looking for alternatives to the LED smart home system from Philips Hue

[Locutus von Borg]

Hello everyone

i am about to move and i wanted to be smarter, literally and metaphorically. so, i was looking of lights, but nothing rly was jumping into my eye, then i noticed philips hue. the system itself at least sounds real good, but its very expensive. i have seen others brands for cheaper, but i have no experience at all in that area. thats why i ask here.

 

what i want is rgb (cause all rooms are left white and nearly everything are shades of grey), dimmable, create groups, which would be each room. i also want movement detection, so i dont have to switch the lights on and off, as well as adjustable light intensities for certain daytimes. for example i dont wanna have 100% light at 3 o clock in the morning, i also dont want the color be blue then xD

if sorta things are possible, that would be awesome.

 

i then thought, if i make the lighting that way, maybe something like this with sound is also possible? like i have one source and when i move to another room, the sound "goes with me".

 

i did start looking into things, but i am by no means a person of quick decision, this could easily take up to half a year for me, cause if i dont understand something i try to understand it. thats the other big reason im asking here, in hope it speeds up the process a lot.

 

also, im not sure if home theater equipment is the correct spot for this. if not i am sorry and will post it in the correct one.

 

[Brando212]

anything zigbee (or equivalent) based is unfortunately going to run a little more expensive. You're paying for the peace of mind of having a local hub so you don't have to worry about a web server going down.

 

As an owner of a Hue Hub myself, I'd say it's worth the buy in cost.

 

If you don't want to be locked to Philips, then I'd recommend saving up for the following hub:

https://www.amazon.com/Hubitat-Elevation-Automation-C-8-Compatible/dp/B0BSNZVDJ2/

 

Is a little pricey for a hub, but is also known to have the widest range of compatibility compared to other hubs. This hub even manages compatibility with Philips Hue products.

[johnt]

The Philips Hue system can do all that except track you inside a room to another room. It has motion sensors but those require motion. I use motion sensor automation in my bathrooms, hall ways, garage, laundry room, and stairs. The stairs are amazing.

 

Yes Hue is expensive but it's absolutely worth it for the reliability. I've only had one bad bulb in the 5 or so dozen I've purchased over the years, and it was replaced immediately by Philips without question. I also installed most of my lights in 2016 and 2017, and they all lasted until now. Two of them died because of power outages. The rest are all working.

 

I've also purchased a ton of their fancier products used and saved a lot of money that way. Of course that depends on your luck, but the used items I purchased are still in service. I purchased ten outdoor spot lights that are on a timer.

 

I am not sure if there are cheaper alternatives for the same functionality. Also, you have to remember that Philips packaged a really good product and software. You can watch the videos of Linus putting together the smart products in his new house. It honestly turned me off to the entire craziness. I have no compatibility issues with my Hue products, no software updates to worry about, no reliance on a server or Jake to setup everything.

 

If I may suggest something... just start with their cheaper normal bulbs. Don't worry about RGB until later. RGB in normal rooms is ridiculous. I have an RGB strip under the bannister of my staircase and it makes sense there. I set to a very bright orange during the day and a dark, dim orange overnight. I also use RGB in my backyard. It doesn't make sense anywhere else.

[OddOod]

I imagine this is doable, but it's gonna take a LOT of work and a fair bit of configuration in Home Assistant

[OddOod]

26 minutes ago, johnt said:

It honestly turned me off to the entire craziness

Extremely impressively the dream of the fully smart house has been about a decade away for about a decade
That being said, if you're a dab hand at programming and cost is no object, it IS possible to do, but there are probably segments of it that you'd still have to custom make on a hobby board

[ender23]

Home Assistant with this add on configured: https://github.com/basnijholt/adaptive-lighting

Motion Sensor or something like the Everything Presence Sensor/Aqara FP2 in each room to "follow you"

Smart Light bulbs (hue/lifx/something referenced here: https://smarthomesolver.com/reviews/30-smart-light-bulbs-compared/ )

 

Smart bulbs are ALWAYS going to be way more expensive compared to smart switches, but if you need RGB, that's the best off the shelf solution.

 

Have fun, good luck!

 

[Locutus von Borg]

thanks for the answers

i will take a look into everything mentioned.

 

i am fully aware that smart bulbs are more expensive just by being smart and when rgb come to it, even more. i have just seen that philips hue is standing out even by that. but the smart bulb comparision made it clear, as well as the answers here, philips hue is the best available.

 

but im already convinced of the hubitat elevation. even if that is also on the more costly side of things, especially when shipping to germany xD

 

i think i will probably do what the first comment suggested, buy just a few things and see for myself, before going all out.

 

again, thank you all

[Brando212]

10 minutes ago, Locutus von Borg said:

i am fully aware that smart bulbs are more expensive just by being smart and when rgb come to it, even more. i have just seen that philips hue is standing out even by that. but the smart bulb comparision made it clear, as well as the answers here, philips hue is the best available.

Much to Philips credit, the quality of their bulbs definitely show and make them feel worth the premium compared to others.