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I've been using Hue for a decade or so now, I can't fault it. I don't use any of the connected stuff and just manage it with the app and local API. I decided

I've been using Hue for a decade or so now, I can't fault it. I don't use any of the connected stuff and just manage it with the app and local API. I decided to take the hub out of my network a couple of weeks ago and use the Home Assistant SkyConnect to manage by bulbs, switches, light strips etc, it's been a less than stellar experience. The hue hub works very well, it's signal strength is excellent, I had it sitting inside a closed rack and never had an issue, the SkyConnect loses signal to a bulb 2 feet away if you breath on it. Would highly, highly recommend hue to anyone. That said, prices have gone up and bulb quality dropped since Signify took over (many of my bulbs are metal and glass) the newer ones are plastic and plastic for more money, and though none of the original bulbs have failed to date, one of the newer ones randomly cuts out.

rocqua 3y ago
The reason I want to avoid Hue is not so much because of network security, but because of simplicity. I've seen a whole lot of packet parsing and RF stuff. I want none of that to be required for my lamp to turn on when I flip a switch. However, it seems like dimmable leds might almost be doing packet parsing over very weird PWM-modulated AC signals in order for the dimmer and LED to cooperate. I like the simplicity of using the power-line from switch to LED, but I hate the ad-hoc nature of the accidental communication, so perhaps it makes sense to upgrade to ZigBee, accepting the complication of RF and network addressing in return for having well specified protocols.
- alias_neo 3y ago
  Hue is pretty straight forward in that respect. One thing I'd say is that, I've switched to using ZigBee binding so I don't rely on the hub, and even if my automation is down, the buttons bound to the lights in each room can still be used to control them. I lose access to extra features like colour changing etc in that scenario but honestly, after about a decade of experience, I'd suggest not bothering with colour bulbs except for novelty or exceptional cases where you want to add colour accents; 99% of the time in 99% of my home, my family and I use the bulbs in a shade of white. Additionally, Hue added a feature some time ago to configure the "state" the bulbs comes back on when power is cut, so it's quite feasible to continue to use a physical wall switch for normal use and ZigBee other times, with the caveat that by cutting the power to the bulbs you're messing with your ZigBee mesh, so YMMV. Ultimately, aside from my children who enjoy the option to colour the lights in their rooms, I could get away with smart switches instead of smart bulbs, and I've just bought some Hue-compatible ones for the living room, landing and similar where the chandeliers have large numbers (5+) of bulbs that would be expensive to replace with Hue and where very little advantage would be taken of the features other than dimming.

rocqua 3y ago

The reason I want to avoid Hue is not so much because of network security, but because of simplicity. I've seen a whole lot of packet parsing and RF stuff. I want none of that to be required for my lamp to turn on when I flip a switch. However, it seems like dimmable leds might almost be doing packet parsing over very weird PWM-modulated AC signals in order for the dimmer and LED to cooperate. I like the simplicity of using the power-line from switch to LED, but I hate the ad-hoc nature of the accidental communication, so perhaps it makes sense to upgrade to ZigBee, accepting the complication of RF and network addressing in return for having well specified protocols.

alias_neo 3y ago
Hue is pretty straight forward in that respect. One thing I'd say is that, I've switched to using ZigBee binding so I don't rely on the hub, and even if my automation is down, the buttons bound to the lights in each room can still be used to control them. I lose access to extra features like colour changing etc in that scenario but honestly, after about a decade of experience, I'd suggest not bothering with colour bulbs except for novelty or exceptional cases where you want to add colour accents; 99% of the time in 99% of my home, my family and I use the bulbs in a shade of white. Additionally, Hue added a feature some time ago to configure the "state" the bulbs comes back on when power is cut, so it's quite feasible to continue to use a physical wall switch for normal use and ZigBee other times, with the caveat that by cutting the power to the bulbs you're messing with your ZigBee mesh, so YMMV. Ultimately, aside from my children who enjoy the option to colour the lights in their rooms, I could get away with smart switches instead of smart bulbs, and I've just bought some Hue-compatible ones for the living room, landing and similar where the chandeliers have large numbers (5+) of bulbs that would be expensive to replace with Hue and where very little advantage would be taken of the features other than dimming.