Without any screenshots, I’m uncertain of what you’re referencing here. Are you still displaying the “bubbles are building” message on the ‘Now’ screen?
I’m unfamiliar with AB systems, so I’m unsure of what you’re referencing here. I’m assuming you are talking about having the ability to “manually” identify devices as they turn on, which is not something we’re pursuing at this time for a variety of reasons that have been discussed at length in these forums.
Seeing your energy use in real-time via the Power Meter is one of the most important tools Sense provides early on while it’s continuing to learn your home. The more times Sense sees your devices cycle through on/off periods, the more informed the device models are that Sense issues to your home. You might get some initial detections that you feel are “off” from the actual behavior of the appliance or device in your home. You can delete these devices, and Sense will try to issue a better model of the device when it receives more data.
If you wanted to know how much energy your HVAC system is consuming instantly, without waiting on device detection, Dedicated Circuit Monitoring would be a great fit. If there are smaller devices you’re trying to detect instantly without waiting on Sense to detect them natively, we integrate with Philips Hue and various smart plugs that enable instant detection as well. I included some information on both below.