Philips' HomeKit compatible Hue white ambiance bulbs now for sale

Philips on Monday announced immediate availability of Hue White Ambiance bulbs and starter kits, an addition to the company's smart light bulb lineup capable of integrating with Apple's HomeKit smart home framework.

As the name implies, Hue White Ambiance bulbs are designed for users who want smartphone control over home lighting, but don't need access to a wide spectrum of colors. The white LED light bulbs were announced in March alongside a revamped iOS app with support for lighting "Routines."

Positioned above the Hue White series, a connected replacement for conventional 60W bulbs, White Ambiance bulbs can be adjusted to emit cool daylight (6,500k) to warm white (2,200k) shades using the official Hue app. With a maximum output of 800 lumens at 4,000k, the product also supports dimming, a component controlled by software or the dimmer switch included in Philips' starter kit.

Philips says Hue White Ambiance lights can help users focus or relax depending on color temperature. To automate the process, the company introduced "Routines" in its last software update, allowing users to apply preconfigured lighting macros to their home systems. For example, the "wake up" routine gradually increases bulb brightness, while a "go to sleep" routine mimics the setting sun to prepare a user's body for sleep. The "nightlight" setting reduces blue light output to help with sleep cycles.

Hue White Ambiance is compatible with a number of smart home solutions, including Apple's HomeKit.

Philips Hue White Ambiance goes on sale today. A $129.95 starter kit includes a Hue hub, two bulbs and a dimmer switch, while single bulbs come in at $29.95.

10 Comments

patchythepirate 12 Years · 1254 comments

About 8 years ago

It's my understanding that the Apple TV can work as a hub. So why does Philips still have/require a hub? Am I missing something?

I've deliberately avoided the hassle of various apps and hubs to control homekit. I'm very much hoping that the rumor of a native, centralized Home app from Apple is accurate.

zimmie 9 Years · 651 comments

The Hue Hub is required because the bulbs talk using a wireless standard called Zigbee. It's relatively common in the light industrial world, but only recently starting to hit products most regular people want. The Hue Hub acts as a bridge between a Zigbee network and a regular IP network. That lets IP devices (like iPhone) talk with Zigbee devices (like Hue bulbs).

paulmjohnson 15 Years · 1368 comments

zimmie said:

The Hue Hub is required because the bulbs talk using a wireless standard called Zigbee. It's relatively common in the light industrial world, but only recently starting to hit products most regular people want. The Hue Hub acts as a bridge between a Zigbee network and a regular IP network. That lets IP devices (like iPhone) talk with Zigbee devices (like Hue bulbs).

That's absolutely right. My experience with my Hue has been that it makes adding new bulbs and switches significantly easier than what we'll call true "Internet of Things" devices that have TCP/IP stacks on the peripheral itself. Adding things like a Nest thermostat and camera, and the staggeringly expensive Lifx bulbs to my WiFi network has never gone exactly smoothly.

Plus, by only needing a Zigbee controller, the Philips bulbs are much cheaper than the likes of Lifx.

Ultimately I'm really pleased with Hue.

paulmjohnson said:
That's absolutely right. My experience with my Hue has been that it makes adding new bulbs and switches significantly easier than what we'll call true "Internet of Things" devices that have TCP/IP stacks on the peripheral itself. Adding things like a Nest thermostat and camera, and the staggeringly expensive Lifx bulbs to my WiFi network has never gone exactly smoothly.

Plus, by only needing a Zigbee controller, the Philips bulbs are much cheaper than the likes of Lifx.

Ultimately I'm really pleased with Hue.

zimmie said:

The Hue Hub is required because the bulbs talk using a wireless standard called Zigbee. It's relatively common in the light industrial world, but only recently starting to hit products most regular people want. The Hue Hub acts as a bridge between a Zigbee network and a regular IP network. That lets IP devices (like iPhone) talk with Zigbee devices (like Hue bulbs).

Ah, I see. Thanks for the reply.

onlyhope 9 Years · 39 comments

That's absolutely right. My experience with my Hue has been that it makes adding new bulbs and switches significantly easier than what we'll call true "Internet of Things" devices that have TCP/IP stacks on the peripheral itself. Adding things like a Nest thermostat and camera, and the staggeringly expensive Lifx bulbs to my WiFi network has never gone exactly smoothly.

Plus, by only needing a Zigbee controller, the Philips bulbs are much cheaper than the likes of Lifx.

Ultimately I'm really pleased with Hue.
I guess it just goes to show you that there is more than one approach to most things. I just added two Lifx White 800's to my media room lamps and it cost $60. No Hub required and it took less than 60sec to install the Lifx App on my iPad and another five minutes to add the Bulbs to my Harmony Entertainment Hub and Remote. If anything is "staggeringly expensive" it's the Philips Hue System.