Melih and the eZlo team: welcome aboard, some energy and new ideas are very welcome, and results would be magical.
I started with Vera 10 years ago, as one of the original Beta Testers and have been through innumerable Veras and firmwares. Wow, this has been a rough ride. I am not as active with Vera today as the ROI and my time:results ratio just didnt justify the increased blood pressure cost.
The brilliant and dedicated Vera enthusiasts here will undoubtedly provide you all the feedback, features, direction and practical input you will need (and then some!).
However, one thing that you keep mentioning gives me cause for concern: cost.
I am betting that you will find no one who has stuck with Vera will complain about the cost of the box. That?s not the issue. Seriously, every company that goes cheap on hardware punishes it?s users unnecessarily. The Home Automation market isn?t broke college students, it?s made up of people who can pay for the ability to control their homes.
Make a product that works reliably, is extensible (and survives updates), allows sophisticated operation without SSH, terminal and lua file uploads, and maybe even pretends to value my time as the end user and you will have a roaring success on your hands. Don?t see us as just customers, but as Members and be Member 1st in your practices.
If I?m paying $50 for a Zwave switch, I can throw down the dosh for s controller that makes them useful… Cheap typically ain?t Good.
Best of luck, sounds like the cavalry is coming over the hill. Fingers crossed.
.//A.
P.S.: you will gain undying gratitude from many here by simply abolishing the absurd Firmware nag screen takeovers. That single thing encapsulates the entire MIOS PoV.