LED Lights and HomeKit

Nice find, no dimmer controls and HomeKit only for now. So if you sell your home hope the new owner is a iOS user. Do like the look of those switches though.

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Have a few LIFX globes and I do like them. About to get a few downlights installed in my home office (garage) this week. For me, using Siri or the app isn’t too much of an issue as I have a homepod in the garage. Handy being able to walk in to the garage at night and turn the lights on with voice.
One quirk I have discovered though is that they operate on 2.4ghz WIFI. I have networks providing both 2.4ghz and 5ghz. If my phone switches to a 5ghz band, it will not work until I manually switch to 2.4ghz. Something to be aware of.

I wouldn’t have thought that was an issue… It shouldn’t matter if a device is using ethernet, or WiFi at any different frequency as long as they are all on the same network… unless there is some sort of direct sub communications from the phone to the devices???

According to their FAQ no Google/Alexa support and their app is iOS only so if wanting voice control and automations then a iOS device is needed. Can still use the switches to turn lights on/off, realise my post wasn’t that clear!

One quirk I have discovered though is that they operate on 2.4ghz WIFI. I have networks providing both 2.4ghz and 5ghz.

Hue also uses the 2.4GHz band. I think this is because the range is greater than 5GHz, and the data rate to the bulbs is very small. - wifi security cameras also use the 2.4GHz band - I guess that is why the new 4K cameras are all wired jobs, as they have a lot of data to transmit.

The bulbs are just devices on the network, using a different communication protocol than TCP/IP though (hence no need for them to authenticate with the wifi password), so maybe that is why the router wouldn’t deliver requests from your phone to the bulb when on the 5GHz band.

The Hue bridge is ethernet wired to the router, so communication from a phone app is via the bridge using TCP/IP I guess, and then Zigbee from the bridge to the bulb.

So much to learn by trial with this stuff. I have not found a decent guide on exactly how the system works.

Strange, I have 2 LiFX bulbs and a dual band router. I had to connect my phone to the 2.4ghz to set up the bulbs but after that it has been working fine.

I suspect it is due to the fact that I use an additional access point. It connects to the primary network but creates its own wireless networks. And my phone isn’t too smart at choosing or sticking to my preference.

I also have two LIFX lights. I had to switch my iPhone to 2.4GHz to set the lights up. Thereafter, my phone has been back on 5.4GHz and everything still works well.

I have setup my phone WiFi 2.4GHz band to only connect manually (Auto-Join off), so my phone always auto connects to the 5.4 GHz band.

I had to setup the lights using the LIFX app. They setup seemingly okay when I used Apple’s Home app, but they were not reliable, especially when controlled via an from an Automation.

Hi folks,
Sorry to dig up an old thread, but I am now about to bite the bullet and do the LED changeover. But with the introduction of Thread, I’m wondering if there are better options out there. I recently got a quote from an electrician who suggested SAL Wave lighting with a SAL Pixie gateway but I can’t see HomeKit support. I was initially just going to go with HPM switches / lights or Philips Hue like we talked about earlier. I now have some of the Nanoleaf bulbs in some lamps and love them as they use Thread and instantly turn on/off.

Just interested in peoples’ thoughts/experiences.