Smart lights are a simple way to improve the interior and exterior design of your home. Having said that, not all smart bulbs are created equal. When it comes to smart lights, specifically bulbs, Philips is without a doubt one of the best brands.
The Philips Hue bulb does not require a smart hub or even Wi-Fi to function, so you can control the lights via Bluetooth even if the internet goes down. There are three color options to choose from: white, white ambiance, and white and color ambiance. Your decision will most likely be influenced by where you intend to install the Hue bulbs. For example, if you’re purchasing Hue bulbs for your living room, you’ll most likely want bulbs with color features so you can sync them with your television or music to create a fun light show.
Although some Hue bulbs are brighter than others, the average bulb produces around 800 lumens, which is comparable to a 60W incandescent bulb or a 12W LED bulb. Furthermore, the newest version of Philips Hue bulbs can last for a whopping 25,000 hours, so while you’ll pay more up front, you’ll save a ton of money in the long run by not having to replace bulbs as frequently.
Have your lights wake you up
Anyone who isn’t a morning person knows how difficult it is to fully awaken in the morning. Your alarm goes off several times, you hit the snooze button, and you are frequently late. Fortunately, if you have Philips Hue bulbs, you can use them to help you start your day off right.
You can create customizable bulb settings, or “light recipes,” in the Philips Hue app, which is available for both Android and iOS. To get you started, the app includes four light recipes designed by experts. You
Then, to further personalize your morning lights, download the IFTTT app, which is also available on both Android and iOS platforms. This app allows you to set your Hue lights to match the cover art of one of your favorite albums and have them pulsate to the song’s rhythm, creating a much nicer alarm clock. You can also enable a feature that causes your lights to become brighter and warmer whenever your alarm clock goes off.
Use your lights as a reminder to go to sleep
You can use Hue bulbs to help you wake up in the morning, and you can also use them to help you sleep at night. What’s more, the best part? You can do everything from the Philips Hue app.
When you open the app, you will notice an Automations tab. Pre-built routines and automation ideas from Philips lighting experts can be found here, or you can create your own routines by selecting Custom. Then, you can choose sunset as a variable, and your lights will begin to dim automatically at sunset in your area. You can set the Fade duration from 0 to 60 minutes to gradually dim the lights and signal bedtime.
To use this automated feature, you’ll need a Hue bulb, the Philips Hue app, and a Hue hub known as the Hue Bridge. You can do so much more with the Hue Bridge integrated into your smart home that it’s well worth the extra $60.
Sync your bulbs with your music
A classic party trick is to sync your smart lights to music. Most, if not all, smart lights will have this feature because it is simple to implement and everyone enjoys it.
Philips employs specially designed algorithms to ensure that each light script is perfectly tuned to the song you’re listening to, not just the beat but also the overall mood of the music. Your lights will then respond accordingly. Instead of the lights pulsing to the beat of a song, you may notice soft, moody light changes with a slow ballad and more dramatic, high-energy color and light changes with an upbeat song.
You can change the intensity and brightness of your Hue bulbs in response to specific songs or playlists, as well as set a color palette for a specific song or genre. The most popular method for syncing your Philips Hue bulbs to music is via the Spotify app, but you can also do so via the Hue Sync desktop app or a Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box.
Set your lights to match the weather outside
If you find rainy weather or thunderstorms to be extremely comforting or inspiring, you’ll love this trick. You can program your Philips Hue bulbs to match the weather, whether it’s sunny, cloudy, snowy, rainy, or any other condition.
There is a dedicated app that can help you simulate a thunderstorm, but it is not free. Thunderstorm For Hue is a great premium option for quick and easy thunderstorm light parties in the comfort of your own home. But there is a free option if you don’t want to spend any money.
You can use the IFTTT app to create custom light commands based on the detected weather conditions outside. You can, for example, program your lights to turn blue when it begins to rain outside. Alternatively, you can always create a custom color palette and manually select it to match the weather conditions outside.
Add a motion sensor to your setup
You can save money and energy by incorporating a motion sensor into your smart lighting setup. Philips has a motion sensor called the Hue Motion Sensor that is specifically designed to work with its Hue bulbs. Fortunately, configuring the motion sensor is as simple as configuring the Hue bulbs.
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Because every home is unique, the placement of the motion sensor will differ depending on where people walk frequently and the amount of light in an area. Because the motion sensor can detect the amount of daylight entering the room, you may need to adjust the sensitivity in the Hue mobile app if you have a room that is constantly dark or bright. If the bulbs detect daylight, the motion sensor is effectively disabled, preventing your lights from turning on and off unnecessarily.
You can also adjust the motion sensor within the mobile app if you find it to be too sensitive or not sensitive enough when people walk by. Setting it up and determining the ideal amount of motion and daylight sensitivity may take some time, but you’ll be very pleased with the end result.
