Philips Hue is a RIPOFF

[RejZoR]

The main point of Philips HUE is to expand Philips Ambilight effect. And it really makes a huge and impressive effect with it. Ambilight fires light out of TV sides based on actual color of image content on screen and Philips HUE bulbs can expand that through entire living room wall or even entire room. No other bulb can do that.

 

As for bulbs, how bloody hard is it to press a switch on the wall lol? Don't tell me dragging a phone out of your pocket, running app, waiting for it to sync up and turn on a light is more intuitive as wall switch. Sure, not all situations allow it, especially late house redesigns without hammering walls, but still...

[Velcade]

54 minutes ago, RejZoR said:

As for bulbs, how bloody hard is it to press a switch on the wall lol? Don't tell me dragging a phone out of your pocket, running app, waiting for it to sync up and turn on a light is more intuitive as wall switch. Sure, not all situations allow it, especially late house redesigns without hammering walls, but still..

That is absolutely not easier but it is easier to climb into bed and ask Alexa to turn the lights out or set up a routine that shuts off all lights when prompted.  I've never used the Hue app to control the lights.  It's much easier to have Alexa manage that.

[RejZoR]

2 minutes ago, Velcade said:

That is absolutely not easier but it is easier to climb into bed and ask Alexa to turn the lights out or set up a routine that shuts off all lights when prompted.  I've never used the Hue app to control the lights.  It's much easier to have Alexa manage that.

For those cases I have CIA agents. I just tell them what light to turn on and they do it. Just like Alexa

[MattMatt]

1 hour ago, RejZoR said:

The main point of Philips HUE is to expand Philips Ambilight effect. And it really makes a huge and impressive effect with it. Ambilight fires light out of TV sides based on actual color of image content on screen and Philips HUE bulbs can expand that through entire living room wall or even entire room. No other bulb can do that.

I was wondering if there was an actual use for these and this sounds pretty neat.

 

Otherwise I've never thought to myself I wish I could make the room red today, or go to the kitchen and have it all blue... I can see content creators using them for lighting effects or people wanting something fun to play with but you must have cash to burn as I can think of many other better things to buy. If you just want remote capability there are far cheaper options without the RGB.

 

[Walshman]

Correct me if I'm wrong here, but if you have smart light bulbs and someone turns off the lights by using the light switch, you then aren't able to turn them back on with the app cause they have no power... right?

 

If this is the case, then getting smart switches seems like the better idea as you can turn the light on and off via the switch/app/smart assistant/whatever without causing any issues.

[TechyBen]

2 minutes ago, Walshman said:

Correct me if I'm wrong here, but if you have smart light bulbs and someone turns off the lights by using the light switch, you then aren't able to turn them back on with the app cause they have no power... right?

 

If this is the case, then getting smart switches seems like the better idea as you can turn the light on and off via the switch/app/smart assistant/whatever without causing any issues.

Money. Profit.

Chaging a light switch costs money, workers, time, safety etc.

 

You can charge £80 for a £8 bulb, add an "app" and get the mark... um, customer... "user" to do the fitting themselves. XD

[Walshman]

Quote

Money. Profit.

Chaging a light switch costs money, workers, time, safety etc.

Changing a light switch isn't that hard, it's just 2 wires connected to a switch, just gotta turn off the breaker before you do.

As for cost, the smart switches don't look that much more expensive. Amazon sells the Caseta ones for $70, but I think you need a hub for them too.

https://www.amazon.ca/Lutron-Wireless-Lighting-Ceiling-P-PKG1W-WH-C/dp/B00MFM9ETO/ref=sr_1_4/131-2176032-3735445?ie=UTF8&qid=1542911593&sr=8-4&keywords=smart+switch+caseta

[Egg-Roll]

Buy Yeelight if you hate your home or neighbors. I personally wouldn't trust anything but Philips for one main reason, quality.

[skywake]

10 hours ago, MylesAndMore said:

What if you don't need a smart bulb? Turns out, you actually don't. You can use a smart switch, like this one to control multiple light bulbs. And they can just be regular ones!

For starters you're losing out a lot by going that route. Most smart globes allow you to change the colour temperature which is the main appeal of them if you ask me. And if all you want is to be able to turn them on and off there are cheaper smart globes which are about the same price as a smart switch with dimmer support. You're not really saving that much by going down this route. Secondly with smart globe you still have a standard light switch at the wall so you can effectively override any setting and guarantee the light will be off. If the switch itself is smart you're losing that control. I don't see why people see the fact that there's a kind of fail safe by having a smart globe rather than a switch as a downside.

Lastly there's the fact that maybe you have a bunch of lights on one switch and want to be able to control them individually. If you are controlling it entirely from the wall you have to decide what groupings the lights are in from the start. If the lights themselves have the controller you could, for example, setup a scene that has the downlights on the far end of the kitchen on bright and have them progressively get dimmer as you move into the living area. And if your answer to this is to just add more switches to the wall then you haven't really saved any money have you.

 

6 hours ago, Walshman said:

Correct me if I'm wrong here, but if you have smart light bulbs and someone turns off the lights by using the light switch, you then aren't able to turn them back on with the app cause they have no power... right? If this is the case, then getting smart switches seems like the better idea
 

Changing a light switch isn't that hard, it's just 2 wires connected to a switch, just gotta turn off the breaker before you do.

Yeah but changing a globe is even easier and you get a better end result. The only advantage a smart switch offers is that you don't have to physically walk over to the switch if someone has turned if off. Literally everything else about it is worse. They're definitely a bit of a stupid novelty, the smart home thing in general is a little bit more hype than substance. Even so, the point of smart home stuff is to enable you to do things you couldn't do before. Replacing a switch with a WiFi enabled switch does not allow me to do anything new. Replacing a standard globe with a multi-coloured WiFi enabled globe with scenes and settings does.

[ThePointblank]

2 hours ago, skywake said:

For starters you're losing out a lot by going that route. Most smart globes allow you to change the colour temperature which is the main appeal of them if you ask me. And if all you want is to be able to turn them on and off there are cheaper smart globes which are about the same price as a smart switch with dimmer support. You're not really saving that much by going down this route. Secondly with smart globe you still have a standard light switch at the wall so you can effectively override any setting and guarantee the light will be off. If the switch itself is smart you're losing that control. I don't see why people see the fact that there's a kind of fail safe by having a smart globe rather than a switch as a downside.

Lastly there's the fact that maybe you have a bunch of lights on one switch and want to be able to control them individually. If you are controlling it entirely from the wall you have to decide what groupings the lights are in from the start. If the lights themselves have the controller you could, for example, setup a scene that has the downlights on the far end of the kitchen on bright and have them progressively get dimmer as you move into the living area. And if your answer to this is to just add more switches to the wall then you haven't really saved any money have you.

 

Yeah but changing a globe is even easier and you get a better end result. The only advantage a smart switch offers is that you don't have to physically walk over to the switch if someone has turned if off. Literally everything else about it is worse. They're definitely a bit of a stupid novelty, the smart home thing in general is a little bit more hype than substance. Even so, the point of smart home stuff is to enable you to do things you couldn't do before. Replacing a switch with a WiFi enabled switch does not allow me to do anything new. Replacing a standard globe with a multi-coloured WiFi enabled globe with scenes and settings does.

On top of that, there's different Philips Hue bulb variants, so it depends on what you want, the budget can vary.

 

You could get the basic Hue White bulb which is a standard 2700K bulb at 750 lumens. This is the cheapest bulb, at a $128.90 CDN for the 4 bulb + bridge starter kit off Amazon.

 

One step up is the Hue White Ambiance, which can go change from 2000K - 6500K at 800 lumens. The 4-pack starter kit is $139.00 CDN.

 

The final step is the Hue White & Colour Ambiance, which adds colour to the mix. A 4-pack starter kit is $179.96 CDN.

 

Also note that if you have a Amazon Echo Plus, you technically don't need the bridge; the Echo Plus has a built-in ZigBee hub for basic control of the lights. So, if you just get the basic Hue White and have a Echo Plus, the Echo Plus can control the lights for you. It is only when you use the higher end Hue bulbs (Ambiance and White & Colour) where you will need the Hue Bridge to allow more fine control over the lights.

 

Personally, I would not completely replace all of the lights with the Hue system; I've only done my bedroom with the Hue Ambiance kit, plus the living room and entrance hallway with a couple of Hue Ambiance lamps. All of this is controlled by my Echo Plus in the living room, plus a Echo Dot entrance hallway, and a Echo in the living room.

 

 

[skywake]

12 minutes ago, ThePointblank said:

Personally, I would not completely replace all of the lights with the Hue system; I've only done my bedroom with the Hue Ambiance kit, plus the living room and entrance hallway with a couple of Hue Ambiance lamps. All of this is controlled by my Echo Plus in the living room, plus a Echo Dot entrance hallway, and a Echo in the living room.

Yeah, I think that's something people aren't thinking about either. I have ~25 standard light fittings in the house (internal and external) plus 13 downlights. It would only really make sense to have maybe 6 of those globes programmable and probably half of the downlights. The bulk of the advantage would probably be had with the first 3 or 4. Full automation is a nice idea but you don't really need the shed light or any of the external lighting to be part of a "lets sit down and watch a movie" scene....

[ThePointblank]

15 minutes ago, skywake said:

Yeah, I think that's something people aren't thinking about either. I have ~25 standard light fittings in the house (internal and external) plus 13 downlights. It would only really make sense to have maybe 6 of those globes programmable and probably half of the downlights. The bulk of the advantage would probably be had with the first 3 or 4. Full automation is a nice idea but you don't really need the shed light or any of the external lighting to be part of a "lets sit down and watch a movie" scene....

And I would not do all Hue White & Colour bulbs; some places can get away with standard Hue White, others, White Ambience. Only places where you are going to be entertaining should you consider the White & Colour bulbs.

 

For example, do you really need to turn your entrance hallway into a rainbow when you walk in the front door? Or, just plain white suffice?

[EG!]

19 hours ago, James Evens said:

wait what? you only have one button.

You can configure it too switch of if you fall asleep. Been trying to look up other uses.

19 hours ago, James Evens said:

The problem with IKEA is the horrible app. This is why i use 1000 lumen ikea bulbs and a used $5 hue 1 gen. bridge.

Don't have an ikea bridge yet so just use the remote thingy. You can connect other "smart" lamps to hue bridges?

[Sharp_3yE]

iDevices Socket - WiFi Light Bulb Adapter, No Hub Required, Works with Alexa https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KP5V292/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_o.f-BbGGJBANY

[Sharp_3yE]

On 11/21/2018 at 1:13 PM, TigerClaw said:

Have you guys tried TP Link? I have two of there bulbs and they work great. No hub require. Just a wifi connection. Also works with Alexa and Google Assistant.

 

On 11/21/2018 at 2:03 PM, Canada EH said:

 

Arrrrrrrrrrghhhhhhhh!

Plllluuuu-sneeeeeze no rgb hachooooooooooooooooo

$20 is dipping into the Beer Fund, but doesnt seem bad price. Two choices, you know which one I choose

WOW at technology, gotta be expensive!

 

On 11/21/2018 at 2:18 PM, Canada EH said:

 

 

On 11/21/2018 at 4:11 PM, poochyena said:

Whats the point?

 

On 11/21/2018 at 8:51 PM, ColonelMattyman said:

Hue is great but it is expensive.  I'd have the whole house done by now if it were a bit cheaper.

 

On 11/21/2018 at 11:38 PM, williamcll said:

could always just use the clapper

 

On 11/22/2018 at 1:51 AM, EG! said:

 

What about these? Turns any bulb into a smart bulb. I think making the socket "smart" is a better idea then individual bulbs. Idk how well the rgb aspect works on these but w/e at least the lights are smart now. 

 

iDevices Socket - WiFi Light Bulb Adapter, No Hub Required, Works with Alexa https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KP5V292/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_o.f-BbGGJBANY

[TigerClaw]

8 minutes ago, TheCMan said:

 

 

 

 

 

 

What about these? Turns any bulb into a smart bulb. I think making the socket "smart" is a better idea then individual bulbs. Idk how well the rgb aspect works on these but w/e at least the lights are smart now. 

 

iDevices Socket - WiFi Light Bulb Adapter, No Hub Required, Works with Alexa https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KP5V292/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_o.f-BbGGJBANY

TP-Link also makes Smart Plugs too. Walmart sells one for $17.97. and a 2 pack for $29.97. No hub required for these also.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/TP-Link-Kasa-KP100-Smart-Plug-Mini-No-Hub-Required/152483650

https://www.walmart.com/ip/TP-Link-Kasa-KP100-Smart-Plug-Mini-No-Hub-Required-2-Pack/743879288

 

[skywake]

19 hours ago, ThePointblank said:

And I would not do all Hue White & Colour bulbs; some places can get away with standard Hue White, others, White Ambience. Only places where you are going to be entertaining should you consider the White & Colour bulbs. For example, do you really need to turn your entrance hallway into a rainbow when you walk in the front door? Or, just plain white suffice?

Possibly. I don't have any yet but I've brought into LIFX on behalf of a family member as a Christmas gift so they can be the guinea pig. But the more I research it the more I think the colour is almost a necessity if you want to do anything interesting with it. I probably don't want the hall light to be rainbow colours without those colours meaning anything. But I might want them to be a different colour in the morning depending on what the weather forecast is.

[ikhtiyar2]

On 11/22/2018 at 2:39 AM, jakkuh_t said:

Finally a competitor for both LIFX and Philips Hue bulbs that isn't going to break the bank - Yeelight

 

 

Buy Philips Hue Bulbs:
On Amazon: https://lmg.gg/8KVb6

 

Buy LIFX Bulbs:
On Amazon: https://lmg.gg/8KVbQ

 

Buy Yeelight Bulbs:
On Amazon: https://lmg.gg/8KVbr
On AliExpress: https://lmg.gg/8KVbb 

Anyone know where he got those beautiful table lamps from? they look pretty

[Required]

Why not checking for flickering?
My Parents bought for there Sleeping Room an very Big Ceiling Light. That bastard Flicker even in 100% Mode that fast that I couldn be there very long. It could be seen when the Hand is moving fast from left to right.

Another think who nobody make a good System with an Programmable Remote?!

What does a Programmable ROM Chip cost this Days?

[KevinE]

So I don't get the point of a smart bulb. What happens when your mother in law turns the dam lightswitch off?

[Required]

Thats the plan to remove a light switch in furture Homes.

The damn Power Plan Operator want that.

[EpicSushi]

Did you put a 220v aliexpress link on purpose?

 

You screwed me over man. Waited a month for a big disappointment!

[Required]

There is nothing wrong with ali...

[cloneman]

Does anyone have an IFTTT or other automation system that changes the Yeelight Color temperature automatically based on sunrise/sunset like f.lux?

I would like my yeelight to automatically be Daytime white in the daytime and Yellow or Red at night. I'm trying to avoid learning how to use the API to accomplish this basic job

[cloneman]

After investing in several yeelight bulbs I find myself disappointed with the lack of smart  wall switches to control these. Apparently I can buy a hub from zigbee but it's unclear which one I need and I defeats the purpose of having not spent money on a Philips hub to begin with. 

I'm gonna buy these 3 items to try and fix this.

If it doesn't work out I'll give up entirely

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32950175670.html?spm=a2g0o.cart.0.0.3cd93c00ICcD8P&mp=1

 

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32950966090.html?spm=a2g0o.cart.0.0.3cd93c00ICcD8P&mp=1

 

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32952650225.html?spm=a2g0o.cart.0.0.3cd93c00ICcD8P&mp=1