Budget smart light test - do they actually work?? 

Thanks for a very interesting video! I've resisted smart products in general as many of them appear to be solutions in search of a problem rather than something useful. As an IT person myself I always think of the saying "Remember the S in IOT stands for security" (as in there is none 😢)

Honestly, I have a lot of smart tech throughout our house but they require a good foundation. Having lots of devices connected to consumer/ISP grade wireless routers tends to yield poor results. Having bulbs controlled over the internet can also be a big issue (with latency, connection dropouts etc). Generally I would recommend something like Hue or another Zigbee based bulb so that it is separate to your IT infrastructure. For best results look to manage the wireless frequency to avoid interference.

We recently started using the Tapo ones by TP link and honestly they've been great. Doing the whole house with bulbs and dimmers was a lot cheaper, quicker, and less messy than re-chasing the three switches we wanted to move through block walls. Being able to control the temperature is a plus, and group lights up so one switch does what four did in the past in the kitchen. They aren't perfect, but a huge improvement on before!

Brilliant video… You do the stuff I’d love to do if I had the time / patience! Well done - really!

Hi Andy, we've got Philips Hue smart bulbs at home and they just work very well, I can warm recommend it.

We’ve got the hive ones in a few rooms like the bedrooms, landing, front door, lounge…generally the pendant type ones we want to be able to dim, switch on/off remotely. 99% of the time they work perfectly.

Have a hive system seems to work well but was pain to get fitted. But works fine in our house

I've got some dim to warm bulbs from Elesi/Soho lighting, which work with a normal (LED) dimmer. They get warmer as they dim and that's it, no smart nonsense inbuilt and they work amazingly! Although no app/wifi control obviously. I think the only way to go smart is with smart switches, I may go for some Lutron RA2 switches eventually myself as I've heard great things although quite pricey.

I have installed a number of Philips Hue bulbs and dimmers, and have not in the least experienced the unreliability issues Gosforth Handyman did. I'd say they have been at least 99% reliable. Once in a while things are spotty but in general they behave exactly as dumb devices do: turn on the switch and the light turns on, operate the dimmer and the light dims, turn them off and they go off (no pulling breakers). In order to adjust things like color balance you have to go to the phone app (which I don't particularly like) but otherwise the devices just work. They use a Zigby network, not the Wi Fi directly. One bulb can "talk" to another and relay your commands without them all having to be near the router--or in this case, the "Hue Hub". I suspect the kits are quite a bit more expensive than what is shown here, but a lot cheaper than hiring an electrician. My main motivation, like Gosforth Handyman, is to avoid old work wire pulling. I think the ability to adjust color temperature according to time of day, potentially improving sleep patterns, is nifty, though I haven't implemented it yet. I am not interested in colored lights for parties or houses of ill repute. I am even less interested in having my lights beat in time to music, or talking to some eavesdropping smart home hub to control the lights. I keep control local, no Internet. I'm under no delusion this is 100% secure but am willing to accept the risks for the benefits. Honestly, if my experience were like this video, I would take out the bulbs, throw them away, install the switches and dimmers and pull the wires (then hire someone to patch up the walls because I'm not good at that kind of work).

There is 'smart' and 'too smart' !! I can't imagine them having a use in my house and I am perfectly happy to have changed everything to LED and if we want mood lighting we have candles!!

I know others will have mentioned this but home assistant with a zigbee network is probably best bet. Although the real power of home assistant is you can have a combination of WiFi / zigbee whatever else all integrated within a single system. All open source, all locally managed so don't have to worry about who has your data. I just bought a £70 low powered mini PC to run it all off. I'm still pretty basic in my use but I've got lights that come on during sunset, sensors on my doors to know when people are coming and going, scenes for my living room dependent on what I'm doing. Plus temperature and humidity monitors scattered around for tracking heating effectiveness. It would be a great way to automate your co2 meter and extractors in the studio - could even build in levels of warning if co2 continues to rise (ie alarms, push notifications on phones etc). One of the best products I've come across are candeo zigbee dimmer switches, look normal and turn your lights smart (although obviously can't change colours). Similarly sonoff zbmini2 extremes are incredible bits of kit that you can put behind existing light switches to make them smart - without needing a neutral or a battery. Still feels like magic.

I've had hue since 2017, around 30 bulbs and no complaints. I've got some other smart items that aren't big branded and they too have intermittent issues.

It's not just smart bulbs. I found that I had similar problems with dimmable led bulbs. Took a number of changes of switch and bulbs to eliminate the buzzing sound. Finally Wickes dimmer and Toolstation bulbs did the trick. You can 6 bulbs from toolstation opposed to 1 from B&Q.

Hi Andy hope your well, all that from a bulb it is amazing, but I'll stick to my standard LED bulbs there are fine and my old 40 watt bulb in the porch it still works must have been there over 10 years now I will keep it till it goes it's not on for long about a minute. As always a great video take care

We only have one smart light, it was stupidly expensive, came from Germany, took weeks to arrive, but it works just fine. It is a complete fitting, not just a lamp. The only issue I have with it is when there is an update for the app, I sometimes have to re-add it which can be a pain due to the 2.4Ghz frequency used but once re-added it's fine.

I use energizer but I wish I’d found SwitchBot first as I love there products. My bathroom has a SwitchBot door thing and it auto puts lights on and in the middle of the night it’s not as bright xx

As someone that has mobility issues we have smart bulbs in most rooms in and out of the house, and Google assistants in a number of rooms as well and they’re all extremely helpful. I agree with other comments about the routers, I originally used TP Link bulbs and each one connected to the BT router which was problematic. I’ve now installed a Philips Hue hub and run mostly INNR bulbs with that, although still got a few of the old ones and LED strips kicking about. I think Google home devices have gone downhill so contemplating switching to Amazon, but otherwise we love having useful ‘smart home’ stuff - although I’d never trust it for locks! But our security cameras and more can all run on their own hubs (less stress on the router) as well as tie in with the whole system which is useful. TL:DR - individual bulbs suck, but stuff running on its own hub can be very useful IMO

My dad is an electrical engineer, and he always said it’s not a bulb, they go in the garden, that’s a lamp and it goes into a light fitting.

Ikea smart bulbs are a really good option for a simple plug and play smart lighting setup. They have a physical controller which you can use to dim/change colour which doesn't rely on wifi, but if you want to get more complicated you can connect them to a wifi controller and control via app etc. PS love the channel Andy!

Got a couple of smart bulbs because they came free with other stuff. They are nothing special, though the kids make use of hte colour changing one. I do however have smart switches in just about every room. All voice controllable, but also not reliant on cloud connection. I use Home Assistant - not a rabbit hole you want to go down unless you have spare time to kill :) For the most part, it does work, some automations based on motion but I try not to remove functionality by making things voice only so light switches still do what you would expect.

I use Philips Hue and haven’t used a light switch for almost five years. Control and automation runs on the Hue Bridge, so no problems if internet access is lost. I’ve got motion sensors all round the house and have automation to do things like turn a light on if I get up late at night but set to dim red.

Hey Andy, first time commenting - love your videos btw. I use Kasa smart bulbs and plugs by TP link and they’re great, but I don’t think they have GU10’s in their range sadly.

is that projector using 2.4ghz ? seems a coincidence the two lights not reacting is next to it , i dont know if its on or its using any network at all interfering

Have I missed the projector 8:31 installation or has it not featured in a video yet?

I'm just wondering, if the spot lights in the lounge were 'not' sunk into the ceiling they may have a better connection to the wifi..?? Like if you swapped out the sunken spots in the lounge for the type of spots you have in the kitchen..?? Or just leave the spots, in the lounge hanging down to see if you get a better connection..??

I put Ikea in bedroom a couple of years ago , voice controlled.Go to bed, choose one for reading then just say lights off. No colours but temperature and dimming. Swich by door, one side of bed only. Table lamps you have to sit up and twist.Best answer would be cords but needs a lot of work by an electrician. Button control both sides of bed as main switch disables everything. Works fine while wi-fi and hub stable but occasionally fail and a pain going round resetting hub and router which of course stops everything else (phones,tv,tablets, PCs , thermostats) for a while. Would not put in for anybody else but not taking them out.

TL:DR: I bought smart GU10's 2 years ago, had issues at first, but upgraded my Wi-Fi to a Mesh and Now they work perfectly. About 2 years ago I bought some Lepro GU10 bulbs from Amazon, 6 to be exact for the 6 spot lights in my bedroom. My specific setup was to control them via google assistant and I can honestly say they were worth every penny! Initially I had some terrible Wi-Fi pairing issues, but about 6 months later upgraded my wifi to a mesh network. Since that upgrade I've not had any issues with input latency or random drop outs, which was an issue prior to the upgrade. Taking that in-mind, before this Wi-Fi upgrade I had one BT Router, in a central location and that struggled. Edit:- Yes I installed a Mesh Network to cope with my copius amount of wifi devices, which now sits at around 30-40. No i'm not suggesting you NEED a mesh network but if you get a good deal I'd recommend for just general use around the house.

I have stuff setup all over the place, I have lights that come on 30 mins before sunset and lights that come on if at times of the day. There have been a few minor issues but over all they've not very good for us.

A word of caution too, once you switch your whole house to smart lighting you get so used to lovely lighting that's appropriate for the time of day etc, when you go to a hotel or someone's house that doesn't have it is really annoying :) My wife is always asking Alexa to do stuff in other people's houses and nothing happens :)

I have limited the smart bulbs in the house to three lamps, partly because I don't want to have to faff if the main lights ever play up. Even then, limited to timer and brightness functions. I use the IKEA kit, which ties into Google Home / Nest and Alexa. This has its own hub - possible that this would work better than one that uses the main house wifi router?

Im in the same boat as you in terms of just how much "smart tech" do you really need in a house. And, im also hyper paranoid about what tech is recording/whats continually connecting to Wi-Fi. On the note of what others have mentioned regarding price, I'll second all of them. Buy cheap, buy twice/you get what you pay for. Had to replace cheap LED bulbs as they turned most fixures in my house to strobe lights.

As you're already using Quinetic switches in your lounge and can't be bothered to chase the walls to install a hard-wired dimmer, why not just switch out your Quinetic receiver for a dimmable one (assuming your existing LED Lamps are dimmable)?

I took the plunge a couple months ago and installed smart lights inside and out in my house. I haven't had any of the problems you've mentioned. Maybe the brand you're using isn't as robust as it should be? I standardized on the Govee brand and, other than an app that isn't very user-friendly when programming automations, the lights work just fine. A few of the outside lights are more than 20 meters from the wireless access point and I haven't had a problem with communication.

Kenetic switches need a minimum load of 5 watts When you dim your led lights , if they are then using less than 5 watts that’s why you can’t turn your lights off , until you turn them up , thus the lights are now pulling more than 5 watts and then you can turn them off 👍

Almost certain its because the Smart Bulbs you're using is WiFi based. Zigbee systems like Philips Hue use a Mesh topology so you're rarely going to get connectivity issues. I've had Philips Hue for almost 10 years and never had that issue. Got almost 50 bulbs now. You're right about the issues of Smart systems though. Again particularly those using WiFi. Cheaper routers often can only support a fixed number of devices before the stability drops or they refuse any new connections. Had that happen before. So if you're going to go down the WiFi bulb router look for a WiFi Mesh system or WIFI6 or even WIFI7 router, and look for how many devices they support.

A lot of smart gubbins seems to require the user to be a bit of an enthusiast and tinker with things. The people I know who have smart everything in their houses view it almost as a hobby and are forever playing around with it. I am techy but I cannot be arsed with messing about with things that add little value to life. I'm a bit surprised that you went with kinetic switches rather than chasing and moving wired ones as you did so much work to the house and had a plasterer in. I basically moved 90% of my light switches and sockets as i reversed most of the doors, well worth it for the functionality and cleaner look.

Thanks Andy, I can see why that can work for you in those circumstances, but this just confirms for me why I like to keep things simple, don't get me wrong I don't mind a gadget but only if it is reliable and doesn't take an inordinate amount of set-up and/or maintain, I have enough trouble remembering all the stuff I actually need ! People should also remember that your network is only as secure as your weakest link ! Also, am I the only one that has a dislike for GU10s in general, or is this misguided and simply a result of having crappy light fittings ?

Lots of home routers have a limit on the amount of clients on your wifi network. I have a billion router and out of the box it’s set surprisingly low. Also check if your up address range in dhcp is big enough. I’d be tempted to set reservations for each light so the dhcp gives out a static IP address to each light consistently. Your kentiitc switch hasn’t got enough load. You can buy artificial loads which is basically a capacitor. The problem is out lighting wiring typically dosnt have a neutral at the switch so you need a certain amount of current to be flowing. See if quinetic switches have a synthetic / artificial load. As others have said philips hue is a fairly good system (not without its issues to though) but they have a tap dial switch which has 4 buttons and a dimming dial around the side. Have a look at the candeo led dimmer bypass or lutron synthetic load. Basically they “fool” the switch in to thinking there is enough of a load on the system. The candeo is available on Amazon. Alternately just put a normal switch in cause the Quenitic switches are basically the same as a smart switch / dimmer.

À perfect example of something I wouldn't dream of buying.

Hours of fun.

I agree lots of smart tech can be temperamental. I've generally found Philips Hue with the smart bridge to be good. Using the smart bridge means the bulbs don't all need an ip address and clog up the WiFi.

"It's not because I am a luddite, the opposite, it's because know what they are capable of" WELL SAID!

Not watched the video yet, only seen the teaser about quinetic switches but: I had great trouble with a (dumb) quinetic switch - switch stopped working, had to switch breaker off and on again - that turned out to be a function of the choice of bulb. It worked with some bulbs, not with others. I actually got as far as being in touch with quinetic about it, but then I just lost interest in talking to them for some reason.

I have some GoSund bulbs, the app is identical tu yours so I assume there's a company making these and reselling them with different names. We regularly need to reconnect the lights to the WiFi and it's a pain. I think the more expensive smart bulbs like Philips Hue will have a much better experience.

👍👍👍🤔 What happens if the WiFi connection goes down? We frequently have connection problems. Thanks

Maybe the bulbs in your living room had too much WiFi? 😅 In all seriousness I’ve got a few Philips hue ones around the house and you’re right, dimming is the main benefit, plus as security timers. Not sure I rate durability much though as one failed after 3 years (post warranty as well) not cheap so wasn’t happy. Main worry I have about IoT is manufacturers can basically brick the hardware at anytime and you’re left high and dry

I have almost 30 pcs Philips Hue lamp and they are working fine. Philips use zigbee protocol and connection to Philips Hue bridge. I also recommend using a smart home system lika Amazon Alexa, Google home or Apple Home kit

They do I’ve got Philips hue and some Philips wiz bulbs .

the delay on the smart bulbs working/sync together maybe also the fact its wifi chip inside is VERY low energy, even if u turn the power off to a smart bulb , your network will still see it after an hour of it being turned off by the mains, so i think its just them being so energy efficient ,they take forever to sync to other devices that are also extreme low power on the 2.4ghz spectrum

Zigbee bulbs with local (non-Internet dependant) control are the way to go! Far more reliable.

Hi Andy, good honest review. But personally, way way too much faffing about for the benefits gained. Smart light bulbs, whatever next? How long before we get a smart bog that flushes randomly mid dump?

I have a lot of Hue bulbs (using Zigbee not wifi) with Hue switches but also motion sensors to control them automatically. Never have to touch the light switch on the wall; the wall switch is left on, but the bulb itself is turned off. Then there’s Home Assistant, which is a whole other world, to bring everything smart together….

I like IoT gadgets and they can be fun projects to tinker. However, I only have ones where I know what code is running on them and that they're only exposed to your local network. Just recently I ended up disassembling one of these smart bulbs. First of all the soldering job inside is horrible with some charring visible on the cables. Inside is esp8266 micro controller which can be reflashed to remove the crappy manufacturers software and load on something like WLED which can then be integrated into a central home control app like home assistant

You mentioned you have an IT background so hopefully you will get this - should have called it IP not TCP. Decades ago I was working with a developer who wrote a client server system for a bank, it worked perfectly in the model branch I built for him but when it rolled out to the Uk branches it just stopped working. After a lot of teeth nashing they called me in to put a sniffer on it, some diagnostic later found out he had downloaded an IP module/class in the C code which as you know is send and hope, upshot was all packets of data were arriving in ‘random’ order effectivley corrupted, I got him to add TCP on top of the IP (transport protocol) which as you know controls end to end communication and it all started to work perfectly. Feels like the same thing here the ASIC in the bulb / app probably have simple IP protocol stack. Needs to add TCP. Apologies for the nerdy post🤪🤪🤪

These lights are clever and useful to you, but I am very leery of any function that depends on an internet or wireless telephone connection. Where I live, electricity, internet and telephone service fails from time to time, and my cell phone service is marginal. I prefer that my house function even when these connections are lost. Call me a Luddite if you will, but there's something to be said about being sufficiently independent that most things can be operated manually if required. I'm pleased that you're leery of equipment with microphones!

Can we get an update on the state of the en-suite bathroom carpet ? 😂 it must be quite spicy by now

Great video. Not a fan of smart bulbs or any of that smart home tech 😂. I do love RGB lighting but on my keyboard 😄

We like ambient lighting and seldom use the ceiling lights. I walk around the Lounge switching 4 or 5 standard lamps on and switch some off if we don’t need them. I suppose I’m a dinosaur 🌞

Have a combination of Hue (Zigbee) and TP-Link Tapo (Wifi Bulbs) prefer the light from the TP-Links and find them faultless. Worth checking your not running into an issue with too many wifi clients. Some BB provider routers limit the number of simutanious Wifi clients. Our 5G based one by default has a 50 client limit which is bonkers but we also have a deadicated AP as well so great coverage. Whilst watching this video Alexa just asked if I would like more info on controlling my smart bulbs 🤣

The bulbs will all have overlapping Wi-Fi signals, so I imagine in groups the may start to interfere with each others signals!

Well done chicken. Defo go ENERGIZER or something not so cheap

Give me an old fashion candle any day of the week!

for me that's far too complicated as an old man fiddling with technology and stuff but i do have children who i can let loose with this sort of go-go-gadget light bulbs

👍👍

Why on earth do you need lights that change colour like a disco??? - BUT we have 4 or 5 Hive smart light bulbs that enable us to switch lights on and off at times we want . . . either for convenience (e.g. turn off a light when we go to bed, or to adjust the brightness) - or for "security" for lights to switch on and off if we are not at home. Controlled from a simple app from anywhere in the world.

weird , the apps GUI looks exact same as my smart bulb but different brand ( status smart ) prob all chinese firmware inside them all

The issue is probably communication - You are not controlling the devices locally - Any commands are going out to the internet to a server, probably in China, and then back to your phone.

Technology is great.. when it works.

Was a craft knife really necessary for such an innocent box?

Imagine the fun a hacker could have if they got into your network!? 😂😂😂

I think you get what you pay for. I've had Philips Hue for about 5 years - expensive, but 100% reliable.

Nah, I'm still not convinced I need a smartphone!

Nicely made video… I’ve been running some wifi bulbs for years and they are still some of my most reliable devices I have. What you demonstrated is not a reflection of the device but the infrastructure needed to support them… having each bulb need to maintain a low latency connection to a server host god knows where… but for sure nowhere near the UK. The answer is local control devices… never cloud based for critical functionality.

Rooter? 😝😆😂

Yes but would sooner have smart plugs for lamps

Apparently my previous comment never made it so trying again, if you still have the VM superhub 4 it uses "intelligent wifi" i.e we know better than you, which may be disconnecting the bulbs off the network due to the their low activity, sheer luck if they reconnect. Unfortunately the answser is donlt use the ISP router, and abandon 2.4G wifi to old slow standards, still perfectly fine for IOT purposes. For the interference issue with the Quinetics, I'd be trying a ferrite clamp fitted onto the cable exiting the back of the downlights, may work, may not.

Smart man Andy. Wouldn't have anything from the big tech companies in my house, I like my data to be my data.

Bluetoothed to a glucose monitor 24/7! O.K.when it works,stuffed when it doesn't 🤬

smart bulbs using 2.4ghz can interfere with wireless mouse/keyboard ,i had to get rid of my desk lamp one because of it ( phones will do the same if close using the 2.4ghz spectrum )

for me, put them in the "draw" you know the one........the one with all the other bits you think you will need one day..........maybe 🤣

Just give me old fashion lighting

A Smart bulb for me would be one where a teenager walks out of a room and then the light turns off (empty room)😂££££££,s

From the app, they look like cheap Tuya bulbs. Philips hue are far better and use a hub. But cost a lot more, but you get what you pay for.

I absolutely love my smart plugs and have about 8 on the go throughout the house and garage, but not interested in smart lights, too much faff as demonstrated here.

Alexa are awesome...as are smarts plugs and lights..work like a dream

Regrettably you have discovered that not every/many smart bulbs are as well designed as you would hope. Having started on Philips Hue bulbs, they have never had a problem in the 4 years of use, yes they are significantly more expensive but they just work. You grabbed a cheaper unit and expected it to function as well as the top end bulbs. The real take away is that you get what you pay for and to get a smart system you have to get everything from the same company to have a good chance of success. I’m sorry that you have assumed that everything will work together. It’s a wild west and progressing fast.

Cheap wifi tat, you get what you pay for no matter what they promise (it's the smart bulb equivalent of you buying all your power tools from the middle aisle at Lidl). Get a decent hub with a dedicated smart home protocol (several to choose from), doesn't have to be as expensive as Hue (that's a whole other discussion). I've had 100% smart lighting inside and out for years now, simple motion activated in hallways/garden and more complex presence/environment detection and params in other areas. I've forgotten what it feels like to have to switch lights on and off, just walk around and let "House" handle it for me.

Don’t you love progress? 😂 I have some smart plugs and although I love them, quite regularly they randomly stop working and require a reboot. Annoying!

A convincing demonstration of everything that's dumb about 'Smart' Technology.😄

Try a different brand!

I don't have or want them.

I normally agree with you on everything but not here. Looks like you just chose some crap smart bulbs. I've had Philips Hue for over 5 years and never missed a beat. They're a lot more expensive than most other smart bulbs, but then they work, and quite a few friends have had similar issues as yourself with cheaper ones. So either I'm lucky having never had issues, or it's a case of you get what you pay for.

I can do without that palava

I have 7 smart bulbs and 10+ Alexa Echos in my house and they work 99% time really well. Ask me anything...

Please don't go down smart home route, you may become homeassistant....... Addict

Do all these bulbs each have there own IP address? Maybe a change of Wi-Fi channel might help? IoT with mic's listening to you.....never... what ever next....random FB adverts based on what you've been talking about...

You get what you pay for, pretty pointless using non Zigbee bulbs. Been using Philips Hue exclusively on every light for nearly 10 years now. Not a single issue. Blends into every day life brilliantly and you only remember you have it when visiting a place without it!

smart lights for not so smart people

The time you spent messing around with them "Smart bulbs????" I could have replaced the with smarter dumb bulbs and installed a dimmer LOL. We have watches that tell people they have not taken enough steps/drank enough water ETC. Makes you wonder how all these people in their 70s/80s and 90s got there