Essential info you need to know about smart home lighting uncovered by me

Smart home lighting is an advanced way to light your home; LED bulbs have been around for many years; however, those bulbs have now become very smart. Smart bulbs contain very small microcontrollers that are, in turn, connected either directly to another controlling smart device, such as a smartphone, or to a controlling device called a hub. Hubs are usually connected to the internet, allowing you to control your lights from anywhere; also, many hubs can be voice controlled to make controlling your home lighting very convenient. In addition, smart bulbs have features such as dimming, color changes, and scheduling, and some can also increase the area of your home’s network by repeating the signals they receive to other smart devices.

Think of it as retrofitting your existing light bulbs; most smart light manufacturers have the same basic features, one of which is that the smart light bulb can be a stand-alone device. Stand-alone means that the bulb can function completely separate from other smart devices you may have installed in your home. Using Philips Hue as an example, these bulbs can simply replace your existing ones. The notable difference to regular bulbs is that you leave the light switch on all the time unless, of course, you need to replace the bulb. The switch is left on continuously because the small radio transmitter in the bulb’s base can communicate with your controlling device, such as a smartphone or smart hub.

The best idea is to research the options light and switch options available before you make any decisions, as there is so much to offer with smart lighting. The installation of smart lighting is a relatively straightforward process when compared to other tech projects, and the various manufacturers provide detailed instructions and websites that guide you step by step through the process.

Not all forms of smart lighting require wiring as some can be battery operated; however, this is not a cost-effective way of lighting your house; however, one-offs in a special spot may be ok. Smart bulbs use electricity in stand-by mode, which means that smart bulbs use electricity even when they’re not glowing; this is so the radio transmitter in the base of the bulb can communicate with your controlling device, for example, a smartphone or smart hub so even when you’re not using the light its consuming battery power. Unfortunately, there is no way to determine how long the batteries will last as that depends on the actual bulb’s use for lighting; however, stand-by times can be as long as three years on one set of batteries.

So the answer is really yes, to be practical, your smart lights need a constant power supply, and for that, you require wiring.

Smart lights use wireless transmitters to send and receive data; different bulbs use different methods to do the job. Some use built-in Wi-Fi radios to connect directly with your regular Wi-Fi router; this lets you control them remotely from wherever you have an internet connection.

Some devices use Bluetooth radios to connect directly with your phone or tablet, etc, when you’re within 50 feet or so. To control bulbs from further away, you’ll need a Wi-Fi hub to relay their signals to your router and then on to you via the cloud.

There is also Zigbee, which you can think of as a local wireless network for your smart home devices. Many smart lighting products use Zigbee to send their instructions; you will require a Zigbee hub plugged into your router to translate the Zigbee instructions for your home network to understand. Check out the Matter protocol, which makes communication between all devices much easier.