The term “wireless” can be a bit misleading when describing lighting-control products: oftentimes they still require tinkering with wires, albeit existing ones. But electronics and lighting giant Philips has just unveiled a true, straight-out-of-the-box wireless dimmer-switch system that doesn’t require installation of any kind.
Giving “The Clapper” a run for its money, the user-friendly Philips Hue wireless dimming kit consists of a battery-operated dimmer switch and a wireless, dimmable-LED white light bulb. (The two communicate over 2400–2483.5 MHz wireless RF frequency band). The switch is simply mounted where desired on a wall, as no electrical-wire access is needed. And, to make things more convenient, the switch pops out of its base plate to function as a remote control with basic on/off and dim up/down buttons.
While the kit comes with a single soft-white (2,700K color temperature) bulb, the unit itself can control and dim up to 10 Philips Hue-compatible white lights at once within a range of 39 to nearly 100 feet.