PC Magazine July 2017

FEATURES
Smart bulbs offer a degree of control and interactivity you just can’t get with
traditional bulbs, including scheduled timers and remote control options.
They’re also more convenient; it’s easier to tap on a smartphone screen than to
get up and trudge over to a wall switch.
Most of the bulbs we’ve reviewed can be scheduled or controlled remotely,
which is great if you want to save on energy costs or you often forget to turn off
the lights before leaving the house. Some bulbs use geofencing, which means
they work with the GPS in your smartphone to pinpoint your exact location and
can automatically turn the lights on or off when you reach a certain point.
Color-changing bulbs are great for mood lighting, and some can even sync up
with certain movies and TV shows.
As we mentioned, some bulbs hook up with Amazon’s Alexa, Apple HomeKit, or
Google Assistant, so you can control your home lighting with your voice. You
can also integrate some of the bulbs on this list with security cameras,
thermostats, and other smart home devices. If This Then That (IFTTT)
compatibility lets you create recipes that automatically cause your lights to react
to certain triggers, like phone notifications or changes in weather.
We don’t currently recommend bulbs that do double duty as speakers, as we
haven’t found any particularly good ones in testing.
DO YOU NEED A HUB?
One more important factor to keep in mind is that many smart bulbs need to
connect to your smartphone through a home automation hub such as the Wink
2. Other bulbs cut out the middleman and connect to your phone or tablet
directly via Wi-Fi, including the LIFX models. Others connect with Bluetooth,
but in that case, you’re limited to control only within Bluetooth range, which
means you can’t change the lights when you’re away from home. A hub also
means spending more money and adding another step to the installation
process. But based on the bulbs we’ve seen so far, the best ones use hubs.
With all that in mind, we’ve gathered the best smart bulbs we’ve tested in this
roundup. Depending on your needs, any of these options is a good place to get
started in connecting your home lighting to more than just a wall switch.