Philips HUE Lights?

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hentzau
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by hentzau »

Was over at my wife’s cousin’s house for a holiday party tonight. He’s kind of like a genius savant with technology and data mining...sold his first data mining company for several million dollars a few years ago, when he was like 28. Anyway, he’s in the process of swapping out his whole house with new smart bulbs he had made to his specifications in China. So he had these just laying around:

Image

He also had about another 2 boxes similarly filled. So he told me to grab a few to try out at home. So I got 4 Philips Hue White ambience bulbs to play with. And a Lutron remote. Now I need to figure out what to do with them.
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by Kurth »

I'm afraid I'm getting hooked on the home automation thing. After unwrapping all our Christmas loot and using up a few gift cards, our set up:

- Garage: 1 HUE Motion Sensor set to trigger a Leviton Decora Smart Wifi Switch turning all garage lights on when it senses motion
- Basement/Gaming room: HUE bridge, 2 HUE color A19s and 1 HUE white A19 in an overhead fixture
- TV Room: 1 HUE white A19 in a table lamp (needed to find a place for it, and it's nice as a dimmed reading light)
- Living Room: 4 HUE white ambiance BR30s in overhead cans
- Older Son's BR: 4 HUE white ambiance BR30s in overhead cans and 1 HUE color A19 in his bedside lamp; one Echo Spot
- Younger Son's BR: 2 HUE white A19s in an overhead fixture; 1 TP Link Smart Plug controlling his multi-light standing floor lamp; one Echo Dot
- Daughter's BR: 3 HUE white A19s in an overhead fixture; 1 white A19 and 1 HUE color A19 in a standing floor; one Echo Dot

We've pretty much ditched the HUE app and are controlling everything through iOS Homekit, using a new iPad as a hub. So far, everything has worked really well, with one exception: The motion sensor in the garage seems to be pretty inconsistent in that it regularly detects motion as it should, but it doesn't always trigger the smart switch. It's almost as if there's an extended lag between the two. Any thoughts on that?

Also, any thoughts on mixing HUE bulb types in one overhead fixture? Say, in a 3 bulb overhead fixture, what's the best ratio of color to white? Is it a waste to load it up with three colors, or does that really maximize the effect?
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The Meal
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by The Meal »

Sounds fantastic!

I found iConnectHUE (iOS app) before Homekit was available, so I haven't really given the Apple implementation its fair shake.

In terms of your garage delay, it could be a few things. How close are your garage Hue devices to the next closest Hue items (the mesh system requires proximity and things which affect 2.4GHz and 5GHz signals such as walls and mirrors and the like will affect your Hue network)? I didn't do the math, but how many Hue devices are you running off that one Bridge? If you aren't doing animations or the like, I think 40-ish is the reasonable cap (while documentation gives you the green light up to 63, I believe). Finally, with our seven Hue motion detectors, I do occasionally partially lose function. For us it manifests as an inability to detect lack of motion (i.e., when folks have cleared out of the room). It doesn't happen to all detectors and it doesn't have much in the way of consistency. It also takes a while (months) to manifest. The solution is to reset the device (1-second paperclip to the back, then reconnect to the network via software), and all is peachy again.

In terms of color lights in fixtures, I've found the more the merrier. With frosted fixtures there is already some intensity attenuation, so I'm all for loading them up to maximize output. Not sure how the implementation works in Homekit, but back in the dark ages (haw!) when I used the Philips app, I'd have to create a faux room ("entryway fixture") to maintain ease in syncing colors for all those bulbs. iConnectHue and Alexa both allow you to have one bulb in multiple <rooms|groups> so the implementation of such a setup is pain free. One bulb could simultaneously be in the "Poker Room", "Wall Sconce", and "Basement" groups and any mention of any of those features would control its behavior.

Oh, and the garage is a great place for an Echo Dot. Lo-Fi music when you're putzing around out there, but also a nice "Echo, turn off Whole House" when you are walking out the door or "Echo, turn on Bedroom" when you're coming back in.
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Kurth
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by Kurth »

Ok, quick question: I want to move some of my color Philip Hue lights to the living room and have them all turn green when the Eagles score during the Super Bowl today. What’s my best option for an app that will cover this?
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by Shinjin »

My wife and I are currently using a couple of Hue white bulbs in our bedroom bedside table lamps as faux sunrise lamps. This works reasonably well, but periodically, maybe a couple of times a month, one of the bulbs will 'reset' to its dimmest setting. Sometimes I can use the Hue app to re-brighten it but sometimes I have to turn the lamp off and on again. It happens to both bulbs, but not at the same time.

Any thoughts on why the bulbs do this?
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by The Meal »

Not sure. Does not happen to bulbs on any of my three bridges. If it happens monthly (give or take), that's way more frequent than when the hardware receives firmware updates. (Also, I'd expect FW updates to move the bulbs to the default state -- so brighter, or exactly what you do when you toggle the power to the lamps.)

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Philips HUE Lights?

Post by hentzau »

So I have a new problem. Have a hub, and some bulbs in my game room, and I wanted to add some back lighting to my TV. I was talking to a buddy and he said he had a spare strip that I could try out, see if I like it. Well, I cannot find this light strip to save my soul. I've tried everything to get it to connect, and it just doesn't work.

I was wondering if he had connected that strip to his hub at home, and didn't delete the light from that hub, could that be preventing me from connecting it to my hub?

(I sent him a text and am waiting to hear back, but he's probably off camping this weekend and i'll have to wait until he gets home.)

Sent from my SM-P900 using Tapatalk

(EDIT: Nevermind. My son was reading the S/N incorrectly. Need to get his eyes checked. )
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by The Meal »

You're right that sometimes previously-paired bulbs can't be found via a serial number search. At that point you need to do what's called a "touchlink connection", which involves bringing your turned-on bulb within 2 feet of the hub. I've *never* had that fail (and I've moved many bulbs between bridges).

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hentzau
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by hentzau »

The Meal wrote:You're right that sometimes previously-paired bulbs can't be found via a serial number search. At that point you need to do what's called a "touchlink connection", which involves bringing your turned-on bulb within 2 feet of the hub. I've *never* had that fail (and I've moved many bulbs between bridges).

Tonight's poker night animation: Passing Clouds.
I did try bringing the strip close to the hub, but it still didn’t find it via a search. But once I got the correct serial number it was able to find it.
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by The Meal »

When doing the serial number search, it is very important to put in the correct serial number. :D

The touchlink search may not be in the default app (which is changing later this month to version 3.0 which returns to some of the functionality removed during 2.0, but still looks rather useless). Many of the third party apps (I'm in the iOS system, and can't recommend strongly enough iConnectHue, which is not a free app, but is so worth it) will have the touchlink search option. The app text says the device has to be within 30 cm of the hub at the time of the attempted pairing. I've got a easily portable lamp available for my touchlink purposes with any of my three hubs. It's a great thing to keep in mind if you ever run into a seemingly intractable situation with bulb pairing.
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hentzau
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by hentzau »

iConnectHue, huh?

(Off to check the app store...)
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by stessier »

And this is why I will never get into the smart bulb trend.

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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by Daehawk »

Your lights can be hacked and compromise your home network.

https://www.theverge.com/2020/2/5/21123 ... tch-update

Basically a hacker gets control of your lights and annoys you with them turning them off and on and such until you reset them then when they reconnect to your network that hacker is in.
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by The Meal »

Fixed with last November's OS patches.

Disclosed last November, and addressed in current FW.

You know, for people who keep up with such things.
checkpoint wrote:The research was disclosed to Philips and Signify (owner of the Philips Hue brand) in November 2019. Signify confirmed the existence of the vulnerability in their product, and issued a patched firmware version (Firmware 1935144040) which is now available on their site. We recommend users to make sure that their product received the automatic update of this firmware version.
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by Daehawk »

This was just on my local news and that article is Feb 5.
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by Kurth »

We just bought new outdoor light fixtures. These are 3/4 enclosed fixtures (top and sides, bottom is open), and they call for "A19 medium base bulb 100W maximum." Can I use standard Philips Hue A19 bulbs in these, or do I need something weatherproof/outdoor?

Based on this CNET review of Philips Hue outdoor fixtures, I think I'm ok to use the regular old A19 Hue bulbs, but I wanted to check in here to make sure I'm not missing something.
3) Philips Hue Lucca/Inara Outdoor Fixtures (tie)
Chris Monroe/CNET
Like the Ludere, both of these options are really just standard outdoor fixtures built to house a Philips Hue smart bulb, which comes included. In this case, it isn't a $50 set of floodlights in the box, but a standard $15 Philips Hue White LED. Those LEDs are dampness-rated, so you could just as easily screw one into an existing outdoor fixture that accepts standard-size bulbs and save $35.

Still, supposing you don't have a fixture like that ready to go (or you're looking to replace the ones you've already got), both the Inara and the Lucca make for easy outdoor lighting upgrades -- and at $50 or $60, respectively, the price is fairly comparable to what you might spend for a similar fixture that doesn't come with a smart bulb included. That makes for a pretty good deal, even if neither fixture is terribly exciting. Again, a built-in Hue motion sensor would have really helped things here.

For what it's worth, Philips tells me that both fixtures are specifically designed not to interfere with the wireless Zigbee signals coming and going to the Hue White bulb inside. I'm not sure that's reason enough to skip a less expensive standard fixture -- I've used Hue White bulbs in outdoor fixtures like those before, and haven't had any difficulties with the signal getting through.
One difference between my fixtures and the Ludere fixture being reviewed is that that one is fully enclosed, where mine are open on the bottom.

Thoughts?
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by Kurth »

Anyone have any experience with the HUE HDMI Sync Box?

Just got a gradient light strip for the back of my TV, and the demos I’ve seen of this thing have me really interested.

I hear it’s pretty amazing, but it can also be pretty frustrating to get working right.

Thoughts? Experiences?
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by malchior »

Kurth wrote: Mon Feb 07, 2022 8:04 pm Anyone have any experience with the HUE HDMI Sync Box?

Just got a gradient light strip for the back of my TV, and the demos I’ve seen of this thing have me really interested.

I hear it’s pretty amazing, but it can also be pretty frustrating to get working right.

Thoughts? Experiences?
What content do you want to watch? If it is major streaming services...it is typically pretty painful. Originally they didn't have a way for it to work at all but they figured out a fix. Now every time you launch content you need to fire up the Hue App on a mobile device and start the light sync. The alternative that works more consistently but is again not seamless is to cast it from another device. This has all sorts of ramifications for sound and video quality too. I bought it...struggled with these issues and ultimately returned it.

Edit: As a note - at the time (mid-2021) the fix only supported Netflix. I don't know if they expanded the list since then or made the experience better.
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

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Kurth wrote: Mon Feb 07, 2022 8:04 pm Anyone have any experience with the HUE HDMI Sync Box?

Just got a gradient light strip for the back of my TV, and the demos I’ve seen of this thing have me really interested.

I hear it’s pretty amazing, but it can also be pretty frustrating to get working right.

Thoughts? Experiences?
Have. Would not recommend. We stream everything through an Apple TV (you can only Hue Sync with things that come into the TV via HDMI), and it's the opposite of "it just works." I have to turn the Samsung TV off and on multiple times to get the sync feature to recognize, and since it's going through a pass-through sync box, that means zero output on the TV screen until it (randomly) just works.

The sync box is overpriced.

I've got 5 or Hue Plays attached to the back of the TV, along with two older Blooms acting as uplights. An issue for our installation is the wall behind the TV is deep red, which severely limits the wow factor for the lights following along what's on the screen.

I own a couple of gradient strip lights, but don't have them by the sync box, so I can't really speak to their abilities for that purpose.

If your situation was more idealized (white wall at an appropriate distance from the back of the TV, sync-box friendly TV manufacturer), then you'd likely be more enthused with the product than I.
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by Kurth »

Hmm. That's not encouraging. I think I do have a good room setup for it (white/grey walls with good spacing behind TV). The TV is a Sony, but I'm not sure that makes much difference.

My biggest use cases are going to be for console gaming (XBOX Series X, PS4, Switch) and watching movies and TV (mostly coming from a Comcast Xfinity box). I understand that the Sync Box is problematic if you're streaming straight from your TV, but as long as my source is over HDMI that I can pass through the HUE box, I should be ok, right?
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by The Meal »

Theoretically, yes. Practically? TBD.
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by Kurth »

The Meal wrote: Tue Feb 08, 2022 3:57 am Theoretically, yes. Practically? TBD.
Well, if nothing else, you guys have definitely level set my expectations with this thing. I’ll let you know how it turns out.
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Re: Philips HUE Lights?

Post by Kurth »

I have to report, this HUE sync box has definitely met and surpassed my low expectations!

Set up was easy, and it’s working seamlessly. I’ve got my XBOX Series X, PS4 and Xfinity box all plugged into it, and I’m able to easily switch between inputs. It took a little fiddling to dial in the right level of effects (impactful but not distracting), but now that that’s done, I’m loving this thing.

I have it controlling an ambient light strip behind the TV, a standard light strip on the back of my TV console under the TV, and 4 overhead color bulbs mounted in 2 standard overhead fixtures.

The effects it’s providing as I play through Cyberpunk 2077 post-patch are really impressive.

So far, so good!
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