The guys from TWiT recently reviewed the Philips Hue Lux bulbs along with the interesting ‘Tap’ smart switch.
The Tap works without batteries by harnessing the kinetic energy in pushing the switch and it controls your Hue lights wirelessly.
The wireless system uses the Zigbee Green Power protocol (IEEE 802.15.4) and has a quoted range of 15 to 30 metres.
The unit has a 7.5 cm diameter and can be used freestanding or wall mounted.
While your Hue setup can of course be controlled from your smartphone or tablet it’s always good to have physical buttons for control, especially for visitors – a switch for your Mum?
Now control your hue lights in your home with just the push of a button. And there are four to choose from. One for a favorite scene. One for a light recipe. Or just one to switch some lights off. It’s all up to you.
It’s completely portable. You can mount it to the wall. Or leave it in a handy spot. Even take it around the house with you. When? For times when your phone is on charge. Or when the kids are playing with your tablet. Hue tap uses kinetic energy and is powered by your touch. So no batteries needed.
These useful B22 to E27 adaptors are ideal for converting the common UK bayonet lamp holders to screw in fittings to suit Hue. The Hue Tap Smart Switch is available now for around £50. Check out the video below.
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Last update on 2024-04-08 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Too complex for me never mind my mother
So they took EnOcean switch like this one http://www.eibmarkt.com/cgi-bin/eibmarkt.storefront/542bd1b90195444627604debae500697/Product/View/NS6510626 (price less than $40), replaced EnOcean radio with Zigbee and miraculously price doubled?!? Is Zigbee radio so expensive or is Philips so cash hungry?
Anyway, you can switch much more than bulbs without batteries http://youtu.be/0E4hv_31B9U
By the way, the original cheaper EnOcean device has more range that the quoted 15-30m.
I’ve got four of these at home – they are excellent and answered a need for physical control of lighting that has been too often overlooked…
The fact that the original EnOcean devices have a longer range will be due to their operation in the 868 MHz band and not the 2.4 GHz band of Zigbee.