Beginner’s guide: New lamp is not found by the Hue Bridge

In the past few weeks I have been asked one question in particular. Therefore, I would like to use a rather quiet Saturday to explain this question: why is a new Philips Hue lamp not found in the app but the included dimmer switch works fine? Even the search by serial number does not bring success, the new lamp cannot be paired with the Hue Bridge.

This problem is especially frustrating for beginners since the simplest solution is not to be found in the user manual. In general, all Hue products that are delivered in a package with a dimmer switch are affected. The dimmer switch is directly connected to the lamp and the lamp does not want to be connected to the Hue Bridge just like that.

Reset new Philips Hue lamp with the dimmer switch

But the solution is very simple: simply hold the dimmer switch very close to the switched-on lamp, if possible exactly at the position where the ZigBee controller is located. Now press and hold the on/off button on the dimmer switch until the Hue lamp starts flashing after about 10 seconds and lights up again constantly after a few seconds.

With this method you can reset Philips Hue lamps back to factory settings – and now they should be found directly in the Hue app via the search and can be linked to the bridge. For luminaires with several GU10 spots, this procedure may have to be repeated with all spots. After that, just press the reset button on the back of the dimmer switch with a pin to find it in setup mode and pair it with the Hue Bridge as well.

If you have mounted a Hue lamp that was not supplied with a dimmer switch, this method will still work – you can use any dimmer switch you like, even existing ones. If you are having problems, it is also a good idea to first start the search process in the Hue app and then power up the lamp.