Some years ago, lots of people, including myself, went out and bought a smart light globe or two, but since then, many of us have gone back to the old way of doing things. In an effort to try the smart home again, I look at some of the latest smart lights from Wiz (stylised as “WiZ”).
Smart lights might be one of many aspects of the modern smart home, but they provide an understanding of how technology is evolving and how it can improve our lives at home.
Why you should take another look at the smart home
Simply put, a smart home is your home, but smarter. A home that can do things for you automatically or via voice controls, that’s the general idea.
So, how does it work?
There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to smart homes. Generally, they use sensors and connected devices to streamline daily tasks. For example, a smart thermostat can learn your schedule and adjust the temperature accordingly. Smart lights can turn on and off based on your movements. And a smart speaker can control your entire home with just your voice.
There are several main benefits to smart home technology:
- Convenience: Automate everyday tasks.
- Efficiency: Save energy by controlling appliances and lights.
- Security: Monitor your home remotely and receive alerts for potential threats.
- Comfort: Create a personalised living environment that suits your preferences.
You don’t need to replace everything in your home to enjoy the benefits. Start small with a few smart devices, like a smart light bulb or power plug. You can gradually add more devices to your home as you get comfortable.
Most of us live by the mantra, “If it ain’t broken, why fix it?” However, if you can make an improvement that does not cost too much and is easy to install, maybe it’s worth taking another look at how the latest smart home devices may just save you some money and make your life that little bit easier.
To help with this, Wiz sent me some of their latest smart lights and accessories to review, including the following:
Wiz smart plug
The smart plug turns any standard power socket into a smart plug, allowing connected devices to be turned on and off via your smartphone or voice via Google Home, Amazon Alexa or Apple’s Siri smart speakers.
A smart plug, for example, can turn any 240-volt radio on as an alarm clock at a specified time.
A new reason to use a smart plug is within NSW energy providers will start to bill for exported solar power during certain hours rather than providing a credit. To avoid being charged, use the power yourself by programming a smart plug to start a pool pump or charge vacuums, power tools, etc. during this time.
I would have liked the plug to support energy usage monitoring. The box indicated it did but app indicated it was not supported. This may be addressed at a future software update.
Wiz smart bulbs
Available as either a screw or bayonet bulb, these smart bulbs plug into a standard socket and can be controlled by smartphone or voice, as well as the ability (model dependent) to change colours and intensity.
At my home I use smart bulbs to turn on each evening in common areas automatically. This ensures you never search/scrabble for the light switch and provides security lighting when you are not home.
A new feature called Spacesense allows these modern bulbs to detect movement. This means that when used as a pair or more, the lights will switch on when movement is detected. This feature can be particularly handy when arriving home at night with your hands full. The lights automatically come on without having to do any fancy wiring or get an electrician in.
Wiz neon flex strip and bar linear lights
These are relatively new offerings on the market, and although they are definitely lights and have the same functionality as smart light bulbs, their function is more one of art.
A recent trend in home decor is to use lighting beyond white light to create a certain vibe in your living spaces.
The light bar is useful for shelves or corners needing accent light.
The flex strip is a bendable neon strip that allows you to make shapes on a wall. For example, you could make the shape of a star or a love heart.
Wiz smart lights features
Although all the Wiz products will work straight out of the box the only way to get the full smart functionality is to download the Wiz Connected app.
All the products allow integration with smart home speakers, so they can be set up to operate via voice. The Wiz app allows smart products to be turned on and off, as well as scheduled. Smart devices can also be grouped together, say, into a room, and controlled as a group.
The App is also where you enable the Spacesense feature, which allows lights to be activated when you enter a room and switched off when you leave.
Some of the lighting products, including all the lights GadgetGuy tested, allow customisation of lighting colours and brightness. Wiz quotes 16 million different colour possibilities. These colours can be changed, strobed, etc. to create different moods and effects. You may change the lighting scheme to match a party or a change of mood or maybe signal someone to identify your house by the purple light.
Accessories such as movement sensors and a manual switch may also be purchased and integrated with the smart devices.
Using the Wiz smart devices
The Wiz smart devices support the “Matter” standard which is an industry protocol for home smart devices. This means that the products will work with other devices and other non-Wiz apps. This is in theory as this standard is still in flux.
Even before I had the chance to pair each of the devices I was testing, my smartphone recognised a new smart device and tried to add the product to my Google Home. This is great, but I wanted to test the Wiz app, so it’s best to avoid the other option until the Matter standards are fully integrated. I made the mistake of accepting the first Google Home request, which then resulted in me having to add the product manually to the Wiz app.
Assuming you download the Wiz app, turn the product on, add the product, and choose a room, the procedure is pretty straightforward. As you become more comfortable with the app, you can then play around and do more complicated tasks like group scheduling, etc. Additional family members can be added, so the whole household also has control of the smart devices.
I found the products to switch on and off as expected, change colour on demand and the whole light decor trend is growing on me. Best of all I can view if these products are active from anywhere in the world with internet access and turn off lights or devices when they have been left on and save some money.
Who are Wiz smart lights for?
Anyone confident with a smartphone will find these Wiz smart devices easy to use. Their use can take a standard light or power point socket and breathe a whole new life that that socket was previously capable of. No extra wiring or other special products are required, just a Wi-Fi network, a smartphone and smart devices.
Whether saving money on power, automating a task, or setting a mood with lighting, modern-day smart home products like these Wiz lights are worth another look at how they may enrich your lives.
The post Wiz smart lights review: Time to revisit the smart home appeared first on GadgetGuy.
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