Endless Opportunities

There are endless smart light solutions out there, most of them are not as smart as they claim to be, but let’s start from the beginning.

Two major things decide how much you can do with your smart lights – their hardware capabilities and the accompanying software which enables you to really use those theoretical capabilities.

Things to look out for in regards to the hardware

• Fitting and form factor
  Next to the maximum brightness, the form factor often gets neglected. It makes all the difference if you have to look directly into a tiny light bulb to get your desired bright light intensity or if you have a big diffuse panel your eyes have no problem looking at directly. We recommend indirect lighting for most use cases, especially in the evening.
• Light spectrum & color accuracy
  Almost all smart lights are based on LED technology, which traditionally has a suboptimal light spectrum. This can lead to fatigue and unnatural colors. More suppliers now share their “CRI” value, which indicates how closely the light imitates the real sunlight spectrum. A value above CRI 90 is considered good quality.
• Light temperature
  Many smart lights can change the temperature of their lights. Look for keywords like “tunable white,” “CCT (correlated color temperature),” or “HCL (human-centric lighting).” Anything around or beneath 3000K is considered warm white, and anything above 5000K is cold white (sunlight is about 5600K). Use warm white in the evening (at minimum brightness) and cold white in the morning.
• Maximum and minimum brightness
  The maximum light output is measured in lumens (lm). Many people focus on brightness while neglecting dimming capabilities. Some light controllers only offer fixed dimming steps, while others start off too bright. A good range for a light bulb would be 1 – 1500 lm, replacing a 100W incandescent bulb.
• Ecosystem expandability
  We prefer systems that allow continued use of normal wall switches. Look for products that work with “Alexa” or “Google Home” to ensure compatibility with home automation systems.

Things to look out for in regards to the software

• Automatic dimming during the day
  This concept, called “human-centric lighting (HCL),” mimics natural light changes. HCL provides bright, cold light in the morning and automatically dims to a soft warm white in the evening.
• Light alarm clock feature
  Imagine waking up to a brightly lit house—this makes getting out of bed easier. Many suppliers offer this feature, and DIY methods are also available.

Overall, the Philips Hue Ecosystem covers most use cases. It is easy to integrate, offers robust software, and works with smart home control systems (e.g., Alexa, Google Assistant). However, it currently lacks a strong HCL implementation.

For a more affordable option, the MiLight Brand offers a variety of lights with specs similar to Philips Hue.