Smart Switch for Wifi Bulbs

I’ve got 8 WiFi LED color lights in my basement gym. I have HA interface set up to change the color patterns to set the vibe for workouts. Unfortunately, when I turn the lights on at the switch, it takes a few minutes before they become available to Home Assistant. That’s a drag for sure. Is this to be expected? If no, any suggestions on how to make them be controllable immediately?

If the delay is part of the nature of WiFi bulbs, I’d like to replace the light switch at the top of the steps with a smart switch that would keep the lights connected to Home Assistant, but would be able to toggle the lights from illuminated to “off.”

Is there a WiFi or other smart switch that anyone could recommend that would do this?

Hey there,

which integration are you using? I flashed Tasmota on all my lightbulbs and since they start talking to the local MQTT broker as soon as they boot up they become available a few seconds after having received power. Seems like some cloud might bring a bit of a delay here.

As for switches, that depends on your country, although a non-wifi remote might be a more solid option.
Usually people use Zigbee and a USB stick for that. Personally I’m into EnOcean since you don’t need batteries in remotes or sensors.

If you bring your phone down the stairs as well, sticking a NFC tag to the wall and using a tag is probably the cheapest option and very reliable as well.

I am using the Tuya integration which since posting I’ve been reading has some significant delays. And of course it also seems like flashing to Tasmota has been having less and less success on these lights.

I’m not married to a wifi remote, but am married to a wall switch (USA) as it just makes more sense to visitors and frankly, me. I do have Zigbee elsewhere in the house, so a Zigbee switch would work as well.

Yeah, sounds like Zigbee might be the way to go. A wall switch would be kinda pointless since you’d be adding a relay into the circuit so now you have to disable that or use “normal” lightbulbs.

I think the Philips Hue remote can be mounted like a regular wall switch so it doesn’t look all that different :slight_smile:

Yeah, I guess what I’m looking for is non-Hue ,Hue-style Zigbee remote.

You should try localtuya. Once a feature I call “passive devices” is merged, you will get fast recovery. Everything is local and updates are pushed from devices, so state changes are instant. Requires that you get the local key, but after that fairly simple to set up. No need to flash other firmware.

I don’t know about the USA, but you could take a look at the Zigbee Alliance certified products: https://zigbeealliance.org/zigbee_products/?product_type=certified_product&se=remote
IKEA also sells zigbee light switches :slight_smile: