Looking for a way to automate your Smart Home Lights? Or just want to have your home light up the moment you enter? Here are four ways you to automate your smart home lights when you come home.
In order to make this automation work, you’ll need at least a smart light bulb, a smart light switch or lights connected to a smart plug. You’ll also need at LEAST one of the following 4 products:
- Apple Home Setup w/ Apple TV or iPad
- Elgato Eve Motion or iHome Home Sensor
- Elgato Door & Window
- D-Link Omna
Each one of the products listed above will act as the trigger for the automated lights and each has it’s own strengths and weaknesses which this post will talk about. Personally, we prefer the plain Apple Home Setup with a TV or iPad but you might have a circumstance in your home where the others might be better. We’ll cover the automations used for each device but if you need a refresher on smart home automations, check out this post.
At SmartHome Reviews Eh!, we base our reviews and videos on actual usage. So we’ll leave it all the marketing fluff and focus on using the product in our own homes. And we’ll add the smart home gadgets to other smart home platforms such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home. We do all this to answer the question “How do we get the MOST out of our homes?”.
D-Link Omna
D-Link Omna is the most expensive out of the four on the list we recommend. But has accuracy from picking and choosing parts of the video to detect motion in. The draw back of this accuracy however is the false triggers the motion sensor picks up whenever there are sunlight changes. Though this problem can easily be overcomed by setting the automation to be active only after sunset.
To set up a D-Link Omna, just place it on your desired quadrant and create an Apple Home automation that triggers whenever a sensor detects something. Just keep in mind that the D-Link Omna is a motion sensor that needs to be plugged in so it is not not portable like Elgato Eve Motion.
Get the D-Link Omna on Amazon (CA/UK/DE) or on eBay!
Elgato Eve Motion/iHome Home Sensor
Elgato Eve Motion is a motion sensor that can be mounted outside due to its weather resistant feature, However, Elgato Eve Motion has so much wide Field of View that it can be simply triggered by leaf or a branch passing by its sensors. To remedy this, the Eve motion should be used on low traffic areas to avoid the lights being turned on.
The setup of an Elgato Eve Motion is the same as a D-Link Omna. You just need to select a trigger automation and make sure you’re selecting the “after sunset” option to avoid turning the lights during the day. If you need more help with automations, check out the intro video where I explain all the different automations you can use with Apple Home.
Elgato Door & Window
Unlike the previous two entries, Elgato Door & Window has a finite sensor and cannot monitor a wide area. However, it compensates its shortcoming for being precise with no unnecessary triggering from inanimate objects like leaves or branches.
The setup of an Elgato Door & Window is different than the previous entries. In Elgato Door & Window, you need to have “an accessory is controlled” automation so the lights are open whenever you open the door. You should also need to set your Elgato Door & Window on “after sunset” to ensure that it will not trigger during the day.
Get the Elgato Eve Motion on Amazon (CA/UK/DE) or on eBay!
Apple Home w/ Apple TV or iPad
Out of all the four entries, the best way to have your lights turn on automatically would be a full blown Apple Home using an Apple TV or iPad. Assuming that you already have an iPad or an Apple TV, this method would be the cheapest out of the four. And the most accurate.
The setup works the moment the Apple Home detects your iPhone on the GeoFence that you set. This solution is the best out of the four because the Apple Home setup does not have the persistent problems of the other three. The setup will not encounter any false reading like on the Omna. The Apple Home will not also experience accidental triggers like the Eve motion would. And, unlike the Door & Window, it can be set on any sort of entrance way to your house.
The GPS feature of HomeKit is what the Apple Home does quite well. There aren’t many features that works consistently with other platforms like Amazon Alexa and Google Home.
Get the Apple TV on Amazon (CA/UK/DE) or on eBay!
Do you have any questions about How to automate your Smart Home Lights when you come home? Ask them below. If this post was helpful to you, consider getting your smart home gadgets through our links!
