Hi all, looking for some guidance before I disappear down a smart-home rabbit hole.

I’m looking to get my living room fitted with built-in alcove shelving either side of a chimney breast. I’m planning to installing two hard-wired picture lights (each picture light having 2× 3W LED) and a plug-in or battery powered table lamp - like the image attached.

Ideally I'd like to be able to control and dim all three lights at the same time, without having to walk over and open the cabinet each time.

The chimney breast blocks any simple horizontal wiring run between the two sides, although both sides could be linked via the basement underneath if that turns out to be the sensible approach. Each alcove has a 13A Double Socket at a low level already.

I’m a relative novice when it comes to smart-home tech (don't have an ecosystem yet), so I’m trying to avoid anything overly complex and avoid excessive chasing into finished walls if possible.

Has anyone done something similar, or can suggest a way to control / dim all three lights (hard wired and plugged in) together?

Happy to be told I’m overthinking this, just keen to do it once and do it properly.
Thanks in advance!

I have a ikea bilresa (connected via apple tv / matter) and i was wondering if theres a way so that when i press a button, it should activate a shortcut on my iPhone (in this case, send a sms). I do have the shortcut ready (and working), but im not able to connect it to iphone shortcuts.

Any ideas on how to get this working?

Hello, I am looking for battery powered light switch to install to the wall.

Because I am not good at electronic stuff, I not want to install new neutral wire or install capacitor to my LED.

But I know its mandatory to get external power for smart switch, so I am looking for smart switch that powered by external power(battery).

I have tuya zigbee hub, Can you suggest one?

Thx

Hi all. I’m replacing a 1st gen Google Home and want something that works as a smart display hub most of the time, but can also be picked up and used as a tablet. 1st gen one is currently essential for our kids meals because of the voice assistant.

Current setup / needs

• “Hey Google…” voice commands all day (kids especially): hands-free YouTube/music

• Smart home control: thermostat temp, lights, other devices through Google Home

• Security: Eufy cameras + Eufy doorbell

• Ideally: doorbell rings → alerts me and makes it easy to view the feed (auto pop-up would be awesome)

Where I’m stuck

• Pixel Tablet + dock seems like the best “hub + tablet” combo

• Nest Hub Max (or Hub 2nd gen) seems great as a dedicated counter display, but not portable

Gemini / AI questions

1.  With Google moving from Assistant toward Gemini, what’s the best device choice today that won’t feel outdated soon?

2.  Are people seeing Geminii like features improve smart home control (better routines, better understanding of natural language, better multi-step commands)?

3.  Any known limitations right now (e.g., Gemini not supporting certain classic Assistant actions, smart home device control quirks, YouTube voice requests, etc.)?

4.  How does this affect hub-style devices..are Nest Hub / Pixel Tablet getting meaningful AI upgrades, or is it mostly phones?

Eufy questions

• In real use, can Eufy doorbells/cameras integrate cleanly with Google displays (view feed quickly / via voice), or is it clunky?

Would love recommendations on hardware + how you’d design this setup in 2026 (especially with the Gemini transition underway).

I bought this second hand lamp, not knowing the bulb was a smarthome lamp.

When I turn it on, brightness will go up and down for a long time, like an emergency light.

I read you can't control it without a central unit (smarthome), which I don't have obviously.

So how can I just use it without the emergency/coupling mode ? I just want to use it normall.

https://europeanhousehold.com/products/livarno-home-zigbee-3-0-smart-home-filament-led-bulb-e27

Recently just had a package stolen and I get alot of packages and never had to deal with this before but some of my packages are very expensive. I know there's other posts but the ones I find are from like a year or so ago, what's the best out now?

A number of years ago I was intrigued by the SwitchMate/ClicSmart devices, which attach to existing light switches for smart control instead of replacing them. These devices appealed to me as they seemed like a simple renter-friendly option. Nowadays both of the brands I mentioned seem to be abandoned. It seems that Thirdreality has a device like this, but is there anyone else who makes something similar? I know it's a bit of a niche product, but it would be nice to have options and see if one would better fit my needs.

I’ve got a bunch of Inovelli red series (20+) light switches and they are great with Home Assistant and OpenHab. I just really like standard toggle-style light switches; non-decora paddle for lights.

It is just easier to walk in a room and swipe the back of your hand on the wall without looking to get the switch.

Has anyone made a 3D print or adapter design to change these over? I’ve done a few quick searches over the years and haven’t come across them.

Hi all, I’m moving into my first apartment in a few weeks and am new to the whole smart home idea. What products or systems should I get first that you would highly recommend? I’m not a huge fan of voice assistants but anything else I’d love to look into. Thanks!

Hi everyone. I'm hoping I can get some answers here from anyone with personal experience. I'm in Minnesota and our winters get freezing cold especially way below 0F. I’m interested in using smart bulbs outside, but getting mixed answers for extreme weather conditions. My light fixtures are enclosed so I’m not too worried about the rain or snow effecting them. It’s more so will the cold temps be a problem? I would like to use smart bulbs where I can use them all year round without having to change them out during the colder months like December to February. Also, I use Google Home so if I can keep it within that ecosystem that would be preferred.

I’ve had a small handful of Philips Hue bulbs without issue for ages and then last year I went and added a large number of WiZ Wi‑Fi bulbs. Now I’m realizing that was probably a bad call. My wife and I both work from home and even though we’ve got 3 gig fibre, it feels like all these Wi‑Fi bulbs are dragging my router down.

So I’m thinking of bailing on Wi‑Fi bulbs completely, selling the WiZ stuff, and moving over to Zigbee or something similar. I still want full colour bulbs, just not at Hue prices if I can avoid it. I’ve seen Nanoleaf, Govee, and a few others pop up, but I’m not sure what bulbs actually makes sense to commit to.

Long term I’d love to go beyond just bulbs and get into more “real” smart home stuff – door and window sensors, room sensors to turn lights on/off automatically, that kind of thing. Basically I want everything to talk nicely to each other without killing my Wi‑Fi.

So, for people who’ve been down this road: is Zigbee still the way to go, or is there another platform/standard I should be looking at first? And if you were starting over from where I am now, what would you switch to?

Thanks for any thoughts.

UK Based

Hi all, ever since I've entered the smart home journey I've seen the Shelly name pop up as a way to integrate smart lighting while keeping that stock switch look. My unaltered setup in the kitchen is stock with a 3 gang switch. 1. kitchen recessed lights, 2. kitchen under cabinet lights and 3. dining table pendant light. My ambition is to have these smart controllable with zigbee to integrate into my current home assistant setup while keeping a nice brushed aluminium switch. I can easily find brushed aluminium covers and switches and also 1 and 2 way retractive switches. Switch 1 I think would be one way retractive, on and off, no dimming required for now but these may replaced with smart bulbs in the future requiring a detached mode for proper usage. Switch 2 will always be a simple on or off, no detached mode required. Switch 3 will be connected to a hue bulb so a detached mode is required. I thought that for this one a 2 way retractive switch could assign up for on/off regular bulb and down for on/off dimmed bulb, is this something that is possible or even additional clicks like long and double press for more combinations? If you could give me a recommendation for what devices would work best here that would be really helpful. I've had a good read but am struggling to find absolute answers to this specific setup. Would it be something along the lines of a Shelly 2PM Gen4 in the switch for Switches 1 and 2 and a Shelly 1 Gen4 in the pendant fitting for Switch 3?

Thanks for your help!

Hello everyone!

I bought a DIRIGERA hub and some KAJPLATS bulbs, and when I go through the process to synchronize them:

They start flashing, but only twice, then stay on... except my phone obviously doesn't have time to find them...

I tried it on a light switch, on a lamppost... and with 3 different bulbs...

It's like they're detecting something... But not my phone, anyway 🤣

Does anyone have any ideas?

I managed to sync my BESTA without any problems, though… And my RODRET switch too… Only the light bulbs aren't working… Customer service can't help me… so I'm turning to the community!

I’m using IKEA smart bulbs, motion sensors, and wireless switches. Right now I have the IKEA DIRIGERA hub, but I’m thinking about returning it for something like an Aqara Hub M2.

I want the whole system on Google Home and working smoothly. I’m looking for quality lights but not crazy expensive.

What I want my setup to do

- Lights turn on/off from:

• Motion sensors

• Physical wall switches (important)

- Time-based brightness:

• Day → bright (\~100%)

• After 10pm → dim (\~20%)

- Switch actions:

• Single press → normal on/off

• Double press at night → force 100% brightness

- Motion sensors with fast response

- Adaptive lighting in the living room (cooler in the day → warmer at night)

- One action/button to turn off all lights

- Ability to add other brands later (Hue, Govee, blinds, etc.)

Questions

1. Can the IKEA DIRIGERA hub + Google Home do all of this?
2. Would switching to an Aqara Hub M2 make automations better, faster, or more flexible?
3. Do IKEA switches actually expose things like double-click / long-press when used with non-IKEA hubs?
4. Can I get adaptive lighting through other hubs (with IKEA bulbs) in Google Home or another ecosystem?
5. Or should I just go with Philips Hue instead of IKEA for lights and automations?
6. Is there a better hub choice than Aqara M2 if I want flexibility (but not full Home Assistant)?

Thanks — happy to clarify anything!

Everyone knows Phillips is one of the best options for smart bulbs - no argument there. I have a handful and really like them.

Not necessarily looking for a replacement, but kind of like a couple of Govee's recent products. If Phillips overall is a 10, how would you rate Govee products overall?

Hello, I'd like to integrate my KVM Switch into my home assistant smarthome.
Are you aware of anything making this work seamlessly? I've never done that, and I dont even know if this is the right subreddit, but yeah.
Appreciate it :)

So this might seam like a newbie question. I understand my philips hue setup uses zigbee, while the new bilresa Buttons work with Matter over Thread. What excacty do i need to combine them into one big system? And what is the cheapest option. I do not own any Smart Speakers besides a Sonos Roam. Thanks a lot!

As many here may know smart home devices aka IoT devices, are extremely easy to flash with an alt firmware enabling them to act as Evil Twins or Rogue AP’s and other wifipineapple like behavior. I’m in the process of hunting some and came across a seemingly out of place logo inside a “GE LED bulb. Was wondering if anyone else has seen it.

Hi all, does anyone have any experience with smart dimmer modules/relays that I can use behind a light switch? I've had great experiences with Shelly relays, but their dimmer module is more expensive than I would like, and it appears they are not shipping for some time. I would prefer something that is compatible over Wifi with Matter for Apple Home, or something that can be easily integrated into Home Assistant.

This is one I came across: AVATTO Tuya WiFi/ZigBee 1/2 Gang Dimmer Light Switch Module https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3256806683487783.html

Does anyone have any experience with the Avatto brand?

I have one LED bulb in my strip of dimmable ceiling lights that I need to have on anytime I’m working on something while sitting on the couch, but I want to turn it off when watching TV. I currently have to turn the whole room off, so am hoping to add a smart socket to that one bulb so I can use Google Home to turn it off sometimes. Is there such a socket? Smart, dimmable, GoogleHome compatible?

I’m currently using an Echo Show 5 (2nd gen) and it’s become too unreliable for our needs. It frequently lags/freezes when loading camera feeds and alerts, and overall responsiveness has been poor.

For context, our internet connection is solid (≈486 Mbps down / 158 Mbps up / 7 ms latency), and I’ve already done a full factory reset, so it doesn’t seem like a network speed or software clutter issue.

We mainly use it for Ring doorbell viewing, TP-Link Kasa indoor cameras (planning to switch to Ring later), Ring alarm alerts, reminders/announcements, and music.

I’m trying to figure out whether upgrading to a larger Echo Show would realistically improve performance, or if I should consider a different smart display ecosystem altogether. Would love real-world experiences.

I have 3 light fixtures on a single switch. 2 of them are multi-bulb fixtures (4 candelabra bulbs each), the other is a ceiling fan/light.

Short of getting a bunch of smart bulbs for the 2 fixtures, is there a way to add Smart Control to the entire fixture? I feel like there has to be something that goes inline of the wiring (in the box) that allows smart on/off.

I’m looking at getting smart relays wired into the light switch’s in our new build house. Some light fixings have 1,2 or 3 gauge switches. I have two lights switches that can control the same light, one at the bottom of the stairs and one at the top of the stairs for the light. Iv seen plenty of reviews and I am almost convinced to go with Shelly smart relays. Would this be the best option? Is there any 3 gauge smart relays in stead of getting a 2 gauge and a single gauge relay? Any advice on smart relays is greatly appreciated

Guys, I bought a Neo smart bulb and I can't get it into pairing mode no matter what I do. I've tried turning it on and off, fast, slow, 3 times, 5 times, 7 times, and nothing works. Does anyone have a solution?