Philips Hue Bridge Lights | What They Mean & How to Fix

Author
Recent Posts

Gained early experience with automation technology in the private and industrial sector, can turn his living room into a movie theater with one voice command and is the owner of this website. He is happy to share his accumulated experience with every new article.

The Hue and its lights

Philips offers a fast and cost-effective solution for smart home applications in the home with its Hue product line. Unlike elaborate smart home networks that also involve wiring, Philips Hue works wirelessly.

This makes their installation particularly simple. However, it also requires that all light switches remain on at all times. The terminal devices or lamps rely on a permanent power supply. But don’t worry – when the lamps are off, their power consumption is minimal.

The Philips Hue Bridge is a small transmitting device. It receives commands from the Internet and forwards them to the connected light sources. It can do much more than just turn the lights on or off. Combined with an RGB light source, it can make the room glow in any color. Each bridge can control up to 50 lights or other end devices. For a normal household, a single Hue is thus perfectly sufficient.

The Philips Hue is built as follows:

Housing
Connections for LAN and power
3 LED on the top
1 illuminated ring with central push button.
1 Power supply unit

The sturdy and shapely housing is kept in plain white. The rounded corners not only serve the aesthetics, but also reduce any risk of injury. A wall mount on the back allows the bridge to be hung discreetly in any location. There should only be power sources and a router nearby. All too long cables again pose the risk of tripping hazards.

The LAN connection is quite normal standard. Any LAN cable can be used for the Hue Bridge. There is also a cable in the scope of delivery.

The 3 LEDs on the top indicate the respective status. From left to right, they mean the following:

Power supply
Router connection
Connection with the Internet

The LEDs activate as soon as the respective status is reached.

The illuminated ring with central push button and PHILIPS imprint indicates that ZigBee is active. ZigBee is the radio standard used to control smart home applications. It is similar to the famous “Bluetooth”, but not identical.

Activate the Hue Bridge

The Hue Bridge becomes active as soon as it is connected to power and the router. The three LEDs for power, connection and connection light up one after the other. The Hue Bridge has to boot up first, just like any other computer. The light signal of the LED therefore needs a few seconds until it becomes active. Finally, the ZigBee ring turns on. Now the Hue Bridge is ready for operation.

End devices for smart home

Check Price:

AMAZON*

The Hue Bridge can be combined with the following end devices:

Only the ZigBee-compatible lamps can be used as illuminants. For this purpose, we always recommend using original devices from Philips. They promise the best performance.

Sensors should also come from this manufacturer. These end devices can be used to monitor areas, for example.

The Philips Hue Smart Plug is a small power socket that plugs into an existing power outlet. The Smart Plug intermediate module makes any end device controllable via the Philips Hue Bridge. This is very practical, for example, if the coffee maker or the washing machine should be remotely controllable.

Hue Bridge malfunctions and how to fix them

The Philips Hue Bridge indicates very reliably via its LED when something is wrong with its function. For this purpose, all signal lights on the device are equipped with a flashing function. They have the following meaning:

Flashing power connector

The power supply to the Hue Bridge is irregular, insufficient or interrupted. This can happen when there are fluctuations in the power grid or disturbances in the power cable. A small integrated capacitor ensures that the Hue Bridge continues to flash for a short while when the power supply is completely interrupted. A common fault in this case is when the device has been connected to a dimmer switch*. The Hue Bridge relies on a constant power supply with a defined minimum voltage. If this is not present, it responds with this error message.

If the power LED blinks or goes out completely, check the power supply. Also check the cable of the power supply and the connector. Dirt has often accumulated in the socket so that the contacts no longer mesh optimally. You can clean them with a Q-tip or a toothpick.

Flashing connection LED

If the middle LED flashes, there is a fault between the router and the bridge. In most cases, only the LAN cable has come loose. But it can also be a problem with the router itself. In this case, a reboot can help to restore the function. Check all cables as well, so you can be sure. Also check the power connection and the sockets. A common cause for this error message is when the Hue is not connected to the central router, but to a switch. Therefore, only use the main device to connect your Hue to the Internet.

Flashing Internet LED

If the third diode flashes, there is an error with the Internet connection. The cause then lies with the router. Check the line between the device and the telephone socket. Unplug the connectors once and plug them in again. Then restart the router. If this does not solve the problem, check the Internet connection from the house or call your provider. It is possible that there is a nationwide problem.

Flashing illuminated ring

The flashing light ring indicates that ZigBee is no longer working. This can happen if the power supply from your Hue Bridge was briefly interrupted. Simply press the central button in the ring. The ZigBee connection is then reestablished and the functions are restored.

Hue Bridge and Dimmer

As mentioned, connecting the Hue Bridge to a dimmer switch* can cause problems. However, there are two ways you can use the dimming function with the Hue Bridge.

Select dimming option in the app
Interconnection of a dimmer module

The dimming option is included in every smart home control. You can not only control the brightness of the lamp with the Hue app. You also have extensive timing options to choose from. If you have an RGB LED connected, you can even change the color of your lighting. This function is available for classic light bulbs and LED strips.

The dimmer module is a small, simple switch. It has a magnetic back, so it can be attached to any surface made of steel sheet. This module is particularly suitable for the bedroom. Many people deliberately do not take their smartphones to bed with them so as not to be distracted during the sensitive phase of falling asleep. The portable dimmer switch replaces the smart home control via app and makes it convenient to use from bed. A suitable module from Philips is available for the Hue Bridge.

Set up the Hue Bridge

The smartphone app is available free of charge in the IStore or Playstore. It is ready to use in just a few minutes. The intuitive menu offers you extensive possibilities to use your Philips Hue devices. After installation, the app automatically searches for the Hue Bridge. As soon as the app indicates that it has found the device, you press the large Philips button in the light ring once.

The bridge thus “responds” to the signal of the app. After that, the app automatically searches for connected lamps. These must be switched on so that the app can also find them via the Hue. Each lamp must be installed individually. You can also ask the app to search for new lamps.

When the Hue has found the lamp, it flickers once briefly. This confirms the connection and you can start programming the lamp. A tap on the text field brings you to the edit menu for the name of the lamp. Here, of course, it is particularly useful to choose at least the rooms as a name, i.e. living room, bedroom, etc..

Keep in mind, however, that you can connect up to 50 devices to your Hue. The more detailed you choose the name, the better you can control your home remotely. The Hue makes this particularly easy for you by asking you specifically for the room in the following menu.

There are also a number of icons that facilitate the assignment of the lamp to the room in question. Check in this menu also immediately whether the check mark is also set for the assigned lamp. After that, the Hue is set up and the first lamp is successfully installed. In total, you can connect up to 50 devices to a Hue Bridge. However, you won’t find that many in a normal household.

Control the Hue Bridge

There are four ways to control the Hue Bridge:

Control via the smartphone app
Control via remote control
Control via hardwired radio transmitter
Control via voice assistant (Siri, Alexa).

The smartphone app offers the most comprehensive options for controlling the connected end devices. In the app you will find

The basic functions displayed are switching on and off and dimming. Above these basic functions, you have three buttons to choose from. Here you can adjust your lamp even more precisely to your preferences. The “Scene” function is particularly interesting.

Here you will be offered a selection of ambiences that you can use to adjust the lamp at the touch of a button. If you want to control the color or the white tone manually, you can use the other two buttons.

If you want to control your Hue without the app, you can use various remote controls. These do not have the same range of functions as the app. But they are particularly easy to use.

Many customers still want to use the normal light switch to turn the lights on and off in a room. This is not possible with conventional house wiring because the smart lamp requires a permanent power supply.

However, you can help yourself in this case as follows. First, hardwire the power supply to the lamp socket so that you can’t turn it off. This work is simple, but it is dangerous. Therefore, it is essential to have it done only by a qualified electrician.

Then you add a hardwired radio transmitter to the light switch. These are available in stores for a few euros. Now you can switch the Smart Lamp on and off as usual at the switch on your door.

Finally, the Hue can also be controlled via a voice assistant. Linking the two systems is somewhat complex, which is why we would like to explain it to you in more detail in another article. However, your smart home control via voice assistant will be particularly convenient and user-friendly.

With the Hue Bridge to more home comfort

Smart, individually adjustable lighting gives you a completely new living feeling for your own four walls. Where before you had to rely on the technical configuration of the illuminant used, with the Hue Bridge you determine yourself how your room should shine. The smart home control from Philips and a connected RGB lighting immerse your home in any ambience.

So you can always choose the perfect lighting to match your mood, the occasion or the season. Installation and control are extremely user-friendly. In case of malfunctions, you can quickly identify the cause with the help of the error messages.

The Philips Hue Bridge is a quickly installed and inexpensive solution if you are interested in smart home applications. For normal households, it is a powerful alternative to the costly installation of hardwired solutions.

Attention: When installing electronic equipment, please be sure to observe the manufacturer’s safety instructions. You have to take care of your own safety. The information on this site only helps you to learn.
Disclosure: This website is the property of Martin Lütkemeyer and is operated by Martin Lütkemeyer. Martin Lütkemeyer is a member of the Amazon Services LLC Affiliate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to enable Web sites to earn advertising revenue through advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Links marked with * are affiliate links.