That "smart lighting" from Philips is about to spy on you in new ways you can't control -- naturally the company is claiming it's to protect you. This is Trump-level lying.
https://www.home-assistant.io/blog/2023/09/22/philips-hue-force-users-upload-data-to-cloud/
@dangillmor I really struggle to understand the upside of smart lighting. Just flipping a switch to turn a light on or off suits my needs just fine.
I understand that other people might have different needs, but I've never heard anyone express any needs that would be met by smart lighting and not by dumb lighting.
Jaap, I'm disabled. getting around to all the light switches can be difficult, if not sometimes impossible. Other people appreciate the idea of scenes of lights. Many reasons to have something better than just physical switches.
@rocketdyke yeah, the utility for disabled people is obvious, and I probably should have mentioned that in my original comment. I do think most of that utility can be achieved without these systems being online.
That's the part I don't understand: why does it have to be online? Traditional switches and dimmers do the job. If using those doesn't work, you could have WiFi controls confined to the local network.
People are giving up so much of their privacy.
Dan Gillmor
Jaap Zeldenrust (he/him)
Cristin Pescosolido