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I much prefer smart switches over smart bulbs. Because smart switches always work with you flip them physically whether the network is down or not. Also smart

I much prefer smart switches over smart bulbs. Because smart switches always work with you flip them physically whether the network is down or not. Also smart switches ensure that there is no mismatch between physical switch state and light bulb state. Before I moved over to smart switches exclusively I had some Philips smart bulbs with wireless switches - it was the most unreliable and finicky setup I ever had. The only smart thing in a light bulb should be it ability to change color.

nunez 3y ago
Smart switches are great but you can beat color changing smart bulbs especially given how cheap they are now.
constantly 3y ago
I have the Phillips Wiz and they work fine without internet, just need to be on the same wifi network. They also work with no network at all, directly with the switch, but lack ability to make new changes to things like brightness or color, and instead only work with the details user-set settings or the secondary user-set settings, which are accessed by flipping the switch twice. I think this is fair. It’s not as if nothing works, they basically revert to dumb bulbs in the absence of wifi, or dumbish bulbs that only remember the two defaults the user had set.
ajsnigrutin 3y ago
The bulbs can do redshift (going from cold to warm white in the evening), but I agree about the switches... especially if you turn the (ordinary) switch on the wall off, no "smartness" in the bulb can then turn it on if it's unpowered :)
ellisv 3y ago
I use smart dimmer switches for overhead lights and smart bulbs for lamps.
ojkelly 3y ago
Interestingly I’ve had Phillips Hue for well over 5 years now, but no smart switches. One of the bigger QoL improvements I’ve ever made, especially when the lights automatically change throughout the day. Between a few specifically named scenes in the Home app, Siri on HomePods, and the normal switches it’s been quite reliable. Worst case if the internet is down (which stops Siri’s voice to text), or if there’s a wifi issue, or if I’m right next to a switch: I can turn the switch off, wait 2 seconds, turn on and the hue light turns on to a neutral color at a reasonable brightness. I think any combination of smart lights or switches or both is manageable as long as you have a fast, simple means to power cycle the lights (and they default-on with power). I don’t think dumb light switches should disappear. They’re phenomenally reliable, have a predictable behaviour, are easily discoverable and never move. The last one is important because when you urgently need to turn a light on, nothing beats a dumb switch.
- semi 3y ago
  one issue with default on with power is that in the event of a temporary power outage, all of your lights will turn on. Probably better than the alternative for most people but just something to be aware of.
- vidarh 3y ago
  You get most of that with.good smart switches too. Reliability will never be quite as high, since it's hard to beat physically connecting and disconnecting the wires, but they're reliable enough that I've never had one fail. But in terms of predictability and discoverability and fixed placement, a good smart switch is no different.
HeavenFox 3y ago
I replaced all switches in my apartment with Lutron smart dimmer & smart switches, and have Philips Hue in some lamps. - While the color change feature is mostly gimmick, the adjustable color temperature is really useful. You can't get that in a smart dimmer / switch - Dimmers don't work very well with LED bulbs, and they can flicker at low end of brightness setting - At least the Lutron smart switches I used don't work very well with LED lights with minimal power draw. Apparently due to the way they work, in off state, there still will be a little bit of current leaking to the circuit, which would be enough to power some LED bulbs
- imoverclocked 3y ago
  > Apparently due to the way they work, in off state, there still will be a little bit of current leaking to the circuit I've had this problem with dumb-on/off switches and LED bulbs. Stray currents are a known issue with LED fixtures in general.
- rale00 3y ago
  Philips makes some bulbs that change color temperature to get warmer the more you dim them. Not as flexible as a smart bulb, but it gets you most of the way there.
vidarh 3y ago
Same. Lightwave switches replaced several dozen Zigbee bulbs. Apart from the lack of reliable control over state, Zigbee at least gets slow if your house isn't conducive to direct paths unless you add repeaters, and someone manually flicking a single switch might make the mesh unreliable for several rooms. I'm sure it can work well, but it was too much hassle. Ended on Lightwave because it works on two wire setups and my wiring is old.
XorNot 3y ago
There's no way a smart switch can always match light state unless it's a momentary switch + light. I've not seen any smart switches which can mechanically actuate the switch.
- vidarh 3y ago
  Most hardwired smart switches close or open the circuit either electronically or with relays depending on supported load, so whether or not there is power to the bulbs is entirely dependent on the switch state. So yes, they can always match light state, ignoring the case of a burnt out bulb. This applies to e.g. Lightwave switches.
  - XorNot 3y ago
    Right, this is how I have my ESPHome-based switches wired. I thought you were referring to the mechanical state of the actual switch on the wall - I've gone with retrofit switch modules since I wanted to retain the tactile switch flip (just now they all work like dual-switches).

nunez 3y ago

Smart switches are great but you can beat color changing smart bulbs especially given how cheap they are now.

constantly 3y ago

I have the Phillips Wiz and they work fine without internet, just need to be on the same wifi network. They also work with no network at all, directly with the switch, but lack ability to make new changes to things like brightness or color, and instead only work with the details user-set settings or the secondary user-set settings, which are accessed by flipping the switch twice. I think this is fair. It’s not as if nothing works, they basically revert to dumb bulbs in the absence of wifi, or dumbish bulbs that only remember the two defaults the user had set.

ajsnigrutin 3y ago

The bulbs can do redshift (going from cold to warm white in the evening), but I agree about the switches... especially if you turn the (ordinary) switch on the wall off, no "smartness" in the bulb can then turn it on if it's unpowered :)

ellisv 3y ago

I use smart dimmer switches for overhead lights and smart bulbs for lamps.

ojkelly 3y ago

Interestingly I’ve had Phillips Hue for well over 5 years now, but no smart switches. One of the bigger QoL improvements I’ve ever made, especially when the lights automatically change throughout the day. Between a few specifically named scenes in the Home app, Siri on HomePods, and the normal switches it’s been quite reliable. Worst case if the internet is down (which stops Siri’s voice to text), or if there’s a wifi issue, or if I’m right next to a switch: I can turn the switch off, wait 2 seconds, turn on and the hue light turns on to a neutral color at a reasonable brightness. I think any combination of smart lights or switches or both is manageable as long as you have a fast, simple means to power cycle the lights (and they default-on with power). I don’t think dumb light switches should disappear. They’re phenomenally reliable, have a predictable behaviour, are easily discoverable and never move. The last one is important because when you urgently need to turn a light on, nothing beats a dumb switch.

semi 3y ago
one issue with default on with power is that in the event of a temporary power outage, all of your lights will turn on. Probably better than the alternative for most people but just something to be aware of.
vidarh 3y ago
You get most of that with.good smart switches too. Reliability will never be quite as high, since it's hard to beat physically connecting and disconnecting the wires, but they're reliable enough that I've never had one fail. But in terms of predictability and discoverability and fixed placement, a good smart switch is no different.

HeavenFox 3y ago

I replaced all switches in my apartment with Lutron smart dimmer & smart switches, and have Philips Hue in some lamps. - While the color change feature is mostly gimmick, the adjustable color temperature is really useful. You can't get that in a smart dimmer / switch - Dimmers don't work very well with LED bulbs, and they can flicker at low end of brightness setting - At least the Lutron smart switches I used don't work very well with LED lights with minimal power draw. Apparently due to the way they work, in off state, there still will be a little bit of current leaking to the circuit, which would be enough to power some LED bulbs

imoverclocked 3y ago
> Apparently due to the way they work, in off state, there still will be a little bit of current leaking to the circuit I've had this problem with dumb-on/off switches and LED bulbs. Stray currents are a known issue with LED fixtures in general.
rale00 3y ago
Philips makes some bulbs that change color temperature to get warmer the more you dim them. Not as flexible as a smart bulb, but it gets you most of the way there.

vidarh 3y ago

Same. Lightwave switches replaced several dozen Zigbee bulbs. Apart from the lack of reliable control over state, Zigbee at least gets slow if your house isn't conducive to direct paths unless you add repeaters, and someone manually flicking a single switch might make the mesh unreliable for several rooms. I'm sure it can work well, but it was too much hassle. Ended on Lightwave because it works on two wire setups and my wiring is old.

XorNot 3y ago

There's no way a smart switch can always match light state unless it's a momentary switch + light. I've not seen any smart switches which can mechanically actuate the switch.

vidarh 3y ago
Most hardwired smart switches close or open the circuit either electronically or with relays depending on supported load, so whether or not there is power to the bulbs is entirely dependent on the switch state. So yes, they can always match light state, ignoring the case of a burnt out bulb. This applies to e.g. Lightwave switches.
- XorNot 3y ago
  Right, this is how I have my ESPHome-based switches wired. I thought you were referring to the mechanical state of the actual switch on the wall - I've gone with retrofit switch modules since I wanted to retain the tactile switch flip (just now they all work like dual-switches).