Philips Hue Vs. Lux : Which One Is Best?

Philips Hue and Lux, are almost same with only a few minor differences. But first, you should know how they are similar to each other to get a better idea of their differences.

Philips Hue came about 4 years ago in the market. Since that time, a new range of lights has been added along with new bridges and hubs. All generations of the Philips Hue family are based upon ZigBee Light Link. ZigBee is a low-power, safe, and good technology that is generally used to control smart home devices. You can control almost all your home devices by combining Philips Hue with Zigbee based devices.

Philips Hue is adding new features and evolving the system to make the smart lights even more useful. Philips Hue is mainly used as a smart home device because all of its products use ZigBee protocol. It means that you can easily combine Philips Hue with other ZigBee based devices. It will provide a wider range of home automation. The Philips Hue lineup has quite a range of smart light bulbs and light fixtures to choose from. And one such exciting product from them is the Philips Hue Lux bulb. The Hue Lux has been officially canceled. It was replaced with the newer Philips Hue White. But, you can buy the Hue Lux bulb or Hue Lux kit from Amazon. And even if you have the newer Philips Hue Bridge, the Hue Lux bulbs will have no problem pairing with the hub. Now let’s go in further detail and talk about the differences between them.

Comparison Chart

Philips Hue Vs. Lux — What’s the Difference?

1. Bulb Shape

Both the bulbs are A19 light bulbs, but their shape is slightly different. The Philips Lux has similar shape as Philips Hue White Ambiance and Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance. Whereas the Philips Hue White has a standard, traditional A19 base.

2. Light Output

If you check the specifications, you’ll find that both the bulbs have the same light output of 750 Lumens. Still, when tested it looks like Philips Lux is a brighter bulb.

3. Heat Output

We haven’t noticed it, but some customers have found higher heat output from the Philips Lux bulb.

4. Hub

Philips Hue White uses the newer version of a hub — 2.0. While the Philips Lux comes with the original hub 1.0. The difference is in shape and performance. The newer hub is square and compatible with Apple HomeKit. The first generation hub has a round shape. The hubs are similar, yet (like most technologies) we never know when the next update will crash an older version. Usually, that’s how crashes happen and how companies keep upgrading their products.

5. Philips Hue Bridge

This aspect of the bulbs only makes a difference if you buy the Philips Hue Lux bulbs in a kit. There are two different generations of the Philips Hue Bridge. First is round, and the second is square. The Philips Hue Lux kit comes with the first generation bridge. This bridge still works with pretty much with any Philips product. But, the first generation doesn’t offer support for HomeKit. So, it is important to keep that in mind if your smart home have an Apple ecosystem.

6. Life-Span

When you invest in a smart lighting setup, you want it to last for years. With the Philips Hue and Hue Lux, you’ll be getting more than a decade of use out of either bulb (assuming 3 hours of use per day.) The lifespan of the Hue White is listed at 22.8 years and the Hue Lux’s 13.7 years which is a pretty significant difference.

It’s also important to keep in mind that, for many, lights will be on longer than three hours a day. Knowing your planned amount of usage will help you. It will give a sense of whether the lifespan of the Hue Lux is good enough, or if you ought to opt for the Hue White.

Similarities

1. Bulb Color

Philips Hue is a product who includes a lot of different lighting styles. The base Philips Hue bulbs come in three different styles. White, White Ambiance, and White & Color Ambiance. The Philips Hue Lux is similar to the Philips Hue White because it’s only capable of emitting white color.

2. Requires Philips Hue Bridge

Like the rest of the Hue product family, both the Philips Hue White and Lux need a Philips Hue Bridge. Without the bridge, the smart features of the Hue product family won’t be able to function. With a single bridge, you can control your entire Hue system as well as connect to many other smart products. Both bulbs connects with the bridge via ZigBee technology. It is a standard smart home frequency, and generally considered to be more reliable than Wi‐Fi.

3. App Control

Both bulbs have similar functions. Due to this, you’ll be able to control every detail from the Philips Hue app. As an extra perk, you can adjust all settings from wherever you are, as long as you have internet connection. You’ll have complete control from anywhere and at anytime.

4. Work With The Rest Of Philips Hue Family

Good thing about Hue family is that all the products work well with one another. Whichever bulb you choose, you can get assure that it will be easy to expand. It can also integrate with other Hue products. With products ranging from Lightstrips to lamp like the Philips Hue Go, Bloom, and Iris, you’ll have a large range of lighting solutions to choose from.

5. Voice Assistants

The app is convenient to use. But nothing beat the hands-free control of your new Philips Hue or Lux. Both products work perfectly with Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit, and Google Home. So, you’ll be able to adjust pretty much any setting with just a simple voice command.

 Also, just make sure you use the Philips Hue Bridge 2.0 (square-shaped bridge). It gives full compatibility with smart voice assistants.

Technical Specifications And Features Of Philips Hue White

The bulb has :

• Fitting – B22
• Wattage equivalent – 60  W
• Power factor – >0.5
• Number of switching cycles – 50000
• Energy efficiency label – A+
• Brightness – 750 lumens
• Rated lifetime – 25000  hour(s)
• Colour temperature – 2700K (warm white)
• Wattage – 9.5  W
• Light output
• High-quality white light
• Dimmable via smart device only
• Beam angle 180°
• >80 CRI
• Lumen output – 806 lm
• Software upgradable – Yes
• Start up Instant – 100% light output
• Height – 109  mm
• Width – 61  mm
• Input voltage – 220 V-240 V
• Instant On/Off Control
• Customized Scheduling
• Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit Support
• Hue App for iOS and Android
• Philips Hue Bridge Required
• Compatible with Alexa, Google Assistant, and HomeKit for voice control
• Environmental
• Operational humidity 5% < H < 95% (non-condensing)
• Operational temperature -10°C – 45°C
• Guarantee – 2 years
• What’s in the single box – Hue white light bulb : 1

Technical Specifications And Features Of Philips Hue Lux

The bulb has:

• Brightness – 750 lumens
• Color temperature – 2200‐6500 K
• Wattage – 9 W
• Light output
• 80 CRI
• Beam angle 150°
• Dimming only via the hue app
• High-quality warm white
• Software upgradable – Yes
• Start up Instant – 100% light output
• What’s supported
• Android 2.3 or later
• iOS 6.0 or later
• Input Voltage – 120 volts
• Instant On/Off Control
• Customized Scheduling
• Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit Support
• Hue App for iOS and Android
• Philips Hue Bridge Required
• Compatible with Alexa, Google Assistant, and HomeKit for voice control
• Environmental
• Operational temperature
• 0°C – 35°C
• Operational humidity – suitable for indoor use
• Guarantee – 2-year guarantee
• What’s in the single box – Hue lux bulb : 1

What’s In The Box?

 Philips hue bulb is focused on aesthetics. It has a pearl White finish and quite geometric. Design of the bulb itself is very minimalist and smooth.

On opening the box, you will find a bulb and a manual on how to get started. Philips hue is easy to set up and manage. With your bulb, bridge and hue app, you’re all set to go.

Philips Hue Set-up

• Screw In Your Bulbs: Power your light sources. If you have a starter kit, screw the bulbs into your existing sockets and turn on your wall light switches. For other Philips Hue LEDs, like Philips Hue Lightstrip, you only have to plug them in and power them.
• Plug In Your Bridge: Plug in your bridge, and it will automatically power up for easy set up of your bridge. Connect it to your Wi-Fi router by using the network cable given. Wait for the three lights to come on and you are set to go.
• Download The App: Get the latest version of the Philips Hue App and connect to the bridge. Download the app in the App Store or Google Play Store. Connect to the bridge. Find your lights. And it’s done, you’ve got Philips Hue.
• Control Your Way: Now that your system is up and running, it’s time to get familiar with the working of Philips Hue. You can use them with your phone, switch, tablet, or even voice control. It your choice. Explore the functions of the Philips Hue app and discover new ways to play with light. And when you’re ready, you can increase your system to enjoy Philips Hue even more.

Philips Hue Lux is similar in functions as compared to Hue but has a unique flat-headed design.

On opening the box, you will find a bulb packed in a plastic cover. Its installation is just like Philips Hue bulb.

Philips Hue Lux Setup

Setting the lux bulbs and hue bulbs is very similar. The process is very simple. No networking knowledge is required which is a great thing.

•  First, you must screw in a bulb then turn it on; it’ll light up without being connected, just like a standard bulb. Then you have to plug in the wireless bridge. After that, connect it to a free port on your Wi-Fi router using the given Ethernet cable.
•  Once plugged in, then you must download the free Hue app to your Android or kiOS phone or tablet. The app works in any devices running Android 2.3 or later, or iOS 6.0 or later. Follow the step-by-step instructions for pairing the bulbs and bridge with your device. This whole setup process only takes a few minutes.

 Once you’ve gone through the initial setup, adding more bulbs is incredibly easy. All you have to do is screw the bulbs and search for more light bulbs through the app.

Overview Of Philips Hue

 This is the most basic Hue LED bulb type of Philips. All the Hue White bulbs glow with a warm white light. The color temperature of these bulbs is not adjustable. But, they do connect to the Hue Bridge for full wireless control. The simplicity of bulbs makes them affordable. But if you’re looking for something other than lux, You can go for the comparison between Belkin Wemo and Philips hue.

The good — The plain, simple version of Philips Hue bulb don’t change colors. But it does fulfills all the basic dimensions of a smart bulb. They’re also bright, good‐looking bulbs with easy-to-use app.

The bad — Price is high

Overview Of Philips Hue Lux

The Philips Hue Lux is a good choice for those looking to add-on their existing Hue setup. It can be used for desk and floor lamp. It can be used for other places where you just need basic lighting without all the fancy things like color changing in sync with media playback.

The good — The Philips Hue Lux doesn’t change color. But, this bulb do offer an affordable smart lighting entry point. Direct integration with IFTTT and a great app provides feature-rich experience as compared to other kits.

 The bad — The Hue Lux LEDs aren’t “color tunable” like some recent competitors. Meaning that you’re locked in at a yellowy 2,700 K.

Philips Hue And Lux In A Smart Home Environment

Both the Philips Hue White and Lux works well with Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Apple HomeKit. One of the main benefits of the Philips ecosystem is the compatibility with the various “friends of Hue.” This refers to the many smart products and smart home controller. These can expand the functionality of your existing Hue lighting setup.

Some notable brands that combines well with the Philips Hue and Lux.  Razer, Logitech, and Nest. They offers everything from home security to entertainment. They can combine seamlessly with your Philips bulbs. IFTTT support also makes it easy to set conditional and cool things. Example, flash bulbs when you get an email, or dynamically adjust lighting levels based on the time of day.

Main point is that the Philips Hue and Lux will both integrate well with an existing smart home setup.  Or, they can serve as a base from which you can expand with various compatible devices.

How To Utilize These Devices Even Better?

The Philips Hue and Philips Hue Lux have a lot of features built in by default. You can expand the functionality with additional accessories. Products like a Dimmer, Tap Switch, and Sensor, gives you greater control over your lighting. Being able to set the perfect mood lighting with a dimmer is more than worth the extra cost in our opinion. The sensor adds convenience and energy savings. They keeps the room lit up when you’re around and dark when you’re not.

Additionally, there are a variety of ways you can expand your Philips Hue ecosystem. From lightstrips to lamps, the Philips family continues to grow and the entire range works well with all the other products.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Final Talk

If you don’t have a hub, but looking to set smart lighting in your home from scratch, then we have a different idea for you. Get the Philips Hue Color, and Philips Hue White, and then just add GE Link light. The GE Link lights work perfectly with the Philips Hue hub. And they are also a little brighter than Philips Hue Lux bulbs. if you feel like Philips Hue Lux is not for you, Take a look at how sengled is in comparison to Philips Hue.

You can use the GE Link bulbs for spare bedrooms. And with the Philips Hue Color and White lights, you can create a perfect ambiance in the places where you spend most of your time.

For example, your living room or bedroom. The Hue lights also work very well as relief lighting, too. Switch all your bulbs to smart bulbs, You’ll pay more for the kit, but you’ll save on replacing all other bulbs.