We're not deprecating SmartEvent triggers yet, but Playblocks can do much of what they do and more. It's easier to integrate and configure, and the output notifications look nicer and more modern.
Playblocks already integrates with 3rd party services such as Teams, Slack, ServiceNow and more.
Regarding the prompt for notifications on expert logins, indeed this new capability relies on Playblocks, and yes we plan to provide this specific automation without a subscription license 🙂
There is a lot more content beyond that, which does require a subscription, but you can try it for free with a trial period.