Just a few more days and 2023 will be history. I’d like to take a look back at the 12 months that began with the launch of the Philips Hue Sync TV app for Samsung TVs and ended with the launch of the Philips Hue Secure Camera. Throughout the year, Philips Hue has released a number of new products.
Apple introduced a new HomeKit architecture this year with iOS 16.4. Apart from the fact that the iPad can no longer be used as a home hub, not much has changed in terms of handling the system. However, there is a big change in the interaction with Philips Hue. Pairing with HomeKit is now only possible if you use a home hub in the same network.
Here in Germany, Christmas is usually celebrated on 24 December: Christmas Eve. We go to church in the afternoon, during which time the Christ Child puts presents under the tree for the children and in the evening we eat something delicious with the family. What is your schedule for the Christmas holidays?
In September 2020, Philips Hue launched the first “Gradient” product on the market. The Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box, which was released in 2019, was followed by the Philips Hue Play Gradient Lightstrip – a light strip for mounting behind the TV to create an Ambilight-like effect in combination with the Sync Box.
The Philips Hue Lightguide series was launched just over a year ago – if you can call it that. The Globe and Triangular versions were quickly discontinued due to quality problems, leaving only the Ellipse. And that’s exactly what Hueblog reader Tobi sent me a question about via Instagram: I would like to use a Hue Ellipse as a table lamp.
Light strips are a great thing and basically always work in the same way: you unroll them, stick them to a smooth surface and then enjoy the colourful light. And you can even extend the light strips, up to 10 metres in the case of Philips Hue, for example. However, both the Philips Hue Lightstrip Plus and the Philips Hue Ambiance Gradient Lightstrip have a problem: the power supply unit delivers a maximum of 20 watts and the maximum brightness remains identical.
The Philips Hue Play Gradient Light Tube is actually intended for installation under a TV that is already equipped with a Play Gradient Light Strip on the other three sides. However, the smart tube is versatile and also cuts a fine figure in the bedroom, for example. We’ve been using it in our son’s nursery since we switched to a new bed (again).
To round off the week, I would like to present you with some pretty tough news. It’s a press release from Signify, the manufacturer of Philips Hue, which you can read here. In a nutshell, it’s about restructuring and planned savings of 200 million euros per year. The good news from our point of view is that the four business areas that Signify wants to focus on in future also include the consumer business area with the Philips Hue and WiZ brands.
In my opinion, the Philips Hue wall switch module is one of the best accessories for the smart lighting system. It solves the problem of ceiling lighting being disconnected from the power supply and turns the classic switch on the wall, where everyone knows how to operate it, into a smart switch.
The update of the Philips Hue app to version 5.6, which is expected before Christmas, is still a long way off. However, new firmware for the Hue Bridge has been released in the last few days. You may have already received version 1961135030. You can check this in the settings of the Hue app.
Fabian