Hi im kinda new in home assistant, i have hassio, a few xiaomi lights and a broadlink power plug, i want to try another lights so i could use it with google assistant directly, and the same with plugs, but all the devices come in 110V , the voltage here is 220v, is there any good options?
What kind of lights are you looking for? How bright should they be?
my main concern is to know what options i have first, but for the most part of the house just want white ones, but it will be good a rgb too.
These bulbs go up to 265v. I know it says 120v near the top of the page but further down it says the range is 85-265v. And I live in a 240v country and they work fine. Flash with Ailight - there is a thread here about that.
Also all the itead stuff seems to be suitable: http://itead.cc
I would highly recommend Xiaomi Yeelights, very cost effective, great quality and also RGB. I’ve had mine running for approx 18mths, no issues, and work well with HA.
I have an RGB yeelight bulb myself, and I do like them a lot (@kanga_who also does). However, they are only 650 lumens which might be a slight problem if you want something brighter. AFAIK, if you only need dimming, then IKEA tradfri might be a good (and cost-effective) choice, since they have bulbs that go all the way up to 1000lm, but only support dimming. Also, you’ll need either their proprietary hub or something like deConz/Zigate/whatever to control them. LIFX bulbs are great if you need both rgb and high light output (according to their website, they go over 1000 lm) but they can be a bit pricey (up to ~65 USD for the LIFX + with IR).
EDIT: Forgot to add that both Yeelights and LIFX bulbs connect to your wifi network, while tradfri and hue use their hubs which are only compatible with their own ecosystem (you can still buy a zigate/wink/whatever).
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I don’t have an extensive ecosystem of lights, but I’ve bought a few to play with until we move (4 - 6 months) then I’ll start with a clean sheet ; - )
Like you, I don’t need to have red lights in this room and blue lights in that or have my mood calmed by green when i’m stressed or enter party mode at 15 colour changes per minute.
I have bought a couple of the Ikea Tradfri zigbee lights and have a couple of issues with them.
- Though they are described as a mesh network I have observed issues in a single room with the hub/controller. So with a room say 4.5m on a side and a light on two of the corners and the controller in a 3rd - ‘Sometimes’ the controller only reaches 1 of the bulbs, so I have 1 on and 1 off. Hit the controller again and they just swap so you still have 1 on and 1 off. This happens about 1 time in 30 that I have observed and the only way to reset them is to switch the bulb that is off, actually off and then back on again. Weirdly this brings the bulb ‘ON’, (I admit this may be the fault of the controller sending a toggle rather than an ‘Off’ and an ‘On’ but … )
- So from the above. if you have a short blackout (maybe even a brown out ?) you will come home to a house with all the lights on.
- Though they say zigbee is a mesh network, i’ve not seen much evidence of this.
- Why invest money in expensive bulbs ? In the UK a Tradfri bulb costs £15 (980 lumen), whilst a Ledare bulb costs £7 (1000 lumen). All LED bulbs drive the LED at about 20x the LED design current yet they still expect a lifetime of 50,000 hours (5.7 years continuous, Amazing bits of kit ! Though Power cycling ‘may’ have a significant impact). IF you run it at less than full power you will reduce the heat loading on the LED but the weak point will be the bulb power supply (in the bulb) so If you run your bulb at 50% you ‘may’ only extend the life by 10 to 20% (and you may reduce energy costs by only 20-25%) BUT The bulb has cost you less than 1/2 Though you’d need to invest in some smart switches (these are designed to last 20-25 years). you can set the switches to have default power settings (changeable by day/hour/whatever) replace the bulb - still have same settings/scenes etc.AND because of this you only ever need to have a couple of each type of bulb for spares (rather than the box full I currently have).
- So I’ve decided to go for a SINGLE type of bulb throughout the house and have them controlled by z-wave switches - At £40 for a switch that will do Trailing Edge dimming (for LED Capacitive Loads - Fibaro/Aeotec etc.) it probably won’t do more than break even on the cost front (probably not that given falling costs as the technology matures and future worth issues). BUT stock less spares and if I’m away from home and the wife/kids need to replace a bulb - it’s just done. You also switch them using normal switches rather than your phone or controller (painless transition) but if you want to use your phone, that’s okay too.
I don’t quite understand the need to switch lights on and off whilst at work but that’s doable too - along with setting an ‘away mode’ where they come on at a random time and go off at another random time to simulate occupancy.
This is not for everyone - but I think it will work for me. And the Z-wave tests I’ve done are a lot more reliable than the zigbee. Oh … and the switch remembers last state in a power cut too.
Hue Lights will give RGB but I don’t need that and they cost even more but they do have easier voice assistant integration…
You can pick up Z-Wave power outlets for about £20 and sometimes less, these are less useful though, unless you have things that you need to switch regularly to a specific set of conditions (Christmas Lights, Electric Heaters, External Signage ???)
Lazy though I am, having the TV come on at 18:00 and going off at 00:00 just does not appeal.
I would like to hear the opposing argument from a zigbee acolyte as I may have missed something stupid.
Regards
Mutt