Z-Wave Plus. What is it? How does it differ from Z-Wave?

Z-Wave Plus
Z-Wave Plus is a new certification program designed to help consumers identify products that take advantage of the recently introduced ‘Next Gen’ Z-Wave hardware platform, also know as 500 Series or 5th Generation Z-Wave. Z-Wave Plus certified solutions feature  a selected set of extended features and capabilities that enhance the end user experience and make Z-Wave installations even faster and easier to install and set up.

Z-Wave has led the market in interoperable smart devices for the home since the first Z-Wave product was certified in 2004. With the introduction of the Next-Gen, Z-Wave 500 series hardware platforms, Z-Wave saw its ecosystem bolstered with new capabilities, including increased range, extended battery life, Over The Air upgrading (OTA), additional RF channels and more — all of which are fully backwards compatible with existing Z-Wave products.

For consumers, homeowners, integrators, and service providers, these enhancements offer tremendous benefits in terms of shorter and easier installations, richer device profiles, improved self-healing and longer battery life. With the new Z-Wave Plus certification program, the Z-Wave Alliance is introducing a series of packaging logos that will be located on every Z-Wave Plus™ certified product, informing the consumer this product incorporates the enhanced capabilities of the Next Gen, Z-Wave 500 series.
Features

• 50% improvement in battery life
• 67% improvement in range
• 250% more bandwidth
• Three RF channels for improved noise immunity and higher bandwidth
• New Plug-n-Play Network-wide Inclusion feature
• Improved self-healing and fault tolerance with Explorer Frame feature
• Standardized method for Over the Air firmware updates (OTA)
• Improved product information capture for product certification database

F.A.Q.
What is Z-Wave Plus?
Z-Wave Plus is a product certification program that assures consumers are getting the best performing Z-Wave products available today.

What is the difference between a Z-Wave and a Z-Wave Plus product?
Z-Wave Plus products make use of the latest advancements in Z-Wave technology.  These advancements provide for longer battery life, faster operation, better RF coverage and easier installation.  Classic Z-Wave products may take advantage of some of these newer advancements but are not required to use all of the latest technology.  It is important to note that there over 100 million classic Z-Wave and Z-Wave Plus products in use every day and these products meet the needs of most applications satisfactorily.

Will Z-Wave Plus products work with classic Z-Wave products?
Yes, Z-Wave Plus products are fully backward compatible with classic Z-Wave products.

Why Z-Wave Plus now and not from the beginning of Z-Wave?
Twelve years of market experience and continuous development of the Z-Wave technology have brought about several improvements to the underling communications technology.  Recent advancements in micro-chip performance have made applying these improvements both possible and cost-effective.

Does Z-Wave Plus cost more?
Not really. As with most technologies, performance continues to increase and cost stays about the same.  There may be some slight difference in price between a Z-Wave Plus product and a classic Z-Wave product, but these differences have more to do with added features than the cost of the underlining technology.

How do I know I’m getting a Z-Wave Plus product?
Z-Wave Plus certified products are easily identified by these Marks that appear on the product and product packaging:

​Information provided by Z-Wave Alliance