Question 1

How do I start "reimagining" my home with Philips Hue?

Accepted Answer

To reimagine your home with smart light that perfectly fits the way you live at home, all you need to do is start adding Hue smart lights around your space, both indoor and out. Installation is simple and DIY-friendly, whether you're adding smart bulbs to existing lamps and light fittings for mood, functional lighting, or to boost your wellbeing with white light that supports your circadian rhythm to help you wake, work, relax, and fall asleep. Hue lights are controllable and customisable using Bluetooth or a Bridge smart home hub in conjunction with the Hue app on your smartphone. A Hue Bridge or Bridge Pro unlock the full suite of smart lighting and smart home features. Bluetooth control offers more limited functionality but it's also a great way to get started with smart lighting!

Question 2

Do I have to be "techy" to use smart lights?

Accepted Answer

We don't think so! The Philips Hue app guides you through set up, and installation is as simple as... well, screwing in a light bulb. Plus, we have plenty of online how-to guides, videos and support pages to help you get set up and keep on expanding your Philips Hue smart home.

Question 3

Where in my home is a good place to start?

Accepted Answer

It depends on what you want to do with your smart lights. Most people start in the living room or bedroom. Wherever you start, make sure that you first put multiple lights in the same room — that's how you see the true effect of smart lighting.

Question 4

What about my lights and lamps that have integrated non-smart lights?

Accepted Answer

Philips Hue makes a smart plug and smart switches that you can use to control your non-smart lights with the Philips Hue app. Just plug your light in to the smart plug or add a smart switch module to your wall switches to integrate them into your Hue smart light system and control them with the Hue app.

Question 5

Can I expand my smart lighting system over time?

Accepted Answer

Yes, of course! That’s the beauty of the Philips Hue smart light system. You can go bulb-by-bulb, room-by-room, and keep expanding your set-up at your own pace. There is no minimum amount of Hue smart lights required, although we recommend starting with at least two or three smart lights to start enjoying the benefits of smart lighting.

Question 6

Can I control my lights when I'm away from home?

Accepted Answer

Yes! If you use your setup with a Philips Hue Bridge smart hub, you can control your smart lights from anywhere in the world using the Hue app.

Question 7

What makes Philips Hue colour lights different?

Accepted Answer

The latest versions of Philips Hue colour lights (the white and colour ambience/colour-capable range) are RGBWW, which means that they have five LEDs: red, green, blue, cool white at 2200 K and warm white at 6500 K. This means Philips Hue colour-capable light can produce millions of colours and tones of white light.

Question 8

What’s the difference between a smart hub and a Hue Bridge?

Accepted Answer

Nothing – the Philips Hue Bridge and Hue Bridge Pro are smart hubs!

Question 9

Why do some setups require a Philips Hue Bridge?

Accepted Answer

Some features, such as syncing lights to a TV screen, are a little more advanced. There is some complex computing going on inside the Bridge that makes all these features possible.

Question 10

Can I start with Bluetooth and add a Bridge later?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely! All Philips Hue lights are Zigbee-ready, so you can switch to a Bridge any time.

Question 11

Do I always have to use the Hue app to control my lights?

Accepted Answer

Nope! There are plenty of ways to control Philips Hue smart lights. You can set up automations, so your lights turn on and off on a schedule. You can install dimmer switches, tap dial switches or smart buttons if you prefer a physical switch. You can also use voice control — just pair your setup with your smart home assistant.

Question 12

Does Philips Hue use my Wi-Fi bandwidth?

Accepted Answer

Philips Hue doesn’t use much Wi-Fi bandwidth – most of the time, it uses local network communication instead.

Here’s how it works:

Hue Bridge devices (lights, sensors, buttons) connect to the Hue Bridge using Zigbee, not Wi-Fi. Zigbee is a low-power wireless protocol designed specifically for smart home devices. Because of this, your Hue lights, switches, cameras and sensors generally do not consume your Wi-Fi bandwidth for their normal operation.
The Hue Bridge itself connects to your router with an Ethernet cable, but it uses only small amounts of network traffic to communicate with the Hue cloud service for remote access and app control, download firmware updates, relay commands from the Hue app.

Endless possibilities with Hue smart lighting

Bulbs

Light fixtures

Lamps

Starter Kits

How to get started and create natural ambience

See what Hue can do...

Ambience lighting FAQ