Household

Smart bulbs

You screw them into your lamps instead of normal bulbs. Then you control your light by app, switch or voice, and it goes on and off on your schedule.

In the morning it slowly gets light, in the evening the light comes on by itself and turns cosy and warm. With one tap you get the right mood for cooking, reading or a film night. And when you leave the house, you switch everything off with one tap, even when you are already out.

saves effort
My recommendation Philips Hue White & Color Ambiance starter set with Bridge Pro Price range: Premium
See price on Amazon* All models

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Prefer something cheaper? Without a hub

My experience
“I have been using Philips Hue for about ten years and I love it. What I use most are scenes, so I always have exactly the lighting mood I want. With the new MotionAware feature, the lights switch on automatically as soon as someone moves in the room. I also use the Hue light switches, which offer far more functions than normal light switches.”
Lukas, author of this site
How to make your light really convenient

A few settings make the biggest difference:

  1. Always leave the normal light switch on and stick a smart switch next to it, with Hue for example the Smart Button from the starter set. It holds with an adhesive strip, you don't need an electrician
  2. Set up scenes, for example bright for cooking, warm for relaxing and dimmed for a film night
  3. Let the light get slowly brighter in the morning with a schedule, then you don't wake up in the dark
  4. With the Hue Bridge Pro and at least three Hue bulbs in one room, MotionAware switches the light on by itself as soon as you come in

What it takes off your hands

How much effort you save
Before
With smart bulbs
With normal bulbs
  • In the evening you fumble for the light switch in the dark
  • The light is always the same, whether you are cooking or relaxing
  • When you are out you remember that a light is still on at home
With smart bulbs
  • The light comes on by itself on your schedule or when you move
  • With one tap you get the right lighting mood
  • With one tap in the app you switch everything off, even when you are out
Right for you if …
  • You want the right lighting mood with one tap, for example for cooking, reading or a film night
  • The light should go on and off by itself in the morning and evening
  • You sometimes forget to switch off the light when you leave the house
  • You rent: you simply screw them in instead of the old bulbs and take them with you when you move out
To be honest
  • Smart bulbs cost much more than normal LED bulbs. You mainly pay for the convenience
  • Even when switched off they use a little electricity so they can listen to you. In the EU at most 0.5 watts per bulb is allowed, more on this in the questions below
  • If you switch them off at the normal light switch, they no longer react to the app or your voice. So leave the switch on and add a smart switch, as in the tip below
  • For all the Philips Hue features you need a Bridge, which costs extra once. The starter sets here already include it

Which model is right for you?

One recommendation for each price range. You can see the current price on Amazon.

These bulbs talk to a small hub, with Philips Hue it is called the Bridge. You connect it to your router, and the starter sets here already include it. In return you get the most features: schedules, scenes, control when you are out and lots of accessories such as switches and motion sensors. Philips Hue with Bridge was the test winner at Stiftung Warentest, Germany's best-known consumer tester (issue 2/2024).

Budget

Philips Hue Essential starter set

  • Bridge and four bulbs with colour and shades of white in one set
  • Same app and same system as the other Hue bulbs, you can add everything later
  • Strong colours: at the tech sites nextpit and TechRadar they looked hardly different from the more expensive Hue bulbs
  • Works with Alexa, Google and Apple Home

For you if you want to fit several lamps with Hue at a good price.

To be honest

It only dims down to 2 percent, the more expensive Hue bulbs down to 0.2 percent. For a really gentle wake-up light TechRadar found it too bright. With the Bridge from this set there is no MotionAware, for that you need the Bridge Pro. And according to the manufacturer it has energy class F, the more expensive Hue bulbs D. Switched off it uses 0.5 watts, the bulbs in the set with the Bridge Pro only 0.1 watts.

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My recommendation
Premium

Philips Hue White & Color Ambiance starter set with Bridge Pro

  • Test winner at Stiftung Warentest (good, grade 2.0, issue 2/2024). The previous bulb with the normal Bridge was tested
  • With MotionAware your bulbs become a motion sensor: with three bulbs or more in one room the light comes on when you walk in
  • Dims down very low, to 0.2 percent, and has many shades of white from very warm to cool
  • Large system: switches, motion sensors, light strips and outdoor lights go with it, also with Alexa, Google and Apple Home

My tip if you want to make your light really smart. I use Philips Hue myself, more on that under “My experience”.

To be honest

It is the most expensive set here. According to the manufacturer the new bulb generation uses around 40 percent less electricity than the tested one. According to the manufacturer the Bridge Pro controls more than 150 bulbs and connects to your router by cable or Wi-Fi.

See price on Amazon*

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Questions and answers

With or without a hub: which suits me?

Without a hub is the easiest start: screw in the bulb, connect it to your Wi-Fi or phone, done. That suits you if you want to make one or two lamps smart first. With a hub you pay more at the start, but you get the most features and lots of accessories, for example switches and motion sensors. That is worth it above all if you want to equip several rooms. With Philips Hue you can also start without a Bridge and add it later.

Does Philips Hue work without a Bridge?

Yes, by Bluetooth. Then you control up to ten bulbs directly with your phone, according to the manufacturer about ten metres away. That doesn't work when you are out, and you can only use schedules, routines and accessories to a limited extent. Most Hue bulbs work both ways. So you can add the Bridge at any time and keep your bulbs.

Bridge or Bridge Pro?

The normal Bridge controls up to 50 bulbs and 12 accessories such as switches, and it is connected to your router by cable. According to the manufacturer the Bridge Pro handles more than 150 bulbs and 50 accessories, it also connects by Wi-Fi, and only with it do you get MotionAware. If you don't need MotionAware, the normal Bridge is enough to start with, as in the Essential set.

What is MotionAware?

It turns your Hue bulbs themselves into a motion sensor. When someone moves in the room, the radio signals between the bulbs change, and the light comes on. You need the Bridge Pro and at least three Hue bulbs in the same room, but no extra motion sensor. According to the manufacturer almost all Hue bulbs take part, only some older models don't. MotionAware costs nothing extra for your light, only for alerts to your phone Hue charges a subscription. Walls between the bulbs can interfere. And so that your pet doesn't switch on the light, you set MotionAware to be less sensitive in the app.

Do smart bulbs use electricity when they are off?

Yes, a little, because they wait for your commands. In the EU a smart bulb may use at most 0.5 watts for this since September 2021. That is a good 4 kilowatt hours a year, at 37 cents per kilowatt hour, the average in Germany, so around €1.60 per bulb. According to the manufacturer the bulbs in the Hue set with Bridge Pro only need 0.1 watts for this, the cheaper Hue Essential 0.5 watts. For a lamp that is hardly ever on, for example in the storeroom, you are better off with a normal LED bulb.

What happens if I switch off the normal light switch?

Then the bulb has no power and no longer reacts to the app, schedule or voice. So leave the switch on and switch with the app or a smart switch. You simply stick the Hue switch on the wall, for example right next to the old one. There are also modules that go behind the normal light switch. But for those you work on the mains wiring, so if in doubt leave it to an electrician.

What happens if the internet goes down?

According to the manufacturer, with the Hue Bridge you can control your light even without the internet. In the Stiftung Warentest test, however, the Wi-Fi bulbs only reacted with a delay when the internet was down. And your normal light switch keeps working in any case.

Will they fit my lamps?

Look at the cap of your old bulb. Most lamps have the large E27 screw cap, and the bulbs here are for that. Hue and WiZ also come for the small E14 cap and for GU10 spots, then check the cap in the name when you buy. In the UK many lamps use the B22 bayonet cap. Hue and WiZ also sell B22 versions, so check the cap in the name.

And in Austria and Switzerland?

In Austria everything is the same as in Germany. In Switzerland the bulbs fit just the same, E27, E14 and GU10 are the same caps. You can also get Philips Hue and WiZ from Swiss retailers. If you order in Germany, look at the plug of the Bridge's power supply: a flat Europlug with two thin pins also fits Swiss sockets, a thick Schuko plug does not.

How did you choose the bulbs?

I have been using Philips Hue myself for about ten years. For the selection I read the test by Stiftung Warentest, Germany's best-known consumer tester (issue 2/2024, ten bulbs). Only two were good there: Philips Hue with Bridge as test winner and WiZ as the best bulb without a hub. Because the test is almost three years old, I also read newer tests from the tech sites nextpit, TechRadar and PCWorld, for example on Hue Essential and MotionAware, and compared the manufacturers' details. I couldn't find the new IKEA bulbs on Amazon, you can get them at IKEA itself.

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