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Dongles · Head to head

Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 vs Smlight SLZB-MRW10

Full Smart Dongles comparison in 2026

Updated October 2026
Data from Amazon and official Nabu Casa and Smlight sites.
2026 verdict
The Smlight SLZB-MRW10 is the stronger dongle of this pair, because it covers three radios where the Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 covers one.
Smlight SLZB-MRW10
Winner
Smlight SLZB-MRW10
$100.00
Buy on Amazon USACheck price
It adds a genuine Zigbee 3.0 coordinator (Texas Instruments CC2652P10) and a Thread border router on top of the same Z-Wave Series 800 silicon the ZWA-2 uses, plus Power over Ethernet and a Bluetooth proxy, so it can sit anywhere on the network instead of plugged straight into the host. The Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 answers back with official Home Assistant hardware, a lower price and owners who specifically bought it to fix a Z-Wave dead zone and say it worked. If your home runs Z-Wave only and you want the simplest official adapter, the ZWA-2 remains the easier buy; if you are running Zigbee, Thread and Z-Wave together, or want the coordinator off your server entirely over PoE, the SLZB-MRW10 is the one device that replaces all three.
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FeatureNabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2Smlight SLZB-MRW10Winner
Price$79.00$100.00Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2
Rating4.65.0Smlight SLZB-MRW10
PowerUSBUSB, PoESmlight SLZB-MRW10
ConnectivityUSBUSB, Ethernet, 2.4 GHz WiFiSmlight SLZB-MRW10
Zigbee RouterNOYESSmlight SLZB-MRW10
Thread Border RouterNOYESSmlight SLZB-MRW10
Antenna Gain+3.38dBi+5dBSmlight SLZB-MRW10
Dual NetworkNOYESSmlight SLZB-MRW10
Bluetooth ProxyNOYESSmlight SLZB-MRW10
Warranty1 year1 yearTie
Z-Wave Chip ModelEFR32ZG23EFR32ZG23Tie
Z-Wave ControllerYESYESTie

What the differences mean

Radio coverage

The Smlight SLZB-MRW10 pairs Zigbee 3.0 (Texas Instruments CC2652P10) and a Thread border router with the same Z-Wave Series 800 chip the Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 uses, and can run Zigbee and Thread at the same time. The ZWA-2 is Z-Wave only, so a Zigbee network still needs a separate device.

Power and placement

The Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 plugs straight into a USB port on the Home Assistant host. The Smlight SLZB-MRW10 adds Ethernet with Power over Ethernet, plus Wi-Fi, so it can be mounted centrally on the network instead of wherever the server sits.

Bluetooth proxy

The Smlight SLZB-MRW10 doubles as a Bluetooth proxy, relaying BLE sensors to Home Assistant from wherever it is mounted. The Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 has no Bluetooth radio at all.

Antenna hardware

The Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 carries one external antenna rated at +3.38dBi. The Smlight SLZB-MRW10 carries two at +5dBi each, on top of the same +20 dBm transmit power, giving it more surface area to work with.

Zigbee2MQTT

The Smlight SLZB-MRW10 lists Zigbee2MQTT support directly, useful for anyone who prefers that stack to Home Assistant's own Zigbee integration. The Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 has no Zigbee radio, so the question does not apply to it.

Which one to buy if

What owners say

Owners of the Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 write almost exclusively about range: the external antenna and its amplifier reach switches, locks and contacts through stucco and tempered glass that a USB-stick coordinator, or a PoE-powered adapter they tried first, could not hold, often letting nearly every sensor talk directly to the hub instead of relying on the mesh. They also praise how close to plug-and-play it is, since Home Assistant detects the device and offers to install Z-Wave JS on its own, migration from an older stick is described as simple, and the whole thing runs fully local with no cloud account. The only friction owners mention is scope: a couple expected it to also handle Zigbee and found out it does not, and a few note it costs more than a generic EFR32 dongle, though most say the range justifies the difference.

Price history compared

Every price change of both, in the same store, so the gap between the two lines is what one costs more than the other.

  • Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2
  • Smlight SLZB-MRW10

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better overall: the Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 or the Smlight SLZB-MRW10?

The Smlight SLZB-MRW10, for most homes, because it adds a genuine Zigbee coordinator and Thread border router to the same class of Z-Wave radio the Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 carries, plus PoE and a Bluetooth proxy. The ZWA-2 stays the simpler pick for a Z-Wave-only Home Assistant setup.

What is the biggest difference between the Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 and the Smlight SLZB-MRW10?

Protocol coverage. The Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 is a Z-Wave-only adapter, while the Smlight SLZB-MRW10 adds Zigbee and Thread border routing on top of its own Z-Wave radio, and can run Zigbee and Thread simultaneously.

Does the Smlight SLZB-MRW10 work with Home Assistant?

Yes. It exposes Zigbee, Z-Wave and Thread to Home Assistant, and also supports Zigbee2MQTT for anyone who prefers that integration path. The Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 is official Home Assistant hardware built specifically for Z-Wave.

Does either of these adapters support Power over Ethernet?

Only the Smlight SLZB-MRW10. It can be powered and networked over a single PoE Ethernet cable, or over USB or Wi-Fi. The Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2 is USB only.

Who should buy the Nabu Casa Home Assistant Connect ZWA-2?

Anyone running a Z-Wave-only Home Assistant setup who wants official hardware, plug-and-play migration from an older stick, and antenna range that reaches through stucco or tempered glass.

Who should buy the Smlight SLZB-MRW10?

Anyone consolidating Zigbee, Z-Wave, Thread and Bluetooth proxying into one PoE-powered gateway, especially if the coordinator needs to sit somewhere other than right next to the server.

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