Philips Hue Starter Kit (3 color bulbs, bridge, and dimmer) - $159.99

I saw $79 in clearance at Homedepot Laval some weeks ago.

nicknam4e wrote: ↑ I saw $79 in clearance at Homedepot Laval some weeks ago.

Yeah I think they are all clearing them out.

I cleaned out my local HD in Ontario as well since it basically came down to 26$ a bulb at that price.

nicknam4e wrote: ↑ I saw $79 in clearance at Homedepot Laval some weeks ago.

Where in Laval?

were also on clearance at the souce, this is not a good deal.

jay1522 wrote: ↑ were also on clearance at the souce, this is not a good deal.

Wasn't The Source clearout $99 for the non-bluetooth starter kit with 4 bulbs?

Can someone explain why the Philips hue hub/lights are better, and worth so much more, compared to the vast array of $5-$10 colour changing dimmable lights that work through Google home?

How easy is it to even sell the bridge nowadays? Might be hard even giving it away

Zetayoshi wrote: ↑ Can someone explain why the Philips hue hub/lights are better, and worth so much more, compared to the vast array of $5-$10 colour changing dimmable lights that work through Google home?

Reliability, for me, and investment in the Philips Hue ecosystem. Philips hue has never let me wrong, and I've tried Nanoleaf (more expensive) and Sengled, so far. Just like I stick with Apple for all my devices, I just know that it will work when I need it to.

Zetayoshi wrote: ↑ Can someone explain why the Philips hue hub/lights are better, and worth so much more, compared to the vast array of $5-$10 colour changing dimmable lights that work through Google home?

I've said it before and will say it again. In the past couple months I tried both the Philips Hue system as well as Nanoleaf, and neither reliably maintained connection and/or settings.

Maybe my demands are too high? I want a light that can preserve a certain brightness and colour when switching the light on and off, and neither could achieve that. Certain situations are better off without voice commands or cell phone app control, such as a temporary night light in critical areas.

lefroset wrote: ↑ I want a light that can preserve a certain brightness and colour when switching the light on and off, and neither could achieve that.

You can do this in Hue:

ChinpokoMon wrote: ↑ You can do this in Hue:
https://i.imgur.com/IXdXWZV.jpg

Yep tried that. After a few on/off cycles it didn't work

Zetayoshi wrote: ↑Can someone explain why the Philips hue hub/lights are better, and worth so much more, compared to the vast array of $5-$10 colour changing dimmable lights that work through Google home?

I bought my 12 Philips hue lights 3-5 years ago, 11 of them have never given me problems, and are on probably 8 hours a day. So they're approximately on 11600 hours and still going strong.

The 1 "new" Bluetooth hue light I have had mild connectivity issues sometimes and I'm too lazy to deal with it so it hasn't worked in like five months.

I invested solely in the hue ecosystem so I can give comparisons to other brands like Sengled or the ones being pumped out by major lightbulb manufacturers now.

That being said, this isn't a good deal and you can get this stuff quite a bit cheaper than this.

Zetayoshi wrote: ↑ Can someone explain why the Philips hue hub/lights are better, and worth so much more, compared to the vast array of $5-$10 colour changing dimmable lights that work through Google home?

I’ve never had a Wi-Fi outlet or light that works as reliably as hue. Build quality is great as I’ve had LED light fixtures that failed after a couple years and hue gen 1 are still working (almost 10 years). LEDs might be rated for a certain life span but the components will fail.

I think the huge selling point for me is light sync app on PC.

The hue bridge app is not as customizable as it should and the hue labs scripts are pretty basic but it’s serviceable and there are 3rd party apps that will have a solution.

To sum it up, it’s like Apple vs Android. Yes you are paying a premium and it might have the same specs but in the long run there’s a lot more advantages.

Ludwig187 wrote: ↑ Where in Laval?

1400 Boul le Corbusier, Laval, QC H7N 6J5. There were plenty starter kits in clearance.

lefroset wrote: ↑ I want a light that can preserve a certain brightness and colour when switching the light on and off, and neither could achieve that. Certain situations are better off without voice commands or cell phone app control, such as a temporary night light in critical areas.

I have a few dozen Hue lights, and all of them maintain their brightness and colour settings. Mine are all Gen3, and I use the current Bridge (whatever version that is). A good number of my Hue lights are smart controlled, but the ones in my kitchen that I use all the time? Those are switched. The exception for me is a set of bulbs that I have Hubitat dynamically brighten based on outside brightness, but that's me actively changing them.

I think they'll reset if you tun them on and off rapidly, but I'm sure that's not what you're doing.

For someone looking to get into the ecosystem, what is considered a decent price for these bulbs? Specifically looking at the philips hue color or white ambiance.

Last time I used hubs was with the Sylvania/Osram bulbs which worked marvelously for 5 years. THEN they got bought by a Chinese company who promptly turned off the servers, rendering them inoperable. I see Canadian Tire trying to get rid of stock...for a product that no longer works. So, now I avoid hubs at all cost...

DougO wrote: ↑Last time I used hubs was with the Sylvania/Osram bulbs which worked marvelously for 5 years. THEN they got bought by a Chinese company who promptly turned off the servers, rendering them inoperable. (…) So, now I avoid hubs at all cost...

I understand being reticent about another platform once you’ve been bitten once.

Hue has been around for close to 10 years now and seems to have steadily become the default brand or ecosystem for smart lighting.

No one can promise you they’ll work forever but at the very least, it has a solid user base as foundation, a healthy third party support and the premium Philips charges will hopefully carry the system forward for many years. Unlike the inexpensive, off-brand systems.

hackoder wrote: ↑For someone looking to get into the ecosystem, what is considered a decent price for these bulbs? Specifically looking at the philips hue color or white ambiance.

What’s considered a deal varies wildly as there are many clearance prices that are too hit-or-miss, you can find 3-pack bulbs or starter kits marked down to absurd prices where people will buy multiple of but may not be available to every one or every store.

I’m hesitating giving an estimate as prices have fluctuated a lot over the years and as newer generations have been released, combined with clearance pricing. My personal ballpark would be $99 and under for a 3-pack of the latest or current generation color bulbs and try to get as close to $99 or a bit above for any 3-pack color starter kit with hub. White or white ambiance starter kits are significantly less expensive.