Fixing Philips Hue, motion sensor and Alexa automation woes

On a recent Internet of Things Podcast episode, we took a call from our Internet of Things voicemail hotline segment with a question about Philips Hue bulbs and a motion sensor. Max called in explaining that his Philips Hue bulb automations don’t always work properly, and he’s hoping for a solution.

Max uses some brand of motion sensor to turn on his smart bulbs using an automation he set up with the Amazon Alexa app. Sometimes it works perfectly fine while other times, the Hub bulb doesn’t turn off after the specified time he set up. Theoretically, this should work just fine as certain Alexa devices support Zigbee, which is what the Philips Hue bridge uses for its connectivity.

We suspect Max isn’t using a Philips Hue motion sensor with his bulbs of the same brand. Why? Because Stacey has both the Hue motion sensor and bulbs and they’ve been rock solid for her. She uses this setup both at her current home as well as in her prior residence. So one suggestion we have for Max is to consider replacing the existing motion sensor with one from Hue for around $45.

No, Max shouldn’t have to do that, but it will likely solve the problem. This would remove any non-Hue hub from the equation as Alexa wouldn’t be the “brains” of the automation. Max would then set up his motion sensor trigger and Hub bulbs routine directly within the Hue app. Keeping both the devices and the centralized automation within a single platform reduces complexity, and all but guarantees success.

Another option is for Max to consider waiting for the coming Matter upgrades to the Philips Hue bridge and Amazon Echo devices. Amazon has started to upgrade 17 of its Echo devices to support Matter, although this first effort is focused solely on Matter over Wi-Fi. Thread support will arrive later this year on Amazon Echo devices. And Philips Hue hasn’t yet committed to a firmware update timeline. It will be upgrading the most recent Hue bridge to Matter, and then support Matter over Wi-Fi. Once all of Max’s devices are Matter-compatible his existing automations should work more reliably.

While neither of these options is ideal, this situation does raise an interesting question.

Stacey tends to create smart home automations within each individual smart device application. Without having both Hue bulbs and a Hue motion sensor, Max can’t do that. I do the opposite and set mine up on a central hub. In my case, that’s within the Apple HomeKit app where the automations run off an Apple HomePod mini.

We’re curious how and where you set up smart home automations, as well as why you’ve chosen your particular method. Consider answering three simple questions in our survey found here. No personal information is collected through the survey, and we will only be using the information in-house. Additionally, we’ll share the results with all of you in the near future.

To hear Max’s question, as well as our discussion on the topic in full, tune in to the Internet of Things Podcast below: