smart lighting
Latest
Govee’s chatbot programs your smart lights for you
Govee is adding Matter compatibility to its newest lighting products, and a new chatbot will apparently program your lighting setups with ease.
What happens when smart bulbs meet dumb software?
Over the holiday period, I tried to update my Philips Hue bridge, and that's a far harder process than it needs to be.
You'll soon be able to control your Philips Hue sync box from the main app
It's also releasing a number of new Philips Hue smart lights and music integration with Samsung Galaxy devices.
Nanoleaf Lines are customizable smart light bars
Lines will let you draw stick images over your wall and light them as you wish.
Ring devices will soon work with Lutron's smart lighting systems
You can set your lights to turn on for a while when Ring devices detect movement.
Philips Hue’s latest smart bulb is blindingly bright
Philips Hue reveals its brightest smart bulb yet and updates to the Lighstrip and Bloom table lamp.
Nanoleaf’s next light panels will apparently learn and adapt to you (updated)
Nanoleaf is known for its colorful, modular wall lighting tiles which sync with your music and gaming controls. At CES last year, it showed off its smart home control unit, an illuminated dodecahedron. Now, for CES this year, it has announced an integrated learning lighting system.
Philips seems to be working on more Hue outdoor lights
The Philips Hue smart lightbulb lineup already includes some outdoor lighting, but rumor has it that Philips will introduce more outdoor options, likely at CES. According to a leaked product catalog, found by Hueblog.de, Philips Hue is planning a pretty big expansion of its offerings.
Amazon-owned Ring is preparing its first smart light bulb
Ring is branching out from its usual doorbells and security cameras to produce truly connected lighting, although it's probably not going to replace your corner table lamps any time soon. An FCC filing has revealed that the Amazon-owned firm is prepping a Bluetooth-capable light bulb. It appears to be a floodlight that would complement Ring's existing security systems, but it's still a significant step for a company whose dedicated lighting has so far been limited to self-contained systems rather than screw-in bulbs.
Insert Coin: Luminode dimmer switch runs on a mesh network, learns to light up our lives (video)
In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you'd like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with "Insert Coin" as the subject line. Just a simple light switch, you say? Look closer. Think Automatic's Luminode dimmer switch hides both a processor and a mesh network connection that lets every switch in the home coordinate with each other. A multi-tap system makes it possible to link multiple lights together without extra wiring or complex programming, but that's just the start: it's possible to create "scenes" of predefined lighting levels and, with a USB adapter, hook up to home automation systems (including Think Automatic's own) that can learn usage habits, track energy consumption or simply let us control the array with our smartphones. The platform uses raw XML to communicate and already talks to GE, Insteon and Stargate hardware -- all without requiring a huge grid of buttons or displays. Development of the Luminode is very nearly done after six-plus years of work in Seattle. The hardware is fundamentally ready and just needs the Kickstarter project to finish its FCC and UL testing along with the obligatory mass production. The hope is to start delivering switches in January as well as integrate more closely with non-lighting elements in the future. Pledge levels are dictated almost exclusively by volume: $130 is what it takes to get a basic two-switch kit, $260 will add the USB adapter along with an extra switch, and successive levels scale all the way up to a 50-switch, $3,000 kit for large homes. Think Automatic has a relatively low $35,000 threshold to meet its Kickstarter funding, but it only has 13 days left to go. If you like the idea of advanced lighting that doesn't require an advanced appreciation of the user manual to understand, now's a good time to click the source link and make it happen.
GreenChip lighting lets you flip the switch remotely, thumbs nose at IPv4 depletion
Despite the looming IPv4 apocalypse, a new lighting system coming out of NXP Semiconductors promises an "IP address for every light bulb." The GreenChip "smart lighting solution" incorporates NXP chipsets into both LED and compact fluorescents to enable dimming, extended lifespans, quick start times, and IP connectivity -- via IPv4 or IPv6. Proprietary network software allows users to control their bulbs from smartphones, PCs, and other devices, enabling them to fiddle with mood lighting -- including adjusting color -- via a specific IP address. So at least when IPv4 doomsday finally descends someone will have their lighting just right. Video and PR after the break.
MIT developing smart adaptive LED lighting system to reduce energy use by up to 90 percent
It's very well that manufacturers are constantly pushing for more efficient LEDs, but we can do better than that: what if we could have an LED lighting system that pumps out just the right amount of juice to suit our changing environment? That's exactly what the tree huggers at MIT are working on right now. Said adaptive system relies on a small box that not only acts as a position tracker, calibrator and sensor for the dimmable overhead LED fixtures, but also lets the user set the desired tone and light intensity for the room. In other words: no matter how sunny or cloudy it is outside, you'll still be comfortably basking in the same steady shine in your room, while also saving up to 90 percent of energy. Our guess is that Philips -- the project's sponsor -- will eventually release a product based on this technology, but for now, you can see the system in action after the break (from 1:07).
