# Hue Bridge: use it or connect directly to Homey? **URL:** \ **Category:** Questions & Help\ **Tags:** zigbee\ **Created:** [January 3, 2021, 9:49am UTC](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-use-it-or-connect-directly-to-homey/40353 "2021-01-03T09:49:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TheFops](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ad7895/32.png) [@TheFops](https://community.homey.app/u/TheFops)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 9:49am UTC](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-use-it-or-connect-directly-to-homey/40353/1 "2021-01-03T09:49:05Z")
Hey all, As of today I’ve moved into my new home. I’m still working on putting Hue and Tradfri lights everywhere and some dumb light bulbs will be controlled by a smart zigbee rotary dimmer. I’m still not sure whether to connect my Hue and Tradfri lights to the Hue bridge or to connect them to Homey directly. Im still in version 4.2.0 on Homey. Ive searched the forums and found this post (it is in Dutch), but it’s a rather old post: [HUE bridge of niet - #40 by sierk\_van\_der\_veen](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-of-niet/5985/40) The benefits of connecting them to Homey are, in my opinion, providing a better zigbee mesh (I want to use some aqara sensor in the future so they need a good mesh) and having one app/controller for all your lighting. The benefits of connecting them to the Hue Bridge are the ability to use the Hue scenes, easier setup of flows (I read you need less flows if you want to dim lights or change scenes). What are your experiences? And what about people who use Homey V5, did it change your opinion on using the Homey zigbee mesh? Hope you can help a Homey newbie out. The Fops ---
**Author:** ![Henk\_Renting](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/user_avatar/community.homey.app/henk_renting/32/87634_2.png) [@Henk\_Renting](https://community.homey.app/u/Henk_Renting)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 10:59am UTC](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-use-it-or-connect-directly-to-homey/40353/3 "2021-01-03T10:59:44Z")
I can only recommend connecting directly to Homey after upgrading to v5. The latest rc’s are superstable and Zigbee is a whole lot better than in v4. Please make sure all your apps are v5 compatible before upgrading. If so, I can only recommend v5. If you connect them now to the Hue bridge, you would have to redesign all those flow when you are upgrading to v5 in the future. And there can be a lot by then. Also; Athom has said here the final version of v5 is coming soon. (I know, we heard that before from them, but it really seems the case now). Meanwhile, rc50 is a very well working version! @RoyWissenburg: You might wanna consider translating your reply to English. The topic is in the English section (although the title is in Dutch. Perhaps @TheFops might want to change that too, before the mods are awake on sunday) . 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![TheFops](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ad7895/32.png) [@TheFops](https://community.homey.app/u/TheFops)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 1:57pm UTC](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-use-it-or-connect-directly-to-homey/40353/4 "2021-01-03T13:57:51Z")
@RoyWissenburg thanks for your reply. Another big benefit I thought of is to be able to update the firmware of the bulbs with the Hue Bridge. I think I cannot do that if I use Homey zigbee? @Henk_Renting I’m leaning towards using Homeys zigbee. How do you use scenes in Homey? And thanks for the heads up on the title. I started this thread in Dutch but then I thought if I start it in English, more people can read and learn from it. 😀 Edit: how can I see that there’s a V5 version of an app? I thought if I put ‘/test’ behind the URL of the app I could see it, but if I look at the Tado app I don’t get a notification that it is in an experimental phase. Is the Tado app supported? ---
**Author:** ![Henk\_Renting](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/user_avatar/community.homey.app/henk_renting/32/87634_2.png) [@Henk\_Renting](https://community.homey.app/u/Henk_Renting)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 2:39pm UTC](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-use-it-or-connect-directly-to-homey/40353/5 "2021-01-03T14:39:05Z")
> [@TheFops](#): > > Edit: hoe kan ik zien… And then you went back to Dutch… 😉 In Homey you don’t use “scenes”. They’re called “Flows” and can do quite the same. But have to be made in Homey. Tado is supported in v5; use it myself too. You might wanna check out this thread: > [@Apps currently not working on Homey v5](https://community.homey.app/t/apps-currently-not-working-on-homey-v5/35748): > > Let’s try a WIKI post. Apps not working on Homey version V5. I’ll add an app that doesn’t work with V5 and u can add an app urself just by editing this post. On the bottom of this very post there is an edit icon. Click the icon, edit the post with ur own app u know not working on V5 and save edit. Lets see how this goes. Full list of apps still based on SDK1 or Zigbee apps not updated to SDK3: App ID App Name Comment com.bbqguru.cyberq BBQ Guru info.matjaz.presence Better Presence … ---
**Author:** ![robertklep](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/user_avatar/community.homey.app/robertklep/32/160628_2.png) [@robertklep](https://community.homey.app/u/robertklep)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 2:48pm UTC](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-use-it-or-connect-directly-to-homey/40353/6 "2021-01-03T14:48:07Z")
> [@Henk\_Renting](#): > > In Homey you don’t use “scenes” Unless you use Hue scenes _from_ Homey, which is what @RoyWissenburg was referring to. ---
**Author:** ![TheFops](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ad7895/32.png) [@TheFops](https://community.homey.app/u/TheFops)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 4:08pm UTC](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-use-it-or-connect-directly-to-homey/40353/7 "2021-01-03T16:08:49Z")
@Henk_Renting It’s hard for me to switch from Dutch to English apparently 🤣 I know that you use flows within Homey. But I want to know if I can store the settings of the lights and recall them using a flow. ---
**Author:** ![Rocodamelshekima](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/user_avatar/community.homey.app/rocodamelshekima/32/8209_2.png) [@Rocodamelshekima](https://community.homey.app/u/Rocodamelshekima)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 4:23pm UTC](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-use-it-or-connect-directly-to-homey/40353/8 "2021-01-03T16:23:52Z")
> [@TheFops](#): > > But I want to know if I can store the settings of the lights and recall them using a flow. Yes u [can](https://homey.app/nl-nl/app/com.sdn.zone-memory/Zone-Memory/)! ---
**Author:** ![TheFops](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ad7895/32.png) [@TheFops](https://community.homey.app/u/TheFops)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 6:36pm UTC](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-use-it-or-connect-directly-to-homey/40353/9 "2021-01-03T18:36:29Z")
Ah, didn’t know about that app. I think I’m gonna give V5 a try and start connecting my bulbs directly through homey. Is there any way I can update the firmware if I’m not using the Hue Bridge? ---
**Author:** ![Rocodamelshekima](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/user_avatar/community.homey.app/rocodamelshekima/32/8209_2.png) [@Rocodamelshekima](https://community.homey.app/u/Rocodamelshekima)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 6:37pm UTC](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-use-it-or-connect-directly-to-homey/40353/10 "2021-01-03T18:37:10Z")
> [@TheFops](#): > > Is there any way I can update the firmware if I’m not using the Hue Bridge? Nope. ---
**Author:** ![TheFops](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ad7895/32.png) [@TheFops](https://community.homey.app/u/TheFops)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 6:37pm UTC](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-use-it-or-connect-directly-to-homey/40353/11 "2021-01-03T18:37:35Z")
Is there any privacy risk if I’m not updating the firmware? ---
**Author:** ![Rocodamelshekima](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/user_avatar/community.homey.app/rocodamelshekima/32/8209_2.png) [@Rocodamelshekima](https://community.homey.app/u/Rocodamelshekima)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2021, 6:38pm UTC](https://community.homey.app/t/hue-bridge-use-it-or-connect-directly-to-homey/40353/12 "2021-01-03T18:38:25Z")
I dunno about future privacy updates.