How to automate your lights based on the natural light in your home

Automating lights in your home is one of the easiest things to do in your smart home. Many hubs offer you the option to turn lights on or off at specific times of the day or at sunrise or sunset.

But often, the actual light levels in your home don’t fit a predefined schedule.

If it’s dark and rainy outside, you might need lights way before sunset. And on a really bright day, there might still be plenty of light left at that time. Or maybe it is so sunny that you need to close the blinds to keep your apartment from heating up.

With a light sensor, you can automate your lights based on the light levels in your home rather than relying on a fixed schedule.

Measure light levels with the friently Motion Sensor Pro and Motion Sensor 2 Pet

The Motion Sensor Pro and Motion Sensor 2 Pet are real multi-talents. They don’t just detect movement, but also temperature and – you might have guessed it – light levels.

They help you automate the lights to the actual conditions in your home rather than specific times.

And if you have dimmable smart lights, you can even use your hub to regulate how bright your lamps should be based on the readings of these motion sensors.

Wanna know more about these two multi-talented frients? Check out Motion Sensor Pro and Motion Sensor 2 Pet.

Please note: Your hub needs to support the light detection of the motion sensor. You can check the compatible hubs here. If you are using SmartThings, you need to install the edge drivers to use this feature.

Easily connect lights to your smart home

Do you still need to add your lights to your smart home?

Then you might want to check out the Smart Plug Mini 2 – it easily lets you automate your plugged-in lights and even measures their energy consumption.

And if you have lights without a plug, you can use the Smart Cable 2 instead. It offers the same functionalities as a smart plug but is connected to the cable of your light.