Control your Philips Hue lights without a smart device

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I have a set of Philips Hue lights that I got for Christmas last year that can light up my living room and foyer with white light or with colored lights – whatever I choose.  I can define light “recipes” where I can make each Hue bulb whatever color I want so set the mood for relaxation, reading, or energizing myself.  I can control the lights over the internet to turn on/off at my command, use geofencing to turn them on when I come home at night, or control them with timers.  My daughter doesn’t have the app on her iPhone, so she can’t control the lights at all (because she doesn’t want to add the app…).  Visitors also can’t turn the lights on or off, either.  Philips has introduced the Hue Tap, which they say is the world’s first wireless smart switch.  The Tap has four buttons that are used to control the Hue system by turning on a light recipe or selecting a favorite color scene or simply turning off some of the lights.  You can mount the Tap on the wall by a door, leave it on the coffee table, or carry it with you throughout the house.  Philips says the Tap is powered by kinetic energy from your touch, so you don’t need batteries for it.  Philips has a list of vendors on their Hue site, or you can pick up the Hue Tap at Apple for $59.95.

1 thought on “Control your Philips Hue lights without a smart device”




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  2. you literally still have to use the app to set up the switch… but if you aren’t running an apple phone that was brand new (and about $800) within the last 3 years guess what, you can’t run the app.

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