- There is a new update to the Philips Hue app adding support to QR codes
- Scanning codes on light allow you to add them to rooms in the app easier
- You can also use QR codes to add switches, cameras and other devices
Philips Hue bulbs and lamps are some of the best smart lights around, and they are already quite easy to set; But a new app update has made things even easier, so you can add more lights to a room at once.
After installing app version 5.38, which is available now for Android and iOS, you can simply scan the QR codes on multiple Hue devices to add them to the app together, rather than make them at a time.
It should be convenient if you have spread on a new set of smart bulbs in the Amazon spring sale, and will reduce headaches if you move the house and need to set everything back up.
The editor of Hueblog.com has already experimented by adding a dimmer -switch to their (undoubtedly extensive) setup and reporting that it works perfectly.
If the device you want to add does not have a QR code, you can bypass the new option by pressing the ‘No QR Code’ button and the app finds it for you in the old-fashioned way, then be assigned to a space.
Still no AI
This is a useful addition to the Philips Hue app, but we are still waiting for the big software update that adds the generative AI assistant, which means (the company behind Philips Hue), promised back in January.
According to the almond, the assistant will be able to create “personalized lighting scenes based on mood, apartment or style” and will let you use natural language to describe what you want, rather than using a photo as a starting point or picking shades from a color wheel.
The company has not announced when the new tool will arrive, but it must be available before the end of the year – hopefully in time to let you describe your perfect festive lighting and get all your inventory to adapt automatically. I dream of a bright Christmas.
