

- #Tricky test 2 turn on all the light bulbs Bluetooth#
- #Tricky test 2 turn on all the light bulbs plus#
You'll also find a number of smart home gadgets that double as a Zigbee hub - most notably the Amazon Echo Plus and the second-gen Amazon Echo Show.
#Tricky test 2 turn on all the light bulbs Bluetooth#
The most notable Zigbee brand, Philips Hue, recently started putting secondary Bluetooth radios into its products, which lets you skip the hub and connect direct with your phone for basic controls. Most Zigbee bulbs offer their own version of a hub, and setting them up typically isn't complicated at all, but it does add a little extra expense into the equation.Īll of that said, things are getting easier. Lots of smart lighting products use Zigbee to send their signals - if so, then you'll need a Zigbee hub plugged into your router in order to translate those signals for your home network. To control bulbs like that from further away, you'll need a Wi-Fi hub to relay their signals to your router and on to you via the cloud.Īnd then there's Zigbee, which you can think of as a local wireless network for your smart home gadgets.

Others use Bluetooth radios to connect directly with your phone when you're within 50 feet or so. Some use built-in Wi-Fi radios to connect directly with your router, which lets you control them remotely wherever you have an internet connection. Smart lights use wireless transmissions to send and receive their signals, and different bulbs use different methods to get the job done. The first question worth thinking about before you buy smart lights: Which platform do you want to use to control them? Most options offer their own control apps that let you group lights together and schedule them to turn on and off at specific times - but there's a pretty decent chance that you'll want to smarten up more than just your lights. Voice platforms from Google, Apple and Amazon all make particularly good foundations for a smart lighting setup. To that end, here's a rundown of what you'll want to know before buying in. Read: Best cheap smart LED bulbs of 2019: Does it matter which bulb you buy?īut before you fill that shopping cart, you'll want to understand the ins and outs of smart lighting to make sure you're getting the best bulbs and switches for your smart home. And, with lots of new options on the market - including smart LEDs that don't cost a whole lot - you might be tempted to fill your whole house with the things.Īnd maybe you should! There's a lot to be said for a whole-home connected lighting setup, including benefits like automated vacation-mode lighting that helps make it look like you're home when you're not, the fun novelty of color-changing bulbs, and the convenience of turning off all of the lights your kids left on with a single voice command as you go to bed. You'll find no shortage of options in the lighting aisle - especially smart bulbs, which are about as affordable as the smart home gets.įrom light bulbs and plugs to light switches and wall panels, smart lights are a popular smart home entry point.
