The Philips Hue app has grown in complexity over the previous a number of years, with increasingly more new options and settings being tucked into the person interface. That makes all of it too straightforward to overlook the newest and biggest in Hue performance.
Besides such newer options as mild alarms and “mimic presence,” there are additionally outdated favorites like mild timers and fade durations. Taken collectively, these (typically properly hidden) options can add polish to your Hue routines, maintain your day by day schedules on observe, and even shield your own home from would-be intruders.
Read on for six hidden Hue options it’s essential to strive, beginning with…
Mimic presence mode
Philips Hue lately made the bounce into the house safety market, including a sequence of Hue Secure-branded cameras along with door and window sensors and floodlights, But even for those who’re not able to spend money on a Hue digital camera, you possibly can nonetheless enhance your safety with this built-in Hue characteristic.
Just activate the “Mimic Presence” mode, and the Hue app will routinely flip your lights on and off to “mimic the activities that would be expected in those types of rooms,” excellent for scaring off burglars or anybody else considering of sneaking into your empty dwelling.
The “Mimic presence” characteristic is tucked into a protracted listing of choices on the Automations display screen. Tap it, choose a number of rooms, then choose some or all of the lights related to the room. You may set the mode to run all day, or solely when it’s darkish exterior.
To set off the “Mimic presence” mode, simply find it on the Automations tab and faucet the “Play” button, or “Stop” to deactivate the mode. You may set a Hue button to show “Mimic presence” on or off, or map the mode to a Hue smartphone widget.
Light alarms
Here’s one other Hue characteristic that may assist maintain your own home protected. Rather than utilizing audible alarms to beat back intruders, the Hue app can set off light-based alarms that quickly flash some or your entire Hue lights, very best for spooking crooks in addition to alerting your neighbors that one thing’s amiss.
To use mild alarms, you’ll want a supporting machine resembling a Hue Secure digital camera, a Hue movement sensor (there are indoor and outdoor fashions), or a Hue contact sensor. You’ll additionally must allow the Hue Security middle (Settings > Security).
As you’re configuring Hue Security, it’s going to information you thru the method of establishing a light-weight alarm. For instance, you’ll have the ability to determine which lights in your house ought to flash when the alarm is tripped, in addition to whether or not your lights ought to flash white or purple.
You can set your Philips Hue mild alarms to flash both white or purple.
Ben Patterson/Foundry
Besides a flashing mild alarm, it’s also possible to create automations that set off mild scenes when a Hue sensor detects exercise. For instance, I created an automation that prompts a vibrant mild scene in my downstairs dwelling workplace every time the upstairs kitchen door is opened, useful for letting me know when my daughter comes dwelling from college.
In my case, I drilled right down to the settings for my Hue door and window sensors (Settings > Devices > Sensors > Contact Sensors), chosen the lights that I wished triggered (Office), then regulate the Behavior settings (“Bright” when the door is opened, “Return to previous state” when the door is closed).
Fade length
The Hue app gives each get up and sleep automations that may steadily enhance or dim the brightness within the morning or at evening, however it’s also possible to set any mild scenes to steadily fade in or out.
I discover the “fade duration” setting notably useful for easily altering daytime mild scenes from, say, a heat morning glow to a cooler daytime look, all with out making anybody within the room do a double-take. (The Hue app additionally has a “Natural Light” scene that modifications the sunshine temperature all through the day, with an optionally available “transition time” between every time window. I simply occur to choose my very own scene settings.)
Whenever you create a customized automation (faucet the Automations tab, then faucet the blue “+” button within the top-right nook of the display screen), the Fade Duration possibility will seem as you’re setting the beginning time for the routine. The length itself can final for anyplace between 5 minutes to an hour.
If you’re adjusting an present scene, you’ll must faucet “Start at” or “End at” to entry the Fade Duration setting.
Light results
Hue lights can do extra than simply shine in strong colours or white colour temperatures. They may flicker, shimmer, and pulse in quite a lot of shades, excellent for simulating a candle, a hearth, or a lava lamp.
Just choose any of your Hue lights in a room, then faucet the Effects button (the one with a shiny icon) subsequent to the colour and white colour temperature controls. You’ll then see quite a lot of mild results, relying on the kind of Hue mild you’ve chosen. Dimmable-only Hue white lights will provide Candle results, whereas dimmable and tunable White Ambience lights will add Glisten and Sparkle results. While and Color Ambience lights get much more results, together with Fireplace, Underwater, Cosmos, and Opal, all with totally different colour choices.
Among the Hue mild results you possibly can select are Candle, Fireplace (left), Underwater, and Cosmos (center). You may regulate the colour, brightness, and pace for any of the consequences (proper).
Ben Patterson/Foundry
Even higher, you possibly can create your individual customized impact for every class; faucet Create Fireplace, for instance, and you may choose your individual colour, in addition to regulate the brightness and pace.
Once you’ve added results for various lights in a room, you possibly can create a scene with these results by tapping the Save button.
Animated mild scenes
Speaking of scenes, you possibly can animate any Hue scene in a room (that’s, any scenes except for fundamental scenes like Bright, Dimmed, and Nightlight) with a single faucet.
If you see a “Play” icon on a light-weight scene, strive tapping it; while you do, the scene will animate itself, pulsing gently in keeping with its personal rhythm. Tap the Edit button to alter the brightness or pace of the animation, or to make the scene animate itself by default.
Light timers
Need to set a timer however hate the blare of an audible alarm? Just because the Hue app gives mild alarms, it additionally has mild timers that may activate lighting scenes after a set length of time.
This characteristic is a part of TechHive’s in-depth protection of the best smart lighting products.
Tap the “+” button on the Automations display screen, then choose the Timer possibility. You’ll must set how lengthy the timer ought to final (anyplace from a minute to 24 hours), which room or rooms will probably be included (or your complete dwelling, for those who like), and which scene you’d like activated when the timer ends.
Once that’s all set, you’ll see your new timer with a “Play” button on the prime of your listing of automations. Press the Play button, and when the countdown ends, the timer will set off the lighting scene you chose.