SAMOTECH Zigbee DIMMER Retractive NO NEUTRAL Module compatible with Philips Hue, Home Assistant, Homekit, Smarthings, Hubitat and other Zigbee Hubs (SM309-S 2-pack)

I bought this to control some LED lights where I cannot fit Hue lights. Haven't installed properly yet, I just did a test and rigged a 4-way GU10 spotlight fitting to it, with 4 good quality Megaman 6W LED bulbs. I have had loads of issues dimming normal LEDS, as some dimmers can't handle very low loads - even spent a fortune trying different LED bulbs. With my LightwaveRF dimmers, I can't have any of my LED bulbs they control dimmed to a very low level, probably 50% at best.I had low expectations from previous experience of LED dimming. But wow - my preconceptions were thoroughly smashed.Firstly, it was a doddle to pair, the Hue bridge saw it instantly. Others have said there can be issues - apparently it has to be quite close to the Hue Bridge (mine was within 2m of it). Shows in the app as a Hue white light bulb.Secondly the dimming range was fantastic! From 1 to 100%, no problems, no flickering. Had issues before (especially with my LightwaveRF kit) where a dimmer can handle, say 4 bulbs worth of load, but if one goes, then the lower total wattage starts to cause issues with flickering etc., when dimmed. Not with this, pulled 3 bulbs and the single 6W bulb worked perfectly, no degradation in dimming performance at all.Thirdly - and this was a surprise - it supports Hue power-on behaviour. Very unexpected and cool. I have read in a few places it supports OTA updates when used with Hue, will have to wait and see for that one!Really pleasantly surprised by this unit, will be fitting this soon, and getting a few more - and the switch version for my bathroom fan.Another good use for this is if you are, like me, running out of capacity on your Hue Bridge. For instance, I have 4 GU10 Hue LEDs in my bathroom, so will replace them with normal dimmable bulbs and deploy one of these beauties to control all 4 so that I free up capacity for more Hue bulbs where I want the colour or white ambience bulbs. Once I had installed this where I planned I am planning on installing downlighters in my bedroom, and this will save a lot of Hue Bridge capacity (and a lot of money on bulbs!).

These work great once you work out how to install them. But even though they’re advertised as ‘no neutral’, it isn’t very clear that you still can’t seem to install them in a standard UK light switch without a neutral wire, or at least not without doing a ‘bypass’, which I think involves purchasing another item from Samotech to wire into the ceiling - but the instructions are pretty unclear about this, or at least they are to my non-electrician eyes!In the end, to make life easier, I just wired the Samotech switch above the light itself in the ceiling so I could use the neutral wire, which was easy enough. I then used a wago clip in the original wall switch so the live wires were permanently ‘on’, covered it with a completely flat blanking plate (80p from an electrical shop) and screwed a Philips Hue smart button over it. Works pretty well and looks neat enough.I also bought the Samotech ‘rotary dimmer’ switch for my kitchen. That was much easier and went into the wall switch without issue despite the lack of neutral wire. Not sure why that one works fine in the wall switch and the others don’t - but again, not an electrician!The switches all paired fine with my Hue bridge, but for the SM308s, I had to bring the hub right to where I’d wired in the switch and press the ‘reset’ button 5 times on the switch itself, while it was live. So make sure you pair them before you put them somewhere inaccessible. May be easier to plug them into the wall first to pair and then wire them in. I (very carefully) used an old extension lead wire to power the second one so I could pair it before it went in the ceiling. Needless to say if this all sounds intimidating, you should hire an electrician, or stick to the hue light bulbs.Overall worth the hassle to make this one off investment rather than needing to keep buying bulbs indefinitely, but it does require some planning.

I bought this to convert some existing wall lights to work with Hue that use the very small halogen bulbs for which there is no smart option. Installation was pretty simple but as a previous reviewer had said, pairing was anything but. There are no hue specific instructions so it's a bit of trial and error. Pair it before you install it in its final location as being close to the hub is the key. I found I had to press the reset button 5 times to initiate the correct mode. Once the hue app discovers it it's plain sailing. It appears as a dimmable switch and works right down to a very low level of brightness. Does exactly what it was meant to do. Very happy.

These are great for when (1) You have lots of lights to automate across a dual gang switch - use one SM308-2CH to control say 20 or 30 lights (much cheaper than replacing each bulb with a Hue) (2) have a dimmable LED light where you can't use a Philips Hue bulb (e.g., from Tom Dixon that uses an integrated LED)- use the SM323v2 behind a faceplate or SM309-S in the attic/ceiling (3) you want to control something like a bathroom fan on voice control - use SM308-S with a standard switch.If you use the SM309-S (dimmer) you will need a switch with a reactive switch or just use the SM323v2 but you may need to buy a new faceplate.Do pair these close to the Philips Hue hub first and only then fit them in your attic/ceiling. Do note that the two Channel SM308-2CH appears as one light in the Philips Hue app but if you selectr it you can then see both channels. However in HomeKit this shows as two switches straight away.These work flawlessly with Philips Hue and Apple HomeKit for iPhone app and Siri voice control.

The device produces a click sound when the lights turn on or off. Must be a relay, but it’s quite loud and not suitable for my intended location. Setup was easy with hue - just add it as a new “light” and it’s found right away