In recent years, smart home technology has revolutionized the way we interact with our homes. Smart bulbs are one such innovation that has gained significant popularity due to their convenience and energy efficiency.
Using a single smart bulb is fairly simple, but using multiple smart bulbs in one fixture is a bit more complex and involves assigning smart bulbs to ‘groups’ within your smart home app.
In this article, we will explore the steps you need to take to successfully use multiple smart bulbs in one fixture and enjoy the full benefits of a smart lighting system.
1. How To Use Multiple Smart Bulbs In One Fixture
Sometimes, you will have a light fitting that takes two or more smart bulbs. And naturally, you want these smart bulbs to turn on and off together.
In smart home hubs you can create groups of lights that all respond to a single command.
I’ll show you how to do this in Alexa and in Google Home.
The smart bulbs I’m using in this example are Arlec Smart LED Globes:
2. How to group multiple bulbs in Google Home
I first added the bulbs to the manufacturer’s app and then linked them to Google Home.
In the screenshot below, you can see that I have two smart bulbs in Google Home and each is on a separate control:
This means that every time I want to turn the ceiling light on or off I will have to tap two different controls within Google Home.
But that’s inconvenient, so I’m now going to put them on one control.
Here’s how to do it:
Tap on ‘Smart Bulb 1’. On the next screen you’ll see a link at the bottom that says ‘Add to a room’:
On the next screen, under ‘Create new’, choose one of the pre-defined rooms.
I’m going to choose ‘bedroom’. But it really doesn’t matter which one you choose because on the next screen you can change the name to whatever you like:
On the next screen, change the name of the room to whatever you want. I’m going to call it ‘master bedroom’:
On the next screen, you’ll see that Smart Bulb 1 now belongs to a ‘room’ (‘Master Bedroom’):
Now repeat the process for Smart Bulb 2.
This time, when Google Home asks you to choose a room for Smart Bulb 2, one of the options will be the room that you just created. Choose that room for the second smart bulb:
Your two smart bulbs are now on the same tile, and that means you can turn both bulbs on and off with a single tap (or a single voice command):
Both smart bulbs are now on a single switch:
Now I’m going to show you how to do the same thing in Amazon’s Alexa.
3. How to group multiple bulbs in Amazon Alexa
The process is similar in Alexa, except that instead of adding the two smart bulbs to a ‘room’ we will be adding them to a ‘group’.
Again, you need to start off by adding the smart bulbs to the manufacturer’s app. Then link the bulbs to Alexa.
Here are my two smart bulbs in Alexa, and you can see that they are on separate controls:
We want them on the same control so that we can turn both bulbs on or off with a single tap or a single voice command.
To achieve that, we need to add them to a single group.
Tap on the plus icon in the top right corner:
Then choose the ‘Add Group’ option:
Then tap on ‘Create a room or device group’:
On the following screen, tap ‘Next’:
And then choose ‘Customized Name’:
Give your group a name and tap ‘Next’:
Then check the boxes next to the two smart bulbs and tap ‘Next’:
On the next screen, you’ll see that your two smart bulbs have been added to the new group:
Tap ‘Done’ and you’ll see that your two smart bulbs are now on the same control:
You can turn them both on and off with a single tap or a single voice command.
And that’s it!
That’s how to use multiple smart bulbs in one fixture and have them turn on or off with a single tap or a single voice command.
4. Related Questions
How do you control multiple smart bulbs at once?
You can control multiple devices with a single tap or a single voice command.
In Amazon Alexa, go to Devices > Create a Group and then add the different smart bulbs that you want to be controlled a single command.
In Google Home, you can control multiple devices through ‘routines’. Tap on ‘Routines’ and then tap on the plus sign to create a new routine, and then add the smart bulbs that you want to be controlled by that routine.
What happens to smart bulbs when WiFi goes out?
If your smart bulbs connect via WiFi to your smartphone, in a power outage you would lose the smart functions of your bulbs but you would still be able to turn them on and off at the wall switch.
What is the life expectancy of a smart bulb?
1st generation smart bulbs last about 15,000 hours. 2nd and 3rd generation smart bulbs last about 25,000 hours.
Conclusion
So that’s how to group multiple smart bulbs together so that they turn on or off with a single command. You can do this in Alexa and in Google Home.
You can use this technique to add as many smart bulbs as you like to a single group. For example, if a room has two floor lamps, two ceiling lights, and some strip lighting, you can turn them all on or off with a command.