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Philips Hue Line Gains Standalone Bluetooth Bulb Option for New Hue Users
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I can’t tell if this is sarcastic or not, but I’m going to assume not. Bulb as in bulbous, globular - as in an onion or tulip bulb - the part that grows underground.
I understand the general fear people seem to have for hubs/bridges, but the reality is that most of these systems work better than other types. I get that you don't want to have 20 of them around for each different manufacturer, but any Zigbee Light Link (ZLL) bulb can pair to a Hue network, so even if you don't want to use Hue bulbs, you'll be fine if you stick to that (more or less standard, but see Ikea Trådfri color bulbs awkward implenentation...) protocol. Most my bulbs are Hue, but I have some Cree and Trådfri bulbs on my network as well. Zigbee works well for this purpose, much better than I imagine Bluetooth alone would, and certainly better than current Wi-Fi implementations seem to for people. You need something to "bridge" the Zigbee network to your LAN so you can use the Hue app to configure things, and that's where the (wait for it) Hue Bridge comes in.
If you hate it so much, you technically don't need it for everything once you get your network set up--accessories like the Tap and Dimmer speak directly to the bulbs. The Bridge is a bridge, not a hub, like you'd have in a Zigbee Home Automation (ZHA) environment like SmartThings or similar, where everything does pass through the hub. Things that rely on the Bridge, like LAN features, including HomeKit support, use of the app, timers, and whatnot will not work but...technically you don't need it.
I'd rather have a bridge with a Zigbee network than a bunch of Wi-Fi bulb clients on my LAN or a ton of Bluetooth devices that need to be paired to my phone and are more limited in extensibility (and I think Hue limits this to 10 bulbs as opposed to at least 50 on a ZLL network).So...I get the fear, but a couple carefully chosen, standards-supporting bridges or hubs will likely cause you a lot less headaches in the end. (I have a Hue Bridge for ZLL and a Hubitat hub that handles Z-Wave and ZHA, for which I previously used SmartThings. I can't imagine doing this any other way.)
They do not fit in the European boxes without hacks, I want to chose my own switches, not some ugly ones from such as philips.
Z-wave is the better protocol, also more stable, another big advantage is it will remember it's state after a power cut, unlike philips Hue
As of a few months ago, you can set hue to remember the current state when the power goes out.
Is that so?
I thought that the only thing changed was that it would not be full blast after a power cut, so if it was off it would be off when power returns, not colour nor intensity.
Philips added the power out feature last year I believe. The dimmer switch they have is nice looking And removable when you want. Not sure what you’re talking about with the rest as I live in the US.
I used zwave with my harmony remote. All those plug in switches died over the years but worked good while they lasted.
You don’t have to hack anything for the dimmer switch. You stick it on the wall anywhere. It doesn’t need power it charges from batteries in the case.
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I have one, the same as in the picture you posted, the format is completely different than the ones used in the EU.
I do not want to use other switches than the ones I have.
It's possible to hack the other Hue dimmer (Hue tap), there's an enocean module inside, crack the dimmer open, get the module out and put it behind a normal switch, it can be done but not with my brand switches.
https://meethue.co/hacks/convert-hue-tap-to-a-light-switch/
I have these switches: (Bit dirty...rebuilding and painting)
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