Amazon Devices And Light Bulbs

[RSB]

As I am an amazon fan I have been buying the odd amazon device or 2. I purchased an Fire HD 10 and I have prime now order of echo dot coming tonight “aswell as some beer” call it a victory purchase ?. Anyhow the first thing I want to do is purchase some simple easy set up light bulbs to control with the amazon devices. I have seen some with multiple colours. My question is can any one recomend or warn me of any gotchas. Ill be only buying from amazon and they will have to be bayonet.. Thanks.

Americans: Over Sexed, Over Payed and Over here, Wat Wat!

[Drezha]

I’ve got one of the TP-Link ones. There are dimmable and multi coloured versions. Bayonet and screw fit (it comes with an adapter) so you’re good to go. I wanted one to go in our hallway that could be controlled from the phones, as our outside light is broken at the minute – but it wont work, as I ordered it, forgetting it’s a three candle bulb chandalier type thing.  So it’s in the front room on the light next to the sofa and works quite well. I’ve found that the plugs are better than the lights (well, more useful!) Think we have about 4 remote TP-Link switches now in common use and an EVE plug (which is no where near as good, but has better “data” collection which is helpful for charging my car.)

"Everything looks interesting until you do it. Then you find it’s just another job" - Terry Pratchett

[Ed P]

The TP-link switches work well but they can be a real PITA to set up. In my experience you need to carry out the initial setup in an area where you get the best wifi signal, and then move it to its final place.

[RSB]

Thanks. I think the ones mention work with out a hub? I want to avoid hubs. I’ll be putting in order tomorrow to try 1 or 2 out for now.

Americans: Over Sexed, Over Payed and Over here, Wat Wat!

[Drezha]

The TP-Link ones don’t require a hub to work.

"Everything looks interesting until you do it. Then you find it’s just another job" - Terry Pratchett

[Ed P]

Drezha is correct, but if for any reason you change the wifi server and associated passwords it can be a PITA resetting each switch/adapter and carrying out the changes on your mobile. BTW I do not know if it is a general problem but switches do not seem to respect summer time and stay on UT.

[RSB]

Thanks for the info. I do not plan on doing anything special. Just to be able to turn light off from bed. I get very frustrated with me self as I forget silly things like turning lights off before I get into bed. No word of lie I have gone weeks without for example tin foil or sugar and other silly stuff because even though I set of to shop to get these items by the time I get there it’s gone out of my head and ive got something else. I tend to forget the little things and it frustrates the hell out of me.

Americans: Over Sexed, Over Payed and Over here, Wat Wat!

[PlaneMan]

Lee, try this. 

[Bob Williams]

Lee, whilst I have been under Chemo my memory has suffered too, though at 73 I already entered rooms and forgot why I was there anyway! I tried mobile/PC calendars, still forgot stuff. When I forgot to order Prescriptions, I got a Wall chart and a notebook, which SWMBO makes sure I keep with me at all times. I used to do this when I was designing and printing, also publishing poetry, writing down stuff as soon as it came to my fevered brain or I lost it. Now I write down what I have to do every day and after every occasion it is brought to my notice by those annoying voices in my wife’s head. ??

Now the only problem is remembering to look.

I am practicing for senility, so I will know it when it arrives.??

Who are you again?

When the Thought Police arrive at your door, think -
I'm out.

[The Duke]

Xiaomi bulbs work great with Google home and alexia, under £20 for the posh RGB led ones, about £12*for white led. tp link switches work great too, but the cheapest spat switches that just play nice are the sonoff basic switches. They are about £5 each and can turn anything into a smart appliance. They work with both amazon and google.

Sonoff basic. Set it up with the Elink app, then tie the app to google/alexia account, and you can then get rid of the Elink app, if you wish. And just reinstall when your adding more switches.

 

Edit the app is EweLink for set up.

 

Also alot of smart stuff, the cheap ones at leave are edison screw, but a edison to bayonet adapter is about 60pence from an electric suppliers.

[Ed P]

Steve can you get a ‘white’ out of the RGB bulb? I’m thinking of Christmas and cycling coloured lights, but would want a white for everyday use.

[PlaneMan]

Ed, yes you can. I have the same one and it’s set at a quite dim white. You can set it really bright if you want but that does my head in.

[The Duke]

As pm says, yes you can get white. Very white indeed, problem over 6000k wet cold light.

I have a number of these around mine. I just noticed the last one I got was Jan 2017, and they are used evey day. So they last too. Though Leds last forever. I’m jet to have a standard led go, and my oldest must be 6 years old now. The xiaomi ones I have the eldest us probably coming on 3 years, if the last one is coming up to 2 years old. If you do by set up on Hong Kong server  however if you decide you expand into the xiaomi smart (mija) world, you’ll need to set reset them to China, if you want the bulbs to work via the xiaomi mija app. But this still let’s you use Google home, alexa too.

Side note – The mija smart system is the cheapest entry into the start things world. Lots of kits offered too, the favourite of mine is their smart smoke alarm, and there cheap thermostats, which are about £4 each off a slow boat, and just work, £about £10 of you want one quick.

Wifi Light Bulbs, OLLIVAN Original Xiaomi Yeelight Bulb E27 9W RGB Dimmable LED Bulbs Wifi Remote Control Smart Light Lamp Bulb 600lm Compatible with Alexa and Google Home – Multicoloured Wifi Bulb https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01HZDD8DK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_1bZ2BbQX5WMSN

 

[Ed P]

Thanks for the info guys.

[Tippon]

The Duke wrote:

Side note – The mija smart system is the cheapest entry into the start things world. Lots of kits offered too, the favourite of mine is their smart smoke alarm, and there cheap thermostats, which are about £4 each off a slow boat, and just work, £about £10 of you want one quick.

Have you got links to these please Steve? I could do with sorting the smoke alarms here 🙂

[Ed P]

Tippon wrote:

The Duke wrote:

Side note – The mija smart system is the cheapest entry into the start things world. Lots of kits offered too, the favourite of mine is their smart smoke alarm, and there cheap thermostats, which are about £4 each off a slow boat, and just work, £about £10 of you want one quick.

Have you got links to these please Steve? I could do with sorting the smoke alarms here

Amen to that! There are days when a couple of flat batteries occur simultaneously and I wander around the house trying to find which smoke alarms are giving the quarter second tweet followed by three minutes of silence! Idiot design – if they repeated more frequently maybe I’d stand a half chance of finding the errant ones.

[The Duke]

 

This is the fire alarm, but it needs the xiaomi mija home hub to work as intended.

So if it gets quiet expensive for just a fire alarm. But the options for growth are huge.

There are newer options than mine, as mine is over two years old now, so make sure you double check everything before purchase. Their ecosystem is vast too. They make a great refillable pen too, which I have a couple off.

 

Alarm

Original Xiaomi Mijia Honeywell Fire Alarm Detector Remote Control Audible Visual Alarm Notication Work with Mi Home APP
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/XQi8kUt

Hub

2018 Version Xiaomi Mijia Multifunctional Gateway 2 Hub Alarm System Intelligent Online Radio Night Light Bell Smart Home Hub
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/c5mjdC5

[Tippon]

Thanks Steve 🙂

The hub looks pretty handy as it is. We’ve got a night light on the landing between the bedrooms now, and adding a timed radio would help us all with getting into a morning routine. At the moment we get up when we need to, but I want us to get up early and have breakfast before we go out, like the stereotypical American family breakfast you see on TV.

It’s a shame that the fire alarms can’t be mains wired, as my existing wired alarms have given up. They look ideal for everything else though. I’m going to be spending a lot with these I think >.<

[The Duke]

Ignore the radio park, it only does some Chinese channel. Ad far ad I can’t tell, it can’t be chanced. But it does sould soothing I suppose. Lol.

In China they are Thr apple of China, but at a decent price. I’ve found all there stuff great. There ecosystem of smart stuff is very good. I’d say it wad akin to ‘smart things’ which Samsung not ling purchased, but with more smart modules. That are priced in the ‘ill give it a shot rang’, the other oems atm are just to expensive as a toy. As that’s all it it’s at this point, A toy.

Thr app is very good, but it’s not fully converted from Chinese to English, but its mostly there. Two years ago, its was well, challaging lol. But now it’s all but shiny.

I like 5hr hub a dvd a fire alarl secorafy notification, to have in our room. It’s good ad you can have it slowly ramp up too, so when you burn toast your not waking the whole house or neighbours. It will give you 15 seconds of relatively quiet before it kick in to ge the hell out of bed levels of noise.

They ate easy to groupe from in the app. And makes rooms etc. . I’m sure there is some mains ones now, or at least a way to Jerry rig it, with a battery charger from the mains to the alarm.

Though given you get reminders of battery levels on your phone, and you can always see if it’s working in the daily report file, being battery powered isn’t a deal beaker for me. For instance my neighbour had a cheap on and take a good month of his chirping before he ever changes the batteries. It drives my dogs mad.

Here is a screen shot of my alarm log from the last few days, can you spot whet my kids have cooked! It always does an extra self test after being set off.

[RSB]

I ended up with a couple of these to get going. I am very impressed for the money. Easy setup in minutes, nice and bright colours although I will never have them above 30 %. I like soft lighting on evening, just enough to find the TV remote and beer bottle opener 🙂 .

Still, there is that little voice in the back of my head telling me the chinese or trump have placed a little hidden mic in there! None the less, work well with alexa, I created a group and attached them. The plan is to have these all around the house and I have a fetish for lamps. Toss in the ceiling light and that is a lot of bulbs, 4 in bedroom alone. So if you group them then you can use shorter names for them in the same room when using an echo in that room. “Believe me, it makes sense to me ” 🙂

Americans: Over Sexed, Over Payed and Over here, Wat Wat!

[Author]

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