LED lights are vastly becoming the most bought form of lighting in the world as people are starting to see the benefits they offer.
If you’ve ever considered purchasing and using LED lights technology - whether it be LED Downlights, LED strip lights, LED flood lights or any form of LED lighting products, there has never been a better time. Especially with the technology nowadays being implemented into the LED light industry.
But how and what can you use to control your LED lights? If you want to know how you can take your lighting experience to another level, keep reading along with us!
What is LED Technology?
When LEDs first came into fruition, they were more so used as status lamps and indicator lamps. Whereas, more recently - in the last 6 years, high brightness LEDs have been implemented into more under-shelf illumination, directional marking and accent lighting around households and commercial environments.
However, only in the last year or so have they been recommended to be installed for genuine lighting applications. This is due to the benefits long-term and overall effectiveness LED lighting brings to the table.
Subsequently, you will need to learn all about LED technology, how to install it and what devices you can use to control it when set up.
LEDs (light emitting diodes) is an electrically controlled device that converts an electrical current directly into the light of a single colour. Therefore, each time you change the colour of the LED device, it will use this technology. Due to LEDs using ‘cold’ light generation technology - most of the energy is delivered via the visible spectrum (visible via the human eye), LED’s don’t need heat to light and brighten up their bulb, strip, etc.
Not only do LEDs produce ‘cold’ lighting - but they also are very small in size most of the time - therefore, resistant to shock and vibrations. LED bulbs are a lot faster compared to any other form of lighting for the ‘turning on time’ as they don’t need heat for full brightness.
Any form of LED lighting can be powered by a solar array or a more common portable battery. This means they can be integrated into a control system which will severely reduce your electricity bills. The benefits and features of LEDs are almost endless, but the question is - what are the ways you can use technology to control your LED lights? Let’s take a look at some of the solutions!
Controlling LED Lights With Technology
Since the popularity of LED lighting technology has sky-rocketed in the past year, certain companies have taken advantage of the growing market to create some incredible pieces of technology for LED lighting. If you’re looking to start investing in LED lighting for your household or business, take a look at some of these technology ideas to enhance your experience before purchasing blindly:
Alexa
If you’ve already purchased LED lights, Alexa can be one of the most useful, convenient and satisfying ways to control your LED lighting. If you don’t have an Alexa device, this may be your sign to purchase one if you’re wanting to use this technique. Before starting, there are some simple steps to follow in order to connect your LED lights to your Alexa device.
First of all, you need to download the Alexa app from the google play store or app store (if you have it downloaded, this step doesn’t apply to you). When you’ve opened the app up on your smart device, click ‘More’ in the bottom right corner of your screen. Tap the ‘Skill & Games’ feature and then the ‘Magnifying Glass’ in the top right corner - to search for ‘Shelly Cloud’
Once you’ve found the Shelly Cloud feature, you’ll have to press ‘Enable To Use’ when asked to do so - enter your Shelly email address and password (or sign up if you don’t have one and follow the steps) to the ink the light to your account.
If all goes well, your Alexa device should automatically discover the light - to where it will ask you what room in your property it will be located. Pick a room and you should be able to start saying “Alexa, turn on Strip” to which the light will come on!
An App
Your LED light strips or any other type of LED lighting will come with a manual. In this manual, there will be instructions to see whether your LED lights are compatible with an app. If not, then this technology will not apply to you.
However, if your lights have app compatibility - you will need to type the name of your LED lights model with ‘app’ after it. If it pops up, just to make sure you’ve found the right one, read the reviews.
If it’s the correct app, then install it onto your device - whether it’s the google play store or the normal app store. Once you’ve launched the app you will need to follow on-page instructions in order to connect this app to your LED lights.
In contrast, if you fall into the category of not having a specific app for your device - there will be an app that may cost a bit of money to connect to your LED strips. So, don’t stress if there is no specific app tied to your LED lighting.
Remote Control
Another alternative if you don’t want to use an app or Alexa to control your LED lights is using smart LED remote control. By connecting this remote control to your wi-fi network, you’ll be able to change the colours of your LED lights and control their brightness.
However, before that, you will need to connect the adapter that comes with the LED lights to the power supply. Once the adapter is connected, you’ll need to install the ‘Magic Home App’ from your app store on your smartphone.
Next, connect your phone to the Wi-Fi of your remote control (you’ll find the credentials on the box) - then on the app on your smartphone, connect to the remote control and a direct connection.
Tap on ‘LED Strip’ on your device tab - meaning you can use your hotspot or Wi-FI connection at home. Change your settings depending on where you are at the time.
