Home automation is that branch of technology that brings objects to say the least "science fiction" up to a few years ago inside our homes, allowing appliances and other devices to connect to the Internet and receive our commands remotely, even with the voice. If we are fanatics of new technologies and we can't wait to bring as much home automation as possible to our homes, one of the first steps is certainly the adoption of wireless lights. Wireless lights are normal LED bulbs that integrate a Wi-Fi module inside, which allows you to connect to your home wireless network and receive orders or commands from an online cloud platform or from one of the supported voice assistants.
In this guide we will show you the best wireless lights that you can buy online, highlighting the smart features of each product (if it supports voice commands, if a control app is available etc.).
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1) Features lights and wireless bulbs
Before jumping headfirst into buying bulbs with Wi-Fi, it is worth checking that the products chosen have some important features:
- Light technology : now all bulbs contain LEDs inside for the emanation of light, thanks to their great energy savings (with a 7W bulb we get the same light as an old 60-70W bulb).
The ignitions are all ultra-fast, so we won't even have to wait for the bulbs to get warm to get the full light. So let's avoid any technology that is not LED: halogen, incandescent or old saving bulbs are now illegal so they shouldn't even be on sale.
- Type of socket : each lamp holder has its own "connection", therefore at the time of purchase we will have to check which type of socket it carries and take the relative bulb. The most popular models are E27 (candle), E14 (half-candle) and GU10 (spotlight).
- IEEE 802.11n Wi-Fi standard : if we have to connect them to the home wireless network, support for the most used standard for 2.4 GHz networks must not be missing. Usually support for 5 GHz network is not required on bulbs because the bulb may be too far from the modem, so don't connect properly. If the house is large and the modem is still far away (even for 2.4 GHz networks) we consider buying a Wi-Fi repeater or a Wi-Fi Powerline.
- Light temperature : we check that the temperature of the light emitted is to our liking.
The value is expressed in K (degrees Kelvin) and can provide an indication of how the final light will be: a value equal to or less than 3000K indicates a warm light (tending to yellow), a value equal to 4000K indicates a neutral light ( basically white) and a value above 5000K indicates a cold light (tending to blue). Some bulbs also allow you to change the light, so as to recreate a different and colorful environment for each type of room.
- Dimmer system : an additional (non-fundamental) feature that we can find on wireless lights is the dimmer, i.e. the ability to decrease the intensity of light to adapt it to all scenarios and all rooms. Not all wireless lights are dimmable, so if we have a switch or knob in the house to adjust the light intensity, be sure to buy dimmable models.
- Home automation integration : to have maximum control over the wireless light bulb we can use both the dedicated app and integrate the control service on the most used voice assistants at the moment (Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa).
In this way we can program the lighting of the lights at certain times or alternatively turn them on using the voice commands on the smartphone or on the portable speakers.
- Duration : all smart bulbs must last like the classic LED bulbs, i.e. at least 10, 000 hours of use. Obviously it is not possible to predict in advance when a light bulb will break or stop working, but we absolutely avoid products that do not clearly indicate the minimum life of the light bulb.
In addition to the bulbs with the wireless included, we can also buy normal LED bulbs and place a Wi-Fi bulb holder, so as to save a little bit on the final price. In the next chapter of the guide we will also show you the Wi-Fi bulb holders, so you can remotely control even normal bulbs.
2) Wireless lights: buying guide
In this part of the guide we will recommend the best wireless bulbs that you can buy online, so as to get the best possible price.
Finally, we will show you the Wi-Fi bulb holders, to be used on any type of LED bulb .
E27 bulbs
- Smart WiFi Bulb E27 Smart LED Bulb (15 €)
- LIFX Mini White (E27) Wi-Fi Smart LED Bulb (17 €)
- ACCEWIT Wi-Fi Bulb Smart Bulb Dimmable LED Light (27 €)
- Philips Hue White LED bulbs, E27 socket, 9 W, 2 Pieces (€ 35)
- Smart LED Multicolor Dimmable Lamp, TECKIN E27 (52 €)
E14 bulbs
- Wi-Fi Smart Bulb E14 Smart Bulb Dimmable (15 €)
- Smart Wifi Bulb, Maxcio Dimmable Led Bulb (€ 16)
- EXTSUD Smart Bulb E14 WiFi Smart Bulb RGB Dimmable (18 €)
- Lohas WiFi Smart bulb E14 5W = 40W (34 €)
- Philips Hue White Ambiance LED bulbs, E14 (59 €)
GU10 spotlights
- GU10 Wifi Intelligence Bulb, Avatar Controls Multicolor Dimmable (17 €)
- LOHAS-LED Smart LED Lamp 5 W (32 €)
- Philips Hue White LED bulb, Gu10 socket, 5.5 W (34 €)
- EXTSUD 4 Pcs GU10 Led WiFi RGB Bulb Dimmable 5W (69 €)
If instead we want to use classic LED lights, we can make them "smart" by purchasing one of the Wi-Fi bulb holders (also called Wi-Fi Light Sockets ) below.
- KOBWA Smart WiFi E27 lamp holder, Smart LED Bulb (16 €)
- Smart WiFi E27 Light socket, Aicase Intelligent WLAN (€ 29)
For we want to automate our home to save energy and get a lighter bill, we recommend you read our dedicated guide below.
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