I’ve just switched to the Home app for now. Google has actually fixed all my complaints about it - now it launches to the favorites screen which can have devices or groups. I have mine set to show my two cameras and the light group for each room, and that’s basically all I want.
If they end up making it so you have to be logged in to even use the lights with the Home app, I’ll just switch to something else.
If I’m not mistaken it’s possible to add bulbs via bridge alone due to how they work.
That being said, stop buying hue bulbs. Once you have home assistant you can integrate other brands into the mix. Don’t reward Phillips after they try to steal your information.
Yeah this is the problem for sure. The generic-zigbee-usb-stick approach might work today, but I'd still be wary.
This year it's "Hue Hub now requires cloud account".
Next year, we get to "Firmware updates now require Hue Hub". Annoying - and someone will probably work around it - but not realistically a long-term strategy. Better hope that the security/functionality holds up long term with whatever version you're running. With firmware supporting Matter seemingly coming out about the same time as this change, that could be a very real problem.
A bit further down the line, we arrive at "All Hue products released after <date> only work with the Hue Hub". And then it's all over. What was open is now closed, and it's the end of the line for anyone who refuses to capitulate.
In theory, you're fine to keep using he things you currently own. In practice, they're almost certainly going to make that as difficult as possible for you.
Better to vote with your wallet. As a few people have suggested in various threads around the internet, the kind of bait-and-switch they've pulled might well entitle you to a full refund if your country has consumer protection laws that are worth a damn.
You can repurpose it to spots that don’t need the smart feature. I only have a couple bulbs, but they’ve now found their way into my basement where I don’t need smart lights. That way the bulbs don’t go to waste since they still work with a simple light switch still.
Until someone flicks the light and they end up flashing for forever… I have off brand ones I’ve done that with for security reasons and a few months ago we ate dinner with those lights flashing. It helped not to make eye contact with my wife, she didn’t find it as funny as I did.
The off brand do that, yes. But I don’t think Phillips do as easily. I think it has to be 3 quick on-off’s to reset them. Using them as a normal light should be fine. We have been using it for a few months now as I moved them out when I converted to matter
No, it’s not at all the same company, despite using the same Philips brand. Philips split up into several separate companies. The healthcare division is the only thing left of the original Philips company.
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