumb ones are the ones that lose their pairing, or internet connection, every week or so. Generally, they don't reconnect themselves without my intervention, which now is usually a trip to the garbage can.The first time I set up Alexa, I put the shades in pairing mode, and Alexa found all of them. That was the good news. Unfortunately, there weren't any commands, pairs of commands, keywords or anything else that would raise and lower the shades properly. Mostly, I heard that whatever phrase I had used was "not supported by this device." One time I asked Alexa, "Well, what the hell is supported by this device." Of course, Alexa had no answer for that.In addition, the few times I got the shades to move, repeating the process often resulted in failure. This is where Graywind's technical support really falls down. They do a good job with a lot of things, but not with Alexa support for THEIR product.Finally, I gave into to the number one technical support suggestion for every product--reset and start over. That's a real pain since I have to stand on top of an eight foot ladder to get it done on every shade. Anyway, I did it all over again.When I finished, I set up Alexa again. This time I could get the shades to close using "Alexa, close X to 100%" and that's the only keyword phrase that would work. Absolutely, nothing else did. I had read reviews written by people who said Alexa worked with Graywind using other commands, but mine didn't.The open command is "Alexa, open X to 0%" This is irrational. Open and close implies open all the way up and close all the way down. Open X to 0% is the type of phrase thought up by electrical engineers who really don't have a life and don't want you to have one either.Having gotten to this point, I felt the rest would be easy. Wrong! Some Alexa app options like Groups, don't support special characters like % (Writing it out as percent doesn't work either.) which means I couldn't raise and lower all the shades at once by putting them in a group. Again, this is why Graywind needs a SKILL for their shades.The next option was setting up a routine--one for open and one for close. Using custom commands, the routine accepted "Alexa, close X to 100%" That's the good news. The bad news is I needed two routines for every shade. This is definitely the case if you want to use scheduling to open and close the shades. One shade--no problem. Lots of shades-bigger problem.Once I had the shades setup as routine's and working properly. I decided to figure out why I had to the use the 100% in the close phrase. Well, it's because every version of Alexa that has a hub in it, uses a different protocol. Like I said before, I have a 4th gen Alexa. Since I don't have all of the various 4th gen Alexas, I can't tell if there's a different protocol for each version like the plus and the show. It wouldn't surprise me.I appreciated Graywind's efforts to give me support. Especially, their responsiveness, but they weren't much help with Alexa. In my final email, I was told they knew about the 4th gen change requiring the 0 and 100%. Great, why didn't you tell me that in my first email since I told you the problem involved a 4th gen Alexa. Oh, well. Just another long night.Graywind needs to rewrite their instruction book, create a specific Graywind motorized blind SKILL that actually works, and continue training their customer support people in Alexa issues.I gave the blinds 4 stars for the solar panel which is slightly wider than a closed blind, so it's a bit visible. I assume Graywind used the smallest solar panel they could find. Without the solar panel, charging blinds 8 feet in the air is a pain. In one place, Graywind was quoted as saying the shades would have to be recharged every 2 weeks or so. In another place, they said every 300 uses or more. Which is it? I hope the solar panel gets it done. My past experience with solar charging of batteries suggests the roller shade batteries will need full recharging every few months using a 120v source, and the solar panel will extend the life of the charge, but not eliminate the need for a full recharge periodically.. I hope that's not the case with these. We'll see. The USB cable for the solar panel was at least 24 inches long when a 6 inch cable would have been better. It's hard to position the USB cable so the shades don't catch on it in the down cycle.I would buy the blinds again—especially now that I've figured out all the problems.Update: 6/3/22 I was too optimistic about having figured out all the problems. One of the shades wouldn't hold a charge more than a three or four weeks. Graywind had previously received a bad batch of batteries that they knew about. Because of that, they sent a new motor and battery, and I changed it.Unfortunately, that wasn't the end of the story. The solar panels on the shades didn't seem to be working properly. The output amps were within spec, but the charge just didn't seem to be getting to the battery. I thought I still had bad batteries.Testing a couple of more things, I discovered that the 24 inch long cable Graywind was sending with the blinds was not docking properly with the female plug on the motor, so the connection was randomly failing. The problem was the locking mechanism on the micro b male part of the cable was not compatible with the female port on the motor, so it would work itself loose simply from the vibration of the blinds moving up and down.I bought a couple of 6 inch cables and adjusted the locking tabs and shape until it snugly docked with the female motor port. Now it doesn't work itself loose, and the charging appears to work correctly now .We love the shades but not all the adventure making them reliable. This is a tricky kind of problem to figure out, and happens because manufactures use parts from multiple suppliers. I doubt Graywind even knows about this problem. If you have an issue with charging from the solar panels, check the connection. If it's suspicious, fix it. Not all USB connectors are made to exacting standards. It's like sleeves on a shirt. Long is not always long, and 32 inches is more or less 32.Update 8-14-2022 I have to downgrade these shades to 3 stars. I've had too many problems. I only own two of them. Unfortunately, they are installed on high windows, so I have to use a 10 ft ladder to reach them. The first shade had battery problems over and over. Finally, Graywind replaced the motor. That sounds good, but Graywind didn't pay the labor cost of taking an 80 plus inch wide shade down, putting in the new motor and reinstalling it. That cost a hundred dollars in labor, not including my time. I can't work up high any more, so someone else has to take them down and put them up, even though I do the motor replacing myself.Today, the 2nd shade failed. Now the second 34 inch wide blind is malfunctioning. It stopped working this morning. It wouldn't respond to Amazon or the remote. We had to drag out the 10 ft ladder for the 50th time and plug the shade in. Then it responded to the remote, but it had lost all of its setting.I've reset it three times, power cycled it and it will not keep any settings. It jogs at the correct times, but won't retain the settings. I set the up position, and then set the down position. All the jogs are correct indicating the settings are saved. When I press the up bottom, the blind doesn't go up, it simply jogs one increment at a time a few times. It doesn't matter how I press the button. When it finally does go up, it doesn't stop at the set point. It just keeps going until I hit the stop button. This means the memory is not holding the settings. Alexa says the blind is malfunctioning. Finally, Alexa got something right!Other than the reset in the manual, there isn't any other way to reset the blind I'm aware of. Now I'm going to have to replace another motor. More ladder time. More crap. More hours uninstalling and reinstalling, and then--programming and getting it to work with Alexa. Wow, what fun! This motor is made by A-OK-motor in Guangdong, Province. A-Ok says their concept is ”High Standards, Quality, Zero Defects”. I've got two of their defects in my house. I guess they missed on that one! So if you buy these shades, pick the ZF31 motor. Maybe it's closer to zero defects.Graywind customer service is great! They always respond promptly. I guess they know A-OK motors have problems. They're going to replace both motors with a different brand. I hope this one works better. Now I have to spend the time and money replacing 2 motors. Since they don't use the same remote and they have different set up and programming steps, replacing both is rational but a pain.We love the shades but the motors have caused a lot of headaches and lost time and money.Here are the stars by category for the Graywind motorized blackout roller shades Alexa compatible.Quality of the shades 5-- shades only 5 stars. 1 star for repeated motor failuresShipping speed 5Ease of Installation 5Remote Pairing & limit setting 3.5Alexa setup 1Customer service email speed 5Customer support shades 5Customer support Alexa 2Written Instructions 3Customer support effort 5Solar Panel 4Motor Charging 2Update: April 2023. The new motors have worked okay. No charging problems. We're just getting into heavy use season, so I'll update after that. So far so good.Update: May 2023. The new motors and batteries have worked well on autopilot for a month, so I upgraded the review to 4 stars. We really like these blinds. If the motors and batteries work all summer long without us having to take the blinds down to replace the motor unit, etc. then we can say Graywind fixed the problem.Update: Aug 2023 The new motors and batteries have worked all summer using them everyday without any problems.
✔ Verified Purchase
