Philips released the Philips Hue Bridge 2 in 2015, which was the company’s second generation of the product. The upshot was that Philips Hue customers who were presently using the first version of the bridge started to be apprehensive and question whether the company was about to discontinue support for the original Hue Bridge. Will we be required to purchase another one?
When a corporation launches a newer version of one of its goods, it is almost always accompanied by announcing that the previous version is being phased out. Fortunately, this wasn’t the case at the time of the incident. Support for the Hue Bridge version 1 has been maintained. However, as expected, this, too, altered over time.
So, what were Hue users to do in this situation? Was there still a need for a bridge? And, more specifically, what is the difference between the two Bridge versions?
What is Philips Hue?
You are probably aware that they offer an outstanding range of smart home solutions for lighting your house for those acquainted with Philips Hue. Aside from a large assortment of lighting goods, they also have a wide range of smart home gadgets, such as sensors and switches inside and outside your house.
The outside of your property may even be made safer with motion-activated lights, which are excellent for deterring criminals from entering. But what Philips Hue is arguably best known for is its range of smart ambient lighting designed to make the inside of your house seem more serene and inviting, making it the greatest location to unwind and recharge.
Why Is a Hue Bridge Required?
Most Hue devices need a Bridge since they interact via the Zigbee wireless mesh networking technology, proprietary to Philips. Because it is a mesh network, Zigbee provides for faster reaction times between devices. It is also linked with reduced power consumption and a more secure network when compared to devices that exclusively utilize Wi-Fi connectivity. The bridge serves as a middleman, allowing communication between Wi-Fi and Zigbee networks to take place.
In the absence of a Hue Bridge, there are only two circumstances in which it is appropriate.
Consider Scenario #1, which is applicable if you’re utilizing Bluetooth-enabled Philips Hue lighting. Bluetooth on your smartphone can control this lighting system – however, there are some restrictions:
For example, to manage up to 10 lights, and since the Bluetooth range is restricted to around 30 feet, you would ideally have to be in the same room to control them. Thus, you can not utilize the full ability of your assets, the cool room, and regular operations that you would otherwise be able to utilize if you had a Hue Bridge, which might be problematic in
Some situations. If you have an Echo Plus, you may not need a Bridge in this situation. When it comes to connecting Zigbee-enabled devices, Modern Amazon Echo devices are now integrated with a Zigbee chip, eliminating the requirement for a separate hub or bridge to communicate with other devices. The catch here, as with everything, is that there is a catch.
While you can utilize the majority of the capabilities that you would use with a Hue Bridge, not every option (particularly the Philips Hue lab formulae and home and away from control) is accessible with this solution. Everything is dependent on how you use your lighting; you may or may not be concerned about or need the few additional features that may be unavailable – however, it is something worth talking about to contemplate if you choose to go down this street.
When it comes to Hue, if you’re not a huge fan of the Amazon Echo or want to have all of the app’s amazing features at your fingertips, the bridge is something you should think about.
Support For the Hue Bridge v.1 Ended in 2020
Several Philips Hue customers had feared what would happen when Philips terminated support from the initial version of the Hue Bridge in 2020, and they weren’t disappointed.
According to a Philips announcement made in April of this year, Hue Bridge version 1 will no longer get software updates and will no longer have access to Hue cloud services. Version 2 will receive software updates until April 30, 2020. The Hue Bridge v. one app would only be capable of providing limited functionality on a local network. As you can expect, many Philips Hue consumers were not pleased with this development. So, what were they to do in this situation?
Users who wanted to keep using their Philips Hue smart lights and their other Hue devices would have to go out and get a new Bridge, which would cost them around USD 60 – certainly not a little investment! However, if they wanted to continue using their Hue goods (and why wouldn’t they? ), they had no choice except to purchase a new Bridge.
To sweeten the bargain a bit further, Hue extended a $20 discount to current customers on the new bridge, bringing the total cost down to $40. It may not have been exactly what they were looking for (a.k.a. just sending one for free), but it was certainly better than nothing!
So what was the big deal in the first place? The new hub would be significantly different from the old one, so the old one would have to be removed. What would be a significant difference?
What’s the difference between Philips Hue Bridge 1 and 2?
To begin, there is a physical distinction between the two. The Hue Bridge version 1 is round, but the Hue Bridge version 2 is rectangular. This has no significance in terms of functionality. Aesthetically? Perhaps – in the case of certain people. At the very least, the design tweak makes it simple to distinguish between the two versions of the game.
The Hue Bridge version 2 also included compatibility for Apple HomeKit, which was not available with the original iteration of the bridge. Is it conceivable that a product update may have settled the circumstance without requiring another form to be delivered? Maybe.
To make additional improvements, Philips determined that it would be ideal for merging all existing features into a new Bridge. Because after all, the first-generation Hue Bridge reached the market in 2012, making it the most recent iteration to do so. Since its beginning longer than ten years ago, innovation has made critical leaps forward in basically every field. They were presumably under the impression that an update was necessary to stay up with the rapidly evolving technologies.
In addition, some of Hue’s bulbs have been upgraded, and the Hue Bridge version 2 is widely considered the most effective method to operate and get the most out of these upgraded lights.
Another feature that Philips Hue intends to provide is a firmware upgrade known as the Matter update. Whether or not this matters will rely upon how you need to use your Philips Tone lighting framework.
Consider the following scenario: if you’re like the ordinary, everyday user who doesn’t do anything spectacular (apart from using some fancy color schemes), then it’s unlikely that it’ll signify anything to you.
It is particularly important to integrate all of your Matter-capable devices if you are running or planning to run any form of the ecosystem, a collection of smart home products from multiple manufacturers, and wireless communication protocols (i.e., Wi-Fi, Zigbee, Z-Wave).
What should note is that Hue has also released a new version of their software, Hue 2.1? As a result, there was no huge announcement, and the vast majority of consumers are unaware whether their Hue Bridge is version 2.0 or 2.0.1. So, is there a distinction between the two terms?
Everything, except for a few small internal hardware and software tweaks, was done internally.
Some customers have reported a tiny variation in power usage; however, other from that, what’s more, perhaps a distinction in item code, there isn’t a very remarkable contrast, and most clients have said that they haven’t seen any distinction whatsoever – they weren’t even aware that a version 2.1 existed! Both continue to get support and are in perfect working order.
Limitations of the Hue Bridge 2: The 50-Device Limit
Even though it had additional capabilities, such as integrating with Apple HomeKit, many were dissatisfied with the 50-device restriction.
The number of devices may seem excessive, but when you consider that Philips Hue offers a large number of items to choose from, being unable to operate all of them simultaneously might be unpleasant.
Consider the following: It would be necessary to determine what you’re going to manage through your Hue Bridge and what you’re going to control in another method if you’re using outdoor lights, motion sensors, interior lights, Play Bars, light strips, and ceiling lights. This would be a difficult decision and not an ideal scenario.
If you have more than 50 devices, you will need to buy and set up a second Hue Bridge to manage the remaining devices.
Even though Philips Hue recommends a 50-device limit, you may begin to experience performance difficulties before you reach that number. As a result, numerous users have expressed their dissatisfaction and demanded that Philips Hue rectify the situation. After all, they’ve already spent additional funds on a whole new Hue Bridge, with the expectation that at the very least, the essentials would be handled — only to be confronted with this problem.
Some have even called for a Hue Bridge version 3 or a third generation of the bridge! Will there be a Hue Bridge version 3 in the future, however?
Will there be a Philips Hue Bridge Gen. 3?
When a few users have called for it to solve the 50-device restriction, many others have expressed their hope of not implementing it.
The appearance of one more form of the Tone Extension as often as possible messengers the ‘passing’ of at least one of the current variations of the design. After dealing with this headache lately, no one is looking forward to dealing with it again shortly.
Fortunately, it does not seem like Hue will be attempting to implement a new version of the Hue Bridge any time soon– particularly since who will add matter help to the v2 Scaffold rather than Tone dealing with a v3 Extension.
But what about alterations, such as raising the 50-device cap to 100 devices? For sure about adding a String chip to the lights and gadgets, much the same as Nanoleaf? This would completely remove the need for the Hue Bridge! Likewise, there has been no news on this yet, so it is unlikely to occur, at least shortly.
For the time being, Philips Hue will continue to give updates and improvements to the Hue Bridge version 2 to ensure that it improves functionality and performance. Thus, it seems that this version will be around for a bit longer than the previous one.
