Philips Hue: first hand reliability?

[IVB]

My Hue lights have all had their switches removed.  Trying not to dissuade anyone from Hue because I have nothing but good experiences, but at the same realize that IVB's Hue experience is nearly identical to my Z-Wave experience.  So ... yeah.  

 
Well, the point of the graph above is to show that there's a scientific reason behind my Hue experience: Super-polluted and uber high noise floor. Hue will never work right for me, no matter who tries, it just can't compete against *EIGHTEEN* neighboring networks on the 2.4GHz spectrum.

 

[ChrisCicc]

Well, the point of the graph above is to show that there's a scientific reason behind my Hue experience: Super-polluted and uber high noise floor. Hue will never work right for me, no matter who tries, it just can't compete against *EIGHTEEN* neighboring networks on the 2.4GHz spectrum.

 
Here we have 12 competing networks with strong signals, and are in the heart of downtown Boston so there's likely plenty more stray signals floating around. I have 100% reliability with a cycle rate of about 4-6 bulbs per second. How far is your Hue Bridge from the closest bulb? 

 

[IVB]

 
Here we have 12 competing networks with strong signals, and are in the heart of downtown Boston so there's likely plenty more stray signals floating around. I have 100% reliability with a cycle rate of about 4-6 bulbs per second. How far is your Hue Bridge from the closest bulb? 

15 feet nearly line of sight (bridge behind a single 1/2" plywood cabinet door. 12 feet to another but that's one room over.

 

[jkmonroe]

Well, the point of the graph above is to show that there's a scientific reason behind my Hue experience: Super-polluted and uber high noise floor. Hue will never work right for me, no matter who tries, it just can't compete against *EIGHTEEN* neighboring networks on the 2.4GHz spectrum.

 
I have almost 100 competing 2.4GHz networks within range, yet my Hue is perfect.  My spectrum is posted elsewhere in the thread.
 
On the flip side, my 900MHz Z-Wave won't work for anything; I have seriously tried, and have maybe a 15% success rate.
 
I was just pointing out the oddities that come with HA.  

 

[IVB]

We're not doing the same zwave things. You're using multiple manufacturers as that's the basic theory, I'm sticking with leviton as I want a single throat to choke upon failure. When I try to add a 2nd manufacturer (ie intermatic switches), things go south.

 

[jkmonroe]

In my experience, zwave as a manufacturer blind protocol is a joke. You have to stay within a single vendor implementation to make it work.

 
^ truth.

 

[IVB]

Spent all day redoing my wiring so I change my 3way to single location, then put in zWave switches and remove the Hue bulbs. 
 
It is interesting to note that zWave RF works perfectly fine, 100% so far, but even after moving the tap around the whole bathroom it really didn't work.
 
I know jkmonroe had issues with merging multiple zWave manufacturers but sticking with the Leviton ViziaRF has been a godsend. I think this shows that there are many factors in whether a given technology will work, and a 2.4GHz option that works in one won't work in another. Not sure why it won't work in my house, maybe my competing 2.4GHz networks have a creater a worse signal-to-noise ratio than in others, but i'm quite happy to be done with this experiment.
 
And for those who pick zWave as a result, do yourself a favor, don't try and get multiple manufacturers to play nice. It won't happen. If you can't find the right hardware from a single zWave manufacturer don't try, but don't go buy $500 of Hue instead without doing a trial run to see if it'll work for you.

 

[LarrylLix]

For the price Hue bulbs are not very impressive to me. I have four of them and the colours are pathetic compared to MiLight units. Their downfall is not being able to mix white and colours for pastels or white temp.
 
There is a new bulb out that uses WiFi.  Too big, too hot, and too expensive unfortunately. The kickstarter backers are slamming it as a failure, mostly.

 

[tmbrown97]

The Hue lights have been a hit in my house - I have them in the kids' rooms and in the kitchen dining nook - the kids love that we can set the color and brightness to suit their moods.  One of these days I'm going to spring for the horribly overpriced Disney light that changes colors as you flip pages of the iPad book app.
 
My bridge is in the master closet between an 800lb gun safe and an all metal rack with several layers of drywall and studs between it and any lights - and the downstairs light is really far - it's a 4K sq ft. house.  Works every time. 
 
Don't get me wrong - aside from price I can find a few other faults too - but all in all I deal with it because it's pretty cool.  In fact we're about to add a decent sized patio cover - 17' x 36' and it'll have at least 9 recessed lights and 2 fans - I was just thinking I'll probably waste the $500 on Hue bulbs for it just because it's fun to emulate candle light vs. bright light depending on the mood - or even seasonal lighting schemes. 
 
FWIW, 18 AP's in range on inSSIDer is nothing - that alone isn't what's killing your signal strength - that may be 10% of it, but I put the other 90% in your home's construction materials.

 

[LarrylLix]

I have both Hue and MiLight units. I like them both for different aspects but neither of them are great.
 
It looks like a few Wi-Fi bulbs are out but so far they have huge problems.
 
I saw a new line in The Borg today. LED bulbs with Wi-Fi repeater built into it, and another LED bulb with a Wi-Fi speaker system built into it.
 
Very strange combinations but may be really cool for somebody. I guess once you kill most of the heat other things are possible.

 

[jkmonroe]

the new dimmer switch from Hue is awesome.  you can link it to the bridge and get on/off/dim of individual lights, light groups, or a scene.
 
it's perfect for point of use locations like the guest room, or for single fixtures like the dining room light.  the best part is that it's only $25, or you can spend $35 and get the dimmer switch + a new white bulb (Lux).
 
the website claims a limit of 10 dimmer switches attached to the bridge, which could potentially suck, but we shall see.  my Hue setup is really starting to get out of hand.