What are the primary differences between the capabilities of these two packages?
Recommendations please.
Hi Tom,
Welcome to the community, and glad to see you are interested in the automation tool comparison. You should find majority of features from webCoRE are supported in SharpTools Rule Engine. Things we don’t currently have, such as variables, are under development now. The major difference is probably the ease-of-use and user experience. While webCoRE is a great and powerful tool, some users may find the learning curve is steeper, or got scared by the coding-like interface. Rule Engine is simple but powerful, and most of our users were able to create automation rules in minutes through the visual rule flow editor.
I can help provide example/guidance, if you have any specific automation ideas. And your feedback is welcome and appreciated, because that’s how we decide what to build and the priority. 
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James,
Thank you for your response. SharpTools sounds like a good plan. I may be interested in trying it out soon.
Can you please tell me if/how SharpTools accommodates the identical features as “Echo Speaks” as when I’m using webCoRE?
There’s no reoccuring charge for using webCoRE or SmartThings. Is there a fee for SharpTools?
What’s the best way for me to learn how to use most all of the features supported by SharpTools?
Thanks James. I appreciate your assistance in I evaluating my options.
Tom
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Tom-
Thanks for the message. The SharpTools Rule Engine is free to use. 
I believe @James has some examples of using Echo Speaks as he has used it in his home before, so I’ll let him respond to that.
Regarding the best way to learn how to use features of the SharpTools Rule Engine, I’d start by exploring the interface and trying to build some simple rules. As you have questions about things, need help setting up a rule, or just want to bounce ideas off someone else, posting in the community can be a great help!
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One exception I should note is that SMS notifications are only available as part of the Premium tier of SharpTools. A common alternative is to use push notifications via Pushbullet or email notifications - both of which are supported by the SharpTools Rule Engine. You can find more details about the Premium tier here - it has some really nice features for SharpTools dashboard users!
Tom,
Yes, Rule Engine supports “Echo Speaks”. Since you’ve already installed and configured “Echo Speaks” smart app, it automatically added your echo devices to your SmartThings. You simply need to authorize your echo devices to SharpTools.io just like any other devices via “Manage Connections” in the user page.
And you will be able to automate your echo devices in Rule Engine then.
Here is my “fun” door alarm rule for your reference. My kids love it. and, of course, my wife doesn’t, since she’s not a rock fan.
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