Wiz Lightbulbs and Home Assistant walkthrough - 2021 Phillips Hue Killer?
UPDATE! The method for installing this has changed since this was made! It is MUCH easier now...please simply add it to HACS, reboot, and then search in the home assistant integrations and you'll see the WIZ integration there. Then add it, add your IP (You'll have to add the integration for each bulb). The YAML technique in this video is no longer valid (which is great! that shows that this is getting closer to getting integrated into officially!)
This video is a mini review of the Phillips Wiz bulbs, as well as a home assistant integration walkthrough. I talk about how I found the bulbs, initial impressions, and then do a full walkthrough and tutorial of how to set them up using HACs.
The integration is located here: https://github.com/sbidy/wiz_light
If you're looking to buy some and want to suppor the channel, here's the lowest price I've seen on them outside of costco:
https://amzn.to/2OHP8tL (this is the BR30 or 'floodlight' version)
Here's 2 Phillips Hue to compare against:
https://amzn.to/2N27vJz
The thing about the wiz light from a home automation standpoint is that the quality is amazing...these are RGB bulbs with tunable whites. The app is solid on it's own. But when combined with the power of home assistant, you'll find them easy to work with (they're wifi bulbs, so no hub or zigbee dongle needed) and the integration provides full, quick access to all of the features including the built in effects. So what makes them better than Phillips Hue bulbs?
They're up to 1/4 the cost ($49.99 for a single phillips hue bulb, $50 for a 4 pack of Wiz bulbs at costco).
And as you'll see in this video...Phillips bought them...well Signify did...so they're still a Phillips branded product!
Even without Home Assistant, the app is great for these bulbs, and they've got a ton going for them. If you're not using the latest and greatest features of Hue, you could easily choose these and not notice the difference...except for a huge savings.
that being said, there are some things Hue edges out on, such as being able to pair with a video source with the HDMI sync box, or certain color accuracy.
Note: If you have problems pairing your bulbs, please make sure you're on a 2.4 ghz wifi channel. Also if you are in the pairing app and choose the bulbs wifi access point, that usually helps with wifi pairing (that tip works with ANY wifi pairing really).
I hope you enjoy the format of this video. I strive to teach a bit about the technology, do a walkthrough of how to add stuff to home assistant, but also talk about the challenges of smart bulbs with relay based switches (both dumb and smart ones). In a future update I hope to discuss the Innovelli switches which should really make these things...ahem..light up. :)
Thanks to my friend Jack for the music in this episode! Check it, and more of his stuff out, here: / biding-ten-weeks