Best app for Octopus Smart Meter (in place of in home display)

Qyburn

Hi,
Our Smart Meter was installed today. The in home display doesn't work anywhere in the house, but the guy recommended that we use an App. Looking on Google there seem to be a few with no obvious way to see which would be best.
Also I was wondering how the App is secured or authorised. I assume you can't install the App and monitor some random person's meter, does it have to authorised by Octopus in some way?

t0rt0ise

I installed the Bright app. You have to register on it using the number on the back of the IHD.

Qyburn

Cheers, I'll give that a shot.

smugwalrus

Assuming that you stick with Octpus, register for a Home Mini with them and hope the wait isn't too long?

I have near real time data appear in the Octopus app

macman

Bright will do the job just fine. It's authorised via the DCC: they send the data, not Octopus.

Mstty

Bright for us lost data in Dec and Jan and has never caught it up so the figures for those months are incorrect.

Loop does not look as nice as bright but has not lost any data and updates faster in day than bright.

Bright must have had its own outage with the DCC and never quite recovered but data accuracy is important to me.

Bright 31st Dec

Loop 31st Dec

[Deleted User]

macman said:

Bright will do the job just fine. It's authorised via the DCC: they send the data, not Octopus.

Yes, Hildebrand is a Registered DCC User. To be pedantic, the DCC sends nothing as all consumer data is ‘pass through’; that is, the DCC does not have access to consumer smart meter usage data.

Suppliers and other approved users use secure software known as an Adapter to connect to the DCC network. This software ‘calls’ the comms hub with an instruction to send data: a data pull if you like. The comms hub acts like a mobile phone: it remains connected to the DCC network waiting for calls. 

Petriix

Unfortunately none of the apps, without a HAN connection to the smart meter locally, can give you real-time data. Octopus provide downloadable data via their website or API for historical usage.

Qyburn

Thanks.  This may be a basic and obvious question, but do any of the show the actual meter reading, whether live or delayed? Everything seems to focus on "what you've used today" etc.

Petriix

I wouldn't rely on the IHD or an app for actual meter readings.

My IHD shows the cumulative import reading, but the one (or more) you should be using is R01 (and any others with > 0 reading). It's often the case that these numbers are the same. But if your meter has ever been used for a multi rate tariff such as E7, the cumulative import reading will combine all registers. This can lead to billing errors.

What are you using the readings for  @Qyburn? 

Qyburn

Petriix said:

What are you using the readings for  @Qyburn? 

I keep a spreadsheet with all my meter readings going back a few years. Mainly monthly. I don't want to lose that history, and if I understand correctly Smart Meter data only goes back 13 months. I'll also submit manual reading to Octopus for a couple of months just to sanity check.

Point taken about "registers" I will have a look at the meter itself. The installer showed which one button to press to get the meter reading.