I have had Alexa for 2 months now, bought 4 TP Link plugs (when £16:49 at Argos), so I can switch on Lamps/Led Colour strips, a spare socket for Amazon Fire/chromecast and another for the Kettle.
Just had Hive installed (£183) so am waiting for those bulbs to be £13 or better again
Got Alexa plus 2 Dots, one dot linked to the KS Soundbar that was on here for £59 (now £170), the remote enables me to switch tracks so saved me £20 for a Fire remote. The other Dot is linked to my trusty 30 year old amp via The Bluetooth adapter which cost me £12:95.
The sound is superb through my amp via bluetooth.
Very handy to leave the kitchen with a cup a tea in each hand while asking Alexa to switch the LED's off.
Kettle is now always left half full with the switch down so I can boil it from upstairs.
The Hive central heating is probably the best smart addition so far. Water and Heating can be put on or off via text from anywhere in the world.
I'm hooked.
tan159 to craigstephens
13 Jan 173#10
It connects to your router & leaves a massive security hole to the outside world. Also talks back to China servers.
Yep, I've got one of these and the multi light one. The app is ok, just don't use the Yeelight app as the Echo won't work with it. Get the Xiaomi MiHome one and you'll be fine.
craigstephens
12 Jan 172#5
I just don't get smart lighting, I mean really, what's the point?
learoy1 to craigstephens
12 Jan 171#6
control your lights from anywhere, anytime using any device.
full control of brightness/colour/hue.
set timers so lghts come on at set times or sunset etc
set lights to auto turn on as you come home/leave using geolocation, turn off when you go to bed/wake up.
lights flash when smoke alarm detected, flash a certain colour for text messages etc.
lights can be set to come on at random while away on holiday to appear as if someone home.
i'm sure there's more but think that should do.
Do people who have smart lights use any of those functions regularly? probably not.
tan159 to craigstephens
13 Jan 173#10
It connects to your router & leaves a massive security hole to the outside world. Also talks back to China servers.
sbellseb
12 Jan 171#7
Can you switch them off without the app but leave the switch on the lamp on.
I like technology, the wife doesn't. She would turn it off at the lamp, but when I come homeward and activate my geolocation it won't switch on..... Or am i missing something?
justonemorepie to sbellseb
12 Jan 17#8
no. If you turn the power off at the switch, you will need to turn it back on before you can control the bulb remotely.
In fairness it only leaves a security hole if it's poorly configured. UPnP can set up port forwarding automatically, which is great for some things ("Hey my brand new PS4 just works for online multiplayer!") but terrible for other things ("Hey my unsecured webcam can be connected to from the outside world!"). The solution is to disable UPnP port mapping, though be prepared for various services to be worse afterwards.
DS5
13 Jan 17#13
This don't fit all B22 pendants as the narrow section at the base isn't long enough. The IKEA ones are better if you have one nearby.
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Opening post
Download the Yeelight app (not the MiHome app as previously advised) and it works just fine :smiley:
Top comments
Just had Hive installed (£183) so am waiting for those bulbs to be £13 or better again
Got Alexa plus 2 Dots, one dot linked to the KS Soundbar that was on here for £59 (now £170), the remote enables me to switch tracks so saved me £20 for a Fire remote. The other Dot is linked to my trusty 30 year old amp via The Bluetooth adapter which cost me £12:95.
The sound is superb through my amp via bluetooth.
Very handy to leave the kitchen with a cup a tea in each hand while asking Alexa to switch the LED's off.
Kettle is now always left half full with the switch down so I can boil it from upstairs.
The Hive central heating is probably the best smart addition so far. Water and Heating can be put on or off via text from anywhere in the world.
I'm hooked.
All comments (61)
http://www.gearbest.com/smart-light-bulb/pp_278478.html?utm_source=tt_de
full control of brightness/colour/hue.
set timers so lghts come on at set times or sunset etc
set lights to auto turn on as you come home/leave using geolocation, turn off when you go to bed/wake up.
lights flash when smoke alarm detected, flash a certain colour for text messages etc.
lights can be set to come on at random while away on holiday to appear as if someone home.
i'm sure there's more but think that should do.
Do people who have smart lights use any of those functions regularly? probably not.
I like technology, the wife doesn't. She would turn it off at the lamp, but when I come homeward and activate my geolocation it won't switch on..... Or am i missing something?