In my last published list of the five oldest Hue products that are still being sold, the Hue Smart Button did not appear. The small switch was released on October 21, 2019 – so it’s already five years old. While the Hue Dimmer Switch and Hue Tap have received updates in the meantime, the Hue Smart Button shown in the cover image above has so far been left empty-handed.
Last Tuesday, Philips Hue released a major update for its own app. Among other things, a function was added to start and stop the new sleep automations with a switch. However, so far only Tap Dial Switch, wall switch modules, Tap and Friends of Hue switches are supported. However, this should change soon, as a recently released software update for the Hue Bridge shows.
I was able to draw your attention to this upcoming innovation back in September. Now Philips Hue has apparently started to slowly roll out the new functions. I have discovered the first comments from the community both on social networks and here in the comments. Specifically, it’s about the Hue Smart Button and the Hue Dimmer Switch, both of which have been available on the market for some time.
Late last year, Philips Hue introduced the Natural Light feature. A 24-hour scene that adjusts colour temperature throughout the day, always providing the optimal white light for your well-being: Cool, activating white tones in the morning and relaxing warm white in the evening. In the last few months, the smart scene has already received several updates, including the ability to switch between time periods faster or slower if desired.
It’s time again to show you a small Hue installation from my own four walls. Nothing spectacular, but maybe something to stimulate your thoughts and reflections. The focus is on the Philips Hue Play Gradient Lightstrip for the PC. This has been on the market since last September and is available in three different configurations: for monitors from 24 to 27 and 32 to 34 inches or triple setups with three 24 to 27 inch screens.
Earlier this year, Philips Hue didn’t make any huge announcements apart from the Hue Sync TV app. A new outdoor wall lamp, the launch date for the Hue Go table lamp in Europe and an alternative version of the Hue Tap Dial switch. So far, the switch comes with an 8 x 8 centimetre magnetic wall mount that also fits beautifully on an empty switch box.
Looking for a little news for you guys, I stumbled across a post on Reddit by automation_bot1337 that really fascinated me. He built a mount for the Philips Hue Smart Button with lighting. In addition to craft skills, this also required some knowledge of the Node-Red programming language – and unfortunately I can’t help you any further here at the latest.
Unlike the Friends of Hue switches known in Europe, the Lutron Aurora offers a completely different design. Not without reason, because it was developed for American light switches and can be easily plugged onto them. This prevents the classic light switch from being operated – and at the same time provides a smart control.
The Philips Hue Smart Button has found many fans in recent weeks, even though it is very resource-intensive and expensive. Today, I would like to point out a function that the Hue Smart Button does not yet implement in a good way. It’s all about the dimming function which is actually quite well integrated.
A few weeks ago I already presented the SM216 from Samotech to you. With the switch adapter, mounting the Hue Smart Button over an existing light switch should not be a problem anymore. Now I can confirm: conversion is really very easy. Unfortunately, the Samotech SM216 is not yet available in stores.
Fabian
Mel