PACKAGE | CONTENTS

Ikea’s stuff comes in the most basic of packaging, but we’re so used to this minimalist approach now, that it’s not something we tend to think about. As long as the goods are protected and survive the journey, that’s ok. The price justifies the lack of colour print in the case of Ikea.

What you do get on the package are the basics. The strip is only capable of warm white set to 2700K, but it is capable of dimming and gives me 530lm in total for 7.7 watts of power. As the product will need a driver to work, this is shown as excluded on the box, so you know you need a Trådfri driver for smart home use and the required power cable for the driver. You’ll also need the gateway, although as it can actually work without smart functionality, this isn’t explicitly mentioned on the box as a requirement.

Note: The light is ‘dumb’ essentially, with the driver being the smart part of the setup, but it’s also important to note that the driver communicates with the gateway using the Zigbee protocol.

Here I have the longest size they make, at 80cm/32″ in length, and as the Skydrag comes in three sizes (in most places) or four in North America, the basic specs will differ slightly.

Skydrag comes with a built-in proximity/motion sensor that can be turned off, which is just as well, as I couldn’t get it to perform adequately! When it’s set to ‘auto’, it should turn the light strip on, whilst ‘on’ is actually the sensor turned off, which seems a bit counterintuitive. As the sensor didn’t work for me, I’ll not dwell on it anymore, as I already had a different automation solution in mind anyway, which I’ll mention later.

OTHER PARTS

Ikea does a good job of making Skydrag as adaptable as possible by providing three different types of ‘brackets’ (my term) that allow the strip to be mounted in various ways. The Clamp brackets are designed for places where you might not have enough depth to use screws, so there are adhesive strips to go with these two clamp brackets, as I refer to them. You then have ‘extension brackets’ that allow the strips to overhang slightly. The final ‘angle brackets’ can be used to angle the light so that they’re not facing straight down, although this can only be achieved in certain locations. I actually used these in my wardrobe instead of the clamp brackets, as I had enough depth to fit screws.

You get the obligatory manual, which does explain how and where to use the different types of brackets, and you also get a pair of tracking strips to house the wire coming from Skydrag in order to keep everything tidy.

Finally, you get some double-sided adhesive strips to mount the clamp brackets and the cable tracking, as well as two pairs of screws and a Torx screw bit, which you should keep hold of, as the screws use this particular type of drill bit.

INSTALLATION

As previously mentioned, Skydrag requires a Trådfri driver if you specifically want smart control of your strip. Luckily, I already had one installed and set up, and because the driver is actually the smart device, not the light as such, there was no need for me to do much other than changing the location and the name/description of the lights to better represent what they’re being used for. No new installation was needed.

The Ikea app is ok, just not great, but you’re going to need it in order to set things up. Here are a few screenshots just so you get a feel for the app, and how it works in terms of its structure. As you can see, I currently have lighting in three rooms – some Mittled spotlights in the Kitchen, the Myrvarv light strip in the Wash Room, and the Skydrag in the Bedroom wardrobe.

IN HOMEKIT | APPLE HOME

Regardless of how many lights are attached to a Trådfri driver, you only get one tile per driver in the Home app. In my case, I only have the one Skydrag strip anyway, so that’s ok, but it’s important to note that if you have two strips, they’ll be treated as one – either in the Home app or Ikea’s own Home Smart app. This does have the benefit that all lights connected to a driver act as one, so there are no issues with getting them to turn on or off in sync, or ensuring the same brightness levels. This being the case, you get the one simple slider control to control these levels, and as it’s only capable of warm white, you get no colour temperature options.

As you can see in the third screenshot, I have a series of automations set up. Essentially these are used in conjunction with a couple of contact sensors – which I’ll go into in a bit – but I’ve created separate automations to set the strip to different brightness levels depending on the time of day;

• between 0800~2330 – set brightness to 100% when the sensors are triggered
• between 2330~0630 – set brightness to 30% when the sensors are triggered
• between 0630~0800 – set brightness to 60% when the sensors are triggered

I set these levels so that the light isn’t too blinding if someone happens to need to access the wardrobe in the middle of the night. Even though the strip has a maximum of 570lm, at night that can be too bright for many.

As the wardrobe has two door that open opposite each other, one sensor isn’t going to work for both doors, so I’ve added a Mijia contact sensor to one door, and an Aqara contact sensor to the other door (they’re basically the same, just different branding) both connected to the nearest Aqara hub.

As you can see, here, both contact sensors are set up in HomeKit, and both have the basic ‘on’ automations previously mentioned, but in addition, each has an automation for when the wardrobe closes, that is converted to a Shortcut automation (not to be confused with a Siri Shortcut). The reason for this is that at some point, you may open one of the wardrobe doors, then open the other, but close the first one. With a standard automation, you would end up having the strip turn off, once it detects the closed automation from one of the sensors, which isn’t what you want if you still have the other door open. You can create a ‘condition’ in an automation in apps like ‘Eve for HomeKit’, but in this case I decided to keep it all within the Home app using the ‘convert to shortcut’ option.

So, essentially, the automation works like this;

• When the initial contact sensor closes
• If the other contact sensor is ‘open’…
• Set wardrobe light to ‘on’
• Otherwise, set wardrobe light to ‘off’

That’s the logic for the shortcut, but for the sensor in the automation above it detects that the sensor has entered the ‘closed’ state, then checks to see if the other sensor is in the ‘open’ state. If it is, then set the light to ‘on’ as it means that the door is open and someone still needs the light on. If the other sensor is in the ‘closed’ state, it means that the other door is already closed, and therefore when the initial sensor has been set to closed, the light can turn off, as both sensors are now in the closed state. This shortcut automation is set for both sensors, basically looking at the state of the opposite sensor to itself, so it knows what to do based on the state of the opposite sensor.

IN USE

Having already used a couple of Ikea lights, I knew what to expect, and what I wouldn’t get, so in many ways, there was no excitement other than getting the strip fitted. Fitting was very easy and despite having to drill a hole or two to get the strip and cable near enough to my Trådfri driver, the installation itself was really easy. It did make a big difference that you’re offered different ways in which to mount these, which I think is a big plus.

I did hope the built-in sensor would be a great backup in the event my automations with external sensors didn’t fire off, but for whatever reason, I found the response to be hit and miss, so I decided not to waste any time, and just forego using this feature at all. Besides that, this wouldn’t allow me the opportunity to set my brightness level automations based on the time of day, so it was a foregone conclusion in some ways.

If you already have a Trådfri gateway  – or even a spare Trådfri driver for that matter – then I’d suggest these are definitely a better option to standard light strips, not only for the fact they have a built-in diffuser but also because they’re focused on white light only, as who really needs 16 million colour options for their wardrobe?

However, if you don’t have an Ikea gateway yet, it may be a good idea to hold off, as the company will be releasing a brand new gateway soon, that will not only have Zigbee (which is what the drivers use), but it’ll act as a Thread border router, and be ready for Matter when that arrives soon.

The post Ikea Skydrag Cabinet Strip lights (review) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

With many of us spending more time at home, improving our indoor air quality has become even more vital to our physical and mental wellbeing. STARKVIND air purifier is the latest addition to the IKEA Home smart range and a smarter way to control our indoor air quality. Pollen, dust particles, pet hair and dander, and even fumes and odours from cooking and cleaning all contribute to indoor air polution and can negatively affect our physical health. STARKVIND air purifiers combine our extensive knowledge of home furnishings with indoor air quality control technology. It’s attractive, effective, and connects with the TRÅDFRI gateway and IKEA Home smart app to allow you to control your home’s air quality.

Available in two models – Both the floor and side table models of STARKVIND air purifiers are designed for modern living. They can be connected to the TRÅDFRI gateway and IKEA Home smart app, have clever functions and design solutions such as built-in air quality sensors to detect airborne particles, filter change indicators, child lock setting and cable management. Pollen, odours or all of the above? STARKVIND comes equipped with a particle filter for filtering dust, pollen and other airborne allergens. An optional gas filter can used with the particle filter to help clear the air of gas, fumes and odours.

Settings to suit your needs. With the STARKVIND air purifier, you have flexibility in controlling your home’s air quality. Choose how you prefer to adjust it — manual or auto mode, which monitors air quality thanks to the air purifier’s built-in sensors which detect particle levels in the air and adjusts the fan speed as needed. STARKVIND air purifier has five settings — the lowest being quiet enough for a good night’s sleep.

The post Ikea Starkvind Air Purifier appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

So with that in mind, today I’m reviewing a product purchased from Ikea UK, controlled by a remote and LED driver bought in Taiwan, and exposed to HomeKit via a Zigbee gateway purchased in the USA…Phew! The review product in question is, of course, the Myrvarv LED Light Strip.

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

If you’re at all familiar with Ikea, you’ll know the prices are usually quite low, but with generally high-quality design. This doesn’t go for the packaging, which is plain, and non-descript, whilst also following a theme or pattern. This aesthetic is exemplified perfectly, in the packaging for the Myrvarv. Everything you need to know is on the front, with the strip length, lumen count, power requirement and basic functions, all laid out very simply, much like their manuals;

• Strip Length: 2m / 6ft 7in
• Lumens: 12oolm (600lm per metre)
• Colour temperature: 2700K (warm white)
• Control: Dimmable

Inside the box, there’s a manual, the strip itself, with a connected power cord*, and an envelope that contains a set of clips that can either be affixed using the included screws or the double-sided adhesive stickers.

NOT INCLUDED BUT NECESSARY

If you’re not familiar with Trådfri, then there are some devices you’ll definitely require to get them to become smart, as well as get them exposed to HomeKit. For example, all their smart devices require the Trådfri gateway for making them functionally ‘smart’, which not only allows the devices to interact with each other in the Ikea Home Smart app but is also essential for getting devices into HomeKit. In the case of the Myrvarv, you not only need the gateway, but you’ll need what is described by Ikea as a ‘Steering Device’, which in this case is the Trådfri Remote Control. This steering device is used as a middle man to initially get the devices to talk to the Gateway. It’s a bit of an odd setup, but it is what it is. This remote also becomes paired to the device you’re eventually using if it’s capable of using the remote for functionality.

For the Myrvarv, you also need the Trådfri 30W driver, which is capable of powering up to 9 separate lights, via the bus connector. Finally, you’re going to need a power supply for the aforementioned driver! This is the Fornima power cable, available separately. So, the chain of connections is thus;

• Trådfri Driver connected to mains power with the Fornima power cable
• Myrvarv Light Strip connected to the Trådfri Driver
• A Steering device to pair the Driver to the Trådfri Gateway
• And the Gateway itself, to connect to HomeKit

As you can see, this is a lot more involved than a standard HomeKit compatible light strip, which comes with a built-in transformer, power supply, and control, as well as the ability to connect directly to your WiFi network (like the Vocolinc L2), or directly to a hub (like the Hue Light Strip), but there are some advantages, especially if you have a few light strips, all in one area, that you want to control as one. The Trådfri Driver only requires one outlet for up to nine separate light sources, and all of the lights can be controlled simultaneously, as it’s the driver that’s exposed to HomeKit, not the individual lights.

THE STRIP

Unlike standard light strips, the Myrvarv comes complete with a diffuser, to ‘diffuse’ the light from the individual LEDs, so the strip has a more uniform, solid line of light. The Philips Hue Outdoor light strips also use a diffuser that also helps to protect the strip and the internal electronics from the elements. As the strip has to reach the Driver, which may well be located a fair distance, the cable that comes with the Myrvarv is quite long (sorry, I haven’t measured it…), so it should be long enough for most situations. At the end of the strip is a cap, and the extras inside the box, also include a spare cap, if you decide to cut the strip at some point, and want to close up the diffuser again. The end of the power cable that fits into the Driver is a two pin socket that plugs into the external bus that comes with the 30W driver.

The diffuser housing the LEDs uses silicone rubber, so it’s pliable, but also a bit tactile, and as such it does attract dust and hair quite easily, although assuming the strip is either hidden or far enough from close up inspection, it’s not really an issue. The rear of the strip comes with cut marks, as the strip can be cut. As far as we’re aware, the strip can’t be extended, but then if you want more than a two-metre strip, you can just buy another strip and plug it into the existing Driver. As you can see in the third image, the strip actually appears to utilise two lots of diffusion, with an inner and outer layer. It makes you wonder what the lumen output would be like with these diffusers removed.

DIMMING CAPABILITIES

I went about testing the strip at various levels, and at its brightest, as I used a blue background, it does appear to be cool white in the images above, although this is only for the purposes of brightness levels, it’s not really so important. If you want to note the difference in brightness, it’s probably better to focus on how much of the background layer is illuminated in the images above, which represent brightness levels of 100%, 75%, and 50%.

Below 50% and you start to see the warm white of the strip, which in the cases above is set to the following levels; 25%, 10%, 5%, and 1%. There’s really hardly any discernable difference in brightness once you go lower than 10%, which seems to be common with many LED lighting products. At around 10%, you also begin to see hints of the individual LEDs themselves. Whether that matters or not is a personal choice, but it still looks respectably ‘solid’ in terms of a length of light. The only company I’ve seen so far to address the issue of having very low brightness levels is Yeelight, which include a ‘Night’ or ‘Moon’ mode in many of their ceiling, bedside and desk lamps, which can go to super-low brightness levels. It could be, at least in the case of the Ikea Myrvarv, it was never envisioned to go very low, so who knows.

DIFFUSER VS. BARE LEDS

If you haven’t explored the world of LED strips, you may ask what makes the Myrvarv any different. Well, it’s really just down to the included ‘diffuser’ (not the essential oil diffusers, like the Vocolinc Flowerbud…), which simply diffuses the light, so that the LEDs are less obvious points of light. The result, as can be seen above, is a largely continuous strip of light, whereas, in the example above, you can see that a standard LED strip, when viewed directly, shows distinct points of light.

LED strips in the main, are meant to be hidden, be that behind your TV, or a sofa for example, or maybe underneath kitchen cabinets or hidden behind coves. The result of this type of treatment largely does away with the aforementioned issue of ‘points of light’, as you tend to only see the reflected light, diffused by the surfaces the LEDs shine onto. The only difference with the Myrvarv is that you simply don’t need to hide the strip to achieve a similar effect. However, there is the argument that not seeing the light directly, even with a diffuser, and just seeing the ambient reflected light, is preferable. so it’s down to whether you’re looking for something that mimics strip lighting I guess.

IN HOMEKIT / THE HOME APP

As the Myrvarv is pretty basic when it comes to the kind of light that it produces – warm white / 2700k – you don’t get any options to alter the colour temperature, so whilst the tile in the Home app allows you to turn the strip on or off, with a long press giving you access to the slider control for brightness adjustment, you simply get the one colour shown. This is standard for any light that is set to one colour temperature, like the basic Hue Warm White bulbs I’ve been using for around four years now.

Just a reminder that all lights connected to the driver will be controlled via this one tile, as the tile actually represents the driver, even though the slider controls the light or lights. Unlike grouped lights, there’s no way to separate different lights connected to one driver.

INSTALLATION / IN USE

Fitting was pretty easy, although in my case I had a couple of washing machines that hindered easy access a tad. Still, with the clips fitted to the window frame, it didn’t take long at all. As the frame here is metal, I didn’t use the screws to fit the clips, instead, relying on the double-sided adhesive patches. For some reason, only a single sconce light was fitted in the laundry room, and at one end, so it didn’t really cover the other side, especially when laundry was hanging to dry. The strip, not only being placed on the opposite side to the sconce light, but also covering the area the sconce light didn’t cover, greatly solved the issue of providing sufficient light for the laundry room, although in the daytime, with two large windows, it’s not necessary in most cases, and as you can see in the fourth image, the strip doesn’t appear to be that bright in daylight.

I’m happy to say that in the evening, it’s a totally different story, with the strip providing more than enough light coverage, where previously there was none. It may still seem odd to some that there’s a bare strip placed here, but it’s no different to a fluorescent tube in essence, but with less power consumption, and adjustable brightness, not to mention smart control.

WRAPPING UP

As mentioned at the start of the review, due to the lack of Ikea smart home products in Taiwan, I’m a recent user. With that in mind, I was quite trepidatious about adding not only another Zigbee hub to my setup but also another ecosystem, essentially, as I’d heard of all manner of problems relating to Trådfri products and their reliability. My concerns were somewhat misplaced, as the setup was actually a lot easier and problem-free than I’d feared. I guess Ikea managed to iron out a lot of the issues by the time I got around to trying it all out.

My first foray into Ikea smart devices started, deliberately, with lighting, just to keep costs down in case it all went ‘pear-shaped’, so buying the Fyrtur blinds wasn’t going to happen at first, even though they’re available here now. The Myrvarv isn’t an exciting device by any measure, but it does fit the job on two levels; first of all, it solves the issue with lighting in my laundry room quite easily. Secondly, it does so without the need to hide the strip, due to the double diffusers built into the strip itself.

Are there any downsides? Well, yes and no. I could have just used a spare smart strip (I have a few…) and saved myself some money, or I could’ve even used a dumb strip and plugged it into a smart plug (I have a few…). Either of these solutions would have required some form of light diffuser, which in all fairness would still be cheaper than buying the required components – the strip, the gateway, 30W driver, power cable for the driver, and the ‘steering device’ to make it all work together. All in all, I spent more money than I could have, so if you want to save money just do what I’ve suggested. However, one thing I am trying to avoid nowadays is adding more WiFi-based devices to my WiFi network, so adding a WiFi smart plug or light strip is not cutting it for me anymore. Further, Ikea does offer some interesting lighting solutions, and designs that many aren’t, and so the initial outlay for the hub is mitigated over time, as you add more stuff. The need to buy a separate power cable for the driver does seem odd at first, but as you can daisy chain these drivers, it makes sense to offer you the option to buy the type of cable you need, and not supply one that isn’t required when you already have one, and just need a cable that runs between two drivers. The need for a steering device seems strange though, although the device I bought doubles up as a switch, so it’s not a total waste by any means.

How does it perform? Really well, basically. I was worried that my gateway being separated from the driver and strip by a thick wall would cause instant issues, but it has been 100% responsive, and so far (2 months as of writing), there have been no disconnections from either. Like I said before, any misgivings I had with Ikea’s smart stuff have so far pretty much evaporated. It would be good to have the option to extend the strip, but in my particular case, the 2-metre strip was actually too long, and given the driver should be able to handle three of these strips at once, makes extending the strip a little moot. One thing I would have loved would be a colour temperature option; it’s not needed in the laundry room, but had it been used in a home office, cool white would be a lot more useful. As it stands, you only have warm white.

If you’re in need of a solution like this and have already started with Ikea’s smart solutions, then it’s definitely worth the cost, even if that includes the price of the driver and power cable, both of which are very reasonably priced. All in all, for me getting into Ikea was a lot less painful than I’d feared, and by association, adding the strip was as easy as it could get, even if the need for a steering device is still a bit odd. All in all, it was a great start to more purchases…

The post Ikea Myrvarv Light Strip (review) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

• model Identification – LED1842G3
• energy class – A ++
• Weighted energy consumption – 2.7kWh / 1000H
• Rated payload current – 250lm
• Rated life – 25000h
• Number of on/off cycles – 25000
• colour temperature – 2200K
• Heating time to 60% of full power – 1
• Can be dimmed – No
• Can be dimmed wirelessly – Yes
• actual effect – 2.7Watt
• Actual life of the bulb – 25000h
• Light current maintenance factor at end of rated life – 70%
• Colour rendering – 90

The post Ikea Tradfri Filament Bulb appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

Blackout blinds prevent light from penetrating and darken the room. For the wireless functionality of the blinds to work, the signal repeater (included in the package) must be plugged into an electrical outlet within 10 meters of the blinds. The blinds are pre-programmed with the remote control and the signal repeater. The blinds have no string, which increases child safety. Add the gateway and IKEA Home app smartly to control with Amazon Alexa or Apple HomeKit.

sizes (width x length):

• 60 x 195cm
• 80 x 195cm
• 100 x 195cm
• 120 x 195cm
• 140 x 195cm

You need the WIRE-FREE gateway to use the IKEA Home smart app. Download the app for free through Google Play or the App Store, depending on your phone or tablet.

• The blinds cannot be cut.
• 1 rechargeable battery included.
• Remote control included.
• Battery charger included.

The post Ikea Fyrtur Smart Blinds appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

You can install multiple spots in places where you want a lot of light. This product has been tested and approved for the bathroom. You can install the TRÅDFRI Gateway (sold separately) to control up to 10 light sources that respond in the same way: adjust light intensity, turn off, turn on and switch from warm to cool light in 3 steps. By installing the gateway and the TRÅDFRI app, you can create multiple groups of light sources and control them in different ways.

• The color of the light varies between 2,200 kelvin (reddish), 2,700 kelvin (warm white) and 4,000 kelvin (cold white).
• Fixed installation.
• IP44 approved.Light beam: 100 °.
• Voltage: 220-240V.
• Color rendering index (CRI): 90.
• The light intensity can be adjusted wirelessly.
• This recessed LED spot does not work with wired dimmers.
• The TRÅDFRI remote control is sold separately.
• Make sure your TRÅDFRI gateway is up to date so you can connect it to Apple HomeKit.
• Works only with IKEA wireless controllers.
• LED lighting emits little heat, no protection is required.
• In some countries, electrical installation work may only be performed by a qualified electrician. Ask your electricity supplier.
• This product is CE marked.
• Integrated LED light source.
• The lifetime of the light source is approximately 25,000 hours. This equates to a duration of about 20 years if the lamp is lit 3 hours a day.
• You must have the TRÅDFRI gateway to operate the IKEA Home Smart application. Download the app on Google Play or App Store according to your smartphone.

The post Ikea Leptiter LED Recessed Spotlight appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

The post Ikea Trådfri E12 Colour LED Bulb appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

The post Ikea Trådfri LED Filament Bulb appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

Key features

• With the kit you can use the on/off switch to turn on or off the device that is connected to the control outlet.
• You can use TRÅDFRI control outlet to connect a coffee maker or other small appliances to the app and TRÅDFRI gateway so that the appliance can be turned on or off with the app’s timer.

The post Ikea Trådfri Smart Outlet (UK/SG/HK version) appeared first on Homekit News and Reviews.

I’m too lazy to sum it up better than a 13-year-old did on Wikipedia (I don’t actually know the age) so I’ll paste the actual thing from uh Wikipedia:

• “The IKEA effect is a cognitive bias in which consumers place a disproportionately high value on products they partially created. Yeah, we buy it, we put it together, and then we basically call ourselves king crap of coitus mountain.”

Since there isn’t an Ikea very close to me, and I’m not much of a shopper anyway, it didn’t really change my life much. And then, there was Trådfri! Trådfri is Ikea’s line up of personal lighting that they decided to make smart. How smart? HomeKit smart. So I had to check it out. I dove in with two products.

• The gateway
• The motion sensor (Not HomeKit compatible.)
• Full spectrum bulb (term for color)

Technically I have way more lighting products than I need, but I wanted to give Ikea a shot, and if I’m being honest, which I rarely ever am, I felt like these products deserved a fair review.

My first impressions were pretty good. They seem like nice enough products for the price, and packed differently, I think people would easily pay a lot more.

Sometimes Ikea has more fancy packaging, and other times, well, the packaging is pretty basic. When I got these in the mail I assumed the packaging would be much nicer, but it wasn’t. Having said, that I’ve seen worse, and as far as safety for shipping it may actually be “better than most” other companies. The plastic helps keep the products seated really well. Considering the whole marketing approach is aimed at DIY home automation, I wasn’t let down by the fact that it didn’t look like something from Dolce and Gabbana.

The first step in the setup is the gateway if you want it to work with HomeKit. You connect it to your router or switch using the included cable by untwisting the large hockey puck and connecting the (ethernet), and then plugging in the USB cable to the plug or other USB female input that can deliver power. Once that is done, you download the Ikea app and connect the gateway, and use the “Home App” to install it as a bridge for HomeKit. The codes are on the bottom to connect both the gateway to the “Tradfri” app, and the “Home” app.

once it’s connected you can move onto your other devices. This is where set up gets interesting. The bulb as you saw previously doesn’t come with any instructions, and the motion sensor was bought by itself. In fact, they don’t even offer a kit with the sensor and the bulb. As it turns out it was a good thing I bought the motion sensor because I’m not sure the bulb can connect to the bridge without it or another device. The Ikea platform of smart devices seems to include two types of device (that aren’t bridges or gateways) – regular smart devices and what they call “Control Devices”. Those devices do come with instructions. The way you add the motion sensor (the control device I bought) to the bridge is to hold in the pairing button for 10 seconds (that app instructs you) within 4mm of the bridge (I literally had to sit it on top of it), wait until it blinks X amount of times, then press whatever sequence the app tells you. This took me around 15 minutes to get correct. Once you’ve achieved that, you will have an accessory showing in the Ikea app. Yay. Now for the “color full spectrum bulb”.

The app helped me with this differently. You do still tell the application you want to add a device and device type. Then… It basically instructed me to use the “control device” I just set up (motion sensor) and hold it next to the bulb for quite some time. I tried this 4 times, basically turning the bulb on, holding my arm in the air for 5 minutes, right on the bulb with the sensor on it. It wouldn’t add to the app. I gave up and went to bed. When I woke in the morning somehow magically the bulb was visible in the Trådfri app. Yay! All it required then was to go to the integration page in the Trådfri app, add it to HomeKit, not have it work, then COMPLETELY REMOVE the bridge and re-add it to the Apple home app. Just to be clear no devices needed re-adding to the Trådfri app. No, I’m not kidding about any of this setup.

The bulb and gateway act as you would expect, however, the color range isn’t close to anything like 16 million colors, which is a typical number thrown out for a high quality color bulb. I’m not going to guess an amount but I think for the price a lot of people would want more. It’s half the price of say a Hue bulb but it does have competitors close in price that don’t require a hub and have way more colors. Having said that, it works well in the laundry room where I have it and with the motion detector it provides a good solution. We have stationed the sensor so we can walk in with laundry and the light comes on. The sensor is adjustable on the back in terms of time for no motion to shut the controlled device off. I wish the sensor were Homekit compatible, having said that, by using the bulb it controls in automations we are able to get a lot of use out of the sensor, and even though I generally have a “No non-HomeKit device” rule, it’s actually quite a treat. It’s just too easy to hide and small not to love it. The bulb looks as you would think when asked to be normal or 100 percent tungsten / brightness according to Siri talk. So for a laundry room it really doesn’t matter that the colors aren’t up to the standard of some other bulbs.

As far as the Home app goes that, was the easiest part to connect inside the Tradfri app and I imagine it’s the same with other platforms. It looks and behaves as you would expect, it reacts quickly, and reacts how you would expect (to the best of it’s ability) using Siri for voice control. The pics I took of the colors of the bulbs that were acquired for your reference were done so using voice. I’m pleased with it’s automation reaction times as well. It’s a thumbs up for HomeKit once it’s set. I am concerned that I may have to disconnect it every time I buy a new Tradfri device, but that’s on me if I make that choice. I’d love to hear how it does with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.

Overall Impressions:
“It’s a no from me dog.” I kid, I kid. No, but really you’ve been warned, Trådfri products may need some ironing out. Look, I’ve been through other rough set ups from other companies, and I still love their products, and as I said earlier I love the motion sensor, and the bulb works as expected. I’m sure Ikea will get it sorted, I’m glad to have and have it “mostly” figured out for future purchases. I just wouldn’t suggest it for my mom or grandma.

DIY can be an elusive creature and ultimately Ikea has made its living at least partially off of the “Ikea Effect”. I do feel partially responsible for making this work, but then, that’s not really a new phenomenon.

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