Smart lighting is a popular home automation feature that allows you to manage your home’s lighting more efficiently.
Usually, various wireless transmissions need to send and receive smart lights’ signals to work.
So if there’s a chance of smart lights working without Wi-Fi, how can you use them?
Here’s how you can use smart lights without Wi-Fi
Depending on your type of smart lighting, you can use smart lights via Bluetooth or manual control. Besides Wi-Fi-controlled lights, there are other smart lighting options such as proprietary wireless communication used by Z-Wave, so a Wi-Fi disconnect shouldn’t deprive you of control over the lights. In fact, it is always better to keep your smart light independent of wi-fi for performance and independence.
This article explores the possibility of using smart home devices without the internet.
I also discuss how you can use smart lights without Wi-Fi and turn them on without the internet.
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Can you use smart home devices without the internet?
Thanks to the Internet of Things (IoT), regular home products like fridges and toilets can have online compatibility. The ability to monitor and control your automated devices from anywhere in the world is an exciting feat. Smart home devices give you this control through their connection to the internet
The downside is that any internet disruption or unavailability can leave you in a bind. However, some smart devices can communicate with each other without the internet. This is possible if you connect all the smart devices to the same Wi-Fi network on your router.
The smart devices receive a dedicated IP address or gateway from the router upon connection, and all communication happens through it. Hence, communication will still happen without an active internet connection on your Wi-Fi router.
For a clearer distinction between Wi-Fi and the internet, read the last section of this article. Whether you can use smart home devices without the internet depends on the device and how it functions. You can place smart home devices in these three categories:
Devices that don’t need the internet or work locally
Philips Hue: It’s a smart light that uses a dedicated hub and can work without the internet. You can control all your lights with the Philips Hue app, but you won’t be able to use voice assistant control. You also lose control over the lights when you’re away from home.
Hubitat Elevation Hub: Besides the cloud feature, Hubitat smart home can also store automation and device data on the device itself. This local hosting of everything it needs allows the hub to work even without the internet. The features that work with a local connection include rule-based automation, smart home control, and geo-fencing.
Govee Light Strip: It works over both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi so that an internet disconnect won’t affect it. You can change colors, brightness, and scenes, and set timers as usual. Bluetooth is the backup when the Wi-Fi is unavailable.
SmartThings Hub: SmartApps is one pre-configured automation of the Samsung SmartThings Hub (v2 and v3) that works without the internet. The hub stores SmartApps locally, not on the cloud, making it usable without an internet connection.
Butterfleye: It’s a home security camera that works without the internet. This is possible because Butterfleye stores its person recognition and smart functionality and records events on the device instead of the cloud.
Arlo Pro Camera: Unlike other Wi-Fi cams, the Arlo Pro can record video without a Wi-Fi connection. As long as you plug in a USB flash drive, it’ll record videos locally.
WigWag Mixtile, nCube Base, Oomi Camera, and Vera are other smart hubs that can operate offline. However, while these hubs work without the internet, you cannot download updates and security patches until you connect to the internet.
Devices that work without their smart features
Safety devices like smart locks, climate control devices such s smart thermostats, and fire prevention devices such as smart smoke alarms work perfectly without the internet depending on the type.
You can also control or use them manually, like turning down the dial on your thermostat itself. For example, your smart thermostat would keep the ability to turn your cooling and heating on and off. These dumbed-down devices will regain their “smart” functions when the internet comes back on.
Setting up a smart home without internet
You can avoid the risks of running a smart home via the internet by setting up a wireless smart home system. There are wireless communication devices that can integrate your smart home devices locally, and they are:
Zigbee
It’s a wireless communication standard that may require a hub to work. Zigbee was designed explicitly for short-range wireless communication, and it can take up to 50 thousand devices.
Z-Wave
Z-Wave has a stronger signal strength and a broader range than Zigbee. It also uses a mesh network topology where the stronger mesh of multiple devices you connect to it, the stronger its signal gets.
Zigbee can support up to 232 Z-wave devices and requires a central hub to function.
Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)
It’s a step up from Bluetooth 4.0, requiring no hub for compatible devices to communicate. Compatible devices can also run for many years through a single battery since they only come on when you ask them to perform a task.
How can I use smart light without wi-fi?
In technology, “SMART” is an acronym for “self-monitoring, analysis, and reporting technology.” Your home’s smart lighting fixtures (bulbs, switches, dimmers, etc.) have increased functionality and scope compared to regular lighting. The extra features usually depend on wireless transmissions.
You may lose your Wi-Fi connection for many reasons. Your router might have issues, the internet cut off, or your internet provider may have a reset. Even a weak Wi-Fi signal can affect how you use a smart light.
If you find yourself without Wi-Fi, here are alternative ways to use smart lights:
Bluetooth
Some smart bulbs are Bluetooth-enabled and can function without Wi-Fi. With your Bluetooth-enabled smartphone or tablet, you can turn the smart light on and off. The Bluetooth connection radio is a communication protocol like Wi-Fi networks and hubs.
Most of these bulbs mainly work with a Wi-Fi protocol, but they have Bluetooth within the bulb. So the app you use for the bulb communicates with it in close range. An example is the Philips Hue which recently got a Bluetooth addition.
The drawback to this method is the Bluetooth range. Your phone and the smart light need to be within 50 feet of each other for this to work. In addition, the Bluetooth connection gets weaker the further you move away from the bulb, and if you’re outside the range, it won’t work.
Manually
You screw your smart light into the same socket for regular bulbs, and the switch may be standard or also smart. Whatever the case, you should be able to turn the smart light on and off from the wall switch.
If it’s a smart switch that works with Wi-Fi, you may lose the smart function with the Wi-Fi connection.
Remote control
Some smart bulbs have a remote control you can use apart from the app. These remotes are convenient when Wi-Fi fails, cutting off the app. So while the light’s smart features may diminish, you can still access its basic functions.
Besides these methods, Philips Hue can work without Wi-Fi if you connect your smart device to the same router as the Philips Hue.
Alternatively, you can use these smart lighting options to keep control of your smart light without Wi-Fi:
Smart lighting with sensors: Some smart lights combine lighting and motion sensors, turning on and off automatically when they detect light or movement. If you have these lights, Wi-Fi connectivity or the loss thereof won’t matter.
Smart lighting systems with machine learning: These lights have specific machine-learning techniques to monitor and learn your daily lighting patterns. After learning the home occupants’ patterns, the lights automatically come on and go off at certain times all day.
Even when you leave your house empty for a long time (like a vacation), these smart lights give the impression of occupancy.
Again, they will work just fine without Wi-Fi and are a good option if you often have Wi-Fi issues.
Having Wi-Fi bulbs can be highly convenient, but things don’t always go according to plan. So it’s smart (forgive the pun) to have a backup plan before problems arise.
How do I turn on smart lights without the internet?
Before I explain how to turn on smart lights without the internet, you should know the difference between the internet and Wi-Fi. Your Wi-Fi is your home’s internal wireless network while you get the internet from your internet service provider (ISP).
Your ISP gives you an internet connection using a DSL or Cable modem, and your Wi-Fi gets the internet from its router. As I mentioned earlier, many smart lights come equipped with added control features besides Wi-Fi. The extra feature it has determines how you turn it on.
If you have smart lights that are also Bluetooth-enabled, here’s how to connect to them and turn them on:
- Turn on the light switch
- Open the bulb’s Bluetooth app
- Search for the bulb
- Once you find it, you can add, connect, or pair a device to it
You can now control the bulb’s essential functions through the Bluetooth connection on the app. Unfortunately, Bluetooth control doesn’t cover over ten bulbs at a time, and remote access requires a hub connection.
For the Philips Hue, only generation 3 or newer bulbs have this Bluetooth feature. However, remember that manual and remote control of the smart lights is also possible without Wi-Fi.
Sources
What Happens to Your Smarthome If the Internet Goes Down?
Does A Smart Home Work Without The Internet?
