[APP][Pro] Philips Hue Zigbee (Without the bridge)

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1192

Does anyone know if @johan_bendz is willing to transfer? I won’t have that much time to maintain all new feature requests. But I will be able to maintain merge requests from other developers and maintain the app that way. I see the current code hasn’t been updated for a while. I have made a version now (for myself) with all open merge requests, but if I read a bit the topic here, it might be that more people might benefit from a little bit updated app.

@Doekse do you know the current state? (maybe we can continue through PM).

1193

You are ofcourse always free to reach out to @johan_bendz about the subject, but I can also connect you via email. Feel free to reach out to partners@athom.com

1194

That would be great!! 90% of the lights I own are Hue, and I understand that @Doekse needs to keep Phillips/Signify happy, but as others have already pointed out, this app is used by many people. The value of this app became clear to me again recently when my router stopped working. No Wi-Fi means no Hue with a bridge. Meanwhile, my Homey just kept running with the lights that are linked to the Hue Without Bridge app.

It also naturally provides a much better Zigbee network on homey, and I agree with what Dirk said: Of the nearly 50 lights I have, the price of a Bridge is a drop in the bucket for Signifiy. Hue could lose many Homey users because of this. In any case, I’ll be looking for an alternative that works directly with Homey if this app really isn’t supported anymore. I’m afraid I’m not the only one.

@MrDutchfighter I hope you can pull it off!:partying_face:

1195

Any progress on this?

1196

They gave the original owner a deadline, if they don’t respond before them I’ll get the option to take over the ownership of the app.

1197

Do you maybe know when the deadline will expire? To be honest I’m very hesitant to buy anything from Philips Hue due to the status of the app. I’m happy to hear though that there are people like you who are willing to maintain it once you have the ownership.

1198

To be honest, I don’t know actually. Will check with Athom once back from holiday in a couple of weeks!

1199

hello all,

i have added two philips hue lamps to my homey 2019. They got in the devices list as uniform zigbee lights.

Why can’t i adapt the name and the parameters of the devices? The name is wrong and it is an overig and not a lamp…, but when i try to change it homey says “parameter_not_updatable”

Is there a setting that i am missing?

Thanks!

Johan

1200

Hmm, should have checked this topic before buying some new Philips Hue stuff :wink: . My older wall modules with battery work very well. Now bought some new wired wall modules and a Tap Dial switch but now confronted with the same issues as I read here and in other topics. Only able to connect as “generic zigbee device” or got the message “this device already exists”… hmm too bad.

@MrDutchfighter if you would indeed take over, what do you mean with “But I will be able to maintain merge requests from other developers and maintain the app that way.”? I’m not very familiair with the github way of working of branches, merges, etc., so it’s kind off abracadabra for me.

Would there be a chance that my wall modules and tap dial switch could be added because they are already in the app and this would only require a minimal effort, if we/I would deliver the info required from an interview? Or is that what you call “a new feature request” which you indicate you’re not sure you will have time for?

Curious to hear what your plan would be and what we could expect. Kudo’s anyway that you’re willing to help the community out.

For the short term I’m considering to buy a 2nd hand Hue bridge just to be able to play with my new devices. But it would be a shame, Homey should be The One Ring to rule them all…

1201

With some help of Claude and a lot of testing, I managed to create a driver (ROM002) for the wired wall module with two inputs and created a pull request on the GitHub of Johan Bendz.

It works perfect, now hope someone can integrate the open pull requests into a new version of the app.

1202

Did you check again? :slight_smile:

I’m currently trying to move back to homey without a hue bridge and/or zigbee2mqtt. I want to stop using external hardware dependencies for my home. I’ve already copied to repo to do some editing myself because the original is practically abandonware now.

1203

Yes, checked again. Should hear something this week, but somehow it is quite difficult (think some internal politics, but that is just guessing). I have my own branch running as well… you can do a MR to it with your changes, then I will merge and can directly publish if they hand it over.

GitHub - robertraaijmakers/com.philips.hue.zigbee: Philips Hue app for Homey that uses ZigBee directly. No need for bridge. · GitHub (sdk3).

1204

Hi,

New user!

I have a question regarding hue and homey pro.

I now have running Homey self hosted server on my Proxmox cluster to try the Homey platform. I have bought a bride to let Homey communicate with my smart stuff. I use the official Homey Hue app and I still have my Hue bridge in use. To be honest I don’t want to use the Hue bridge so then I have to use the community app if I understood correctly. Also it is advised to only use the Hue Homey community app in combination with the Homey Pro. What about updates? What are your experiences by using it this way?

Side note, I like homey!!! :slight_smile:

1205

If you already use the Hue bridge, I’d recommend to stay on the Hue bridge. It is so much faster than the Homey app to quickly control a light, way easier to set up Dimmer Switches with your Hue lights and of course updates can be run.

1206

Thanks for the confirmation!!

I did some testing and came to the same conclusion as you. Also I understood that the Homey community app without bridge is a bit outdated.

1208

Hi everyone,

It has been far too long since I gave this app the attention it deserves, so during the last few weeks I have done a fairly extensive modernization of Philips Hue, without the bridge.

Version 2.1.1 is now available in the Test channel.

This is more than a device update. A large part of the app has been reviewed and cleaned up, including:

  • Updated Homey Zigbee dependencies and compatibility with the current Homey development stack
  • Stability and lifecycle improvements
  • Improved handling of Hue remotes and Wall Switch Modules
  • Battery reporting improvements
  • Corrections to Motion/Occupancy Sensor handling and settings
  • Corrected protocol handling for the Hue Contact Sensor
  • Additional supported Hue devices
  • New support for Hue Dymera and Hue Slim Recessed Spot
  • Automated regression tests and CI validation have been added to make future changes safer

I have tested the current build locally on a real Homey Pro with Hue lights, Indoor/Outdoor Motion/Occupancy Sensors, Tap Dial Switch, Wall Switch Modules and more, and the tested functionality is working as expected.

That said, this app supports a lot of different Hue hardware, and I obviously cannot physically test all of it myself. That is exactly why this release is going through the Test channel before becoming Live.

I am especially interested in feedback from users with:

  • Hue Contact Sensor (SOC001)
  • Hue Wall Switch Module / Wall Switch Module 2
  • Hue Smart Button / remotes
  • Motion and Occupancy Sensors
  • Hue Dymera
  • Hue Slim Recessed Spot
  • older or less common Hue lights

If you test it and find something that has stopped working, please report it here or on GitHub. Device model, Homey model and a short description of what worked before and what changed are very useful.

The existing Live version is unchanged. Only users who choose the Test version will receive 2.1.1 for now.

Thanks to everyone who has submitted issues, device interviews, pull requests and testing over the years. Almost all outstanding PRs have now been reviewed and dealt with, and the issue backlog is next.

There is still quite a lot to go through, but the app is now in a much better position for continued development and safer releases.

Test version: Philips Hue, without the bridge | Homey

//Johan

1209

Thanks for your ongoing support @johan_bendz!

1210

Many thanks, Johan! :+1:

1211

Philips Hue, without the bridge – v2.1.2 is now Live, and a big Test update is next

This release is mainly the result of a fairly extensive modernization of the app under the hood: updated Homey/Zigbee foundations, cleaned-up drivers and manifests, lifecycle and stability work, migration/compatibility fixes, and a general cleanup of a codebase that has grown for quite a few years.

I deliberately separated that work from the next round of features and device additions. With the new foundation now Live, I am preparing v2.2.0 for the Test channel, and that one is much more visible.

The current 2.2.0 candidate includes, among other things:

  • Support for Hue A60 White 800 lm / LWA024, Datura Ceiling Light Small, additional Enrave S variants, Hue Smart Button RDM005, and a considerably expanded set of Hue GU10 Color model identities.
  • Expanded Hue Twilight support, including separate front/back zones, physical button events and native gradient control for the back light.
  • Verified Gradient Signe support with native three-colour Hue gradients.
  • Native Candle and Fireplace effects on compatible Hue lights.
  • New Flow actions for combined brightness + colour, relative colour-temperature adjustment, Hue effects and gradients.
  • Improvements for motion/occupancy sensors, including configurable occupancy timeout and better recovery when devices come back online.
  • Several fixes for Hue remotes and switches, including battery handling, wake behaviour and Wall Switch / Tap Dial event handling.
  • Better synchronization when a Hue light changes state outside Homey.

There are also quite a few smaller fixes collected from the existing GitHub issues.

The goal now is to get 2.2.0 into Test shortly, let people with the affected devices verify the hardware-dependent parts, and then move it to Live once it has had some real-world testing.

So if you own one of the newer Hue devices — especially Datura, Twilight, Gradient Signe, newer GU10s, LWA024 or RDM005 — I would very much appreciate some testing once the Test version is available.

Thanks to everyone who has submitted issues, device information, Zigbee interviews, pull requests and test results over the years. A lot of that backlog is finally being turned into actual app updates.

// Johan