Philips Hue is one of the best lighting systems due to its wide range of lights with the best controls and reliability. However, these Philips smart bulbs still run into occasional problems such as connection issues, which you will need to reset your Hue bulbs. Fortunately, resetting Philips Hue bulbs is a very easy task.
Depending on your setup, you can reset a Philips Hue bulb in several ways. If you connect the Philips Hue bulb without the bridge, you can reset it through the smartphone app or manually using a dimmer switch.
If you have a bridge, you can reset an individual bulb using its serial number. Our article will help you with everything you need to know about setting up your Hue bulb without a bridge and resetting a Philips smart bulb without a bridge.
What is a Philips Hue bridge?
The bridge is the brain of the Philips Hue smart lighting system. It’s a wireless device that allows you to connect and control up to 50 lights and accessories using the built-in Zigbee network. You can customize the lighting, uptime, dim and more custom settings.
The bridge will also allow you to power on/off individual lights or a system of lights you have created.
You will need the Philips Hue smartphone app to use the bridge. You can use the Philips app to control the smart lights via Bluetooth, but adding the bridge will give you more advanced control of your lighting.
The Hue bridge connects to your home WiFi network and allows you to control your Philips Hue lights with Smart voice assistants such as Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant.
But if you want to control your Hue smart bulb via the smartphone app only, you only need Bluetooth connectivity. You won’t need the Hue bridge.
How to setup Philips Hue lights without a bridge
If you don’t want to buy the Hue bridge, you can still set up your Philips Hue lights via Bluetooth and control them via the Philips Hue app. Here’s how you can set up your Hue bulb without a bridge.
- First, ensure the Philips Hue bulb you have supports Bluetooth connectivity. The bulb will have the Bluetooth logo on the box.
- Plug your Hue smart bulb into its socket and switch it on.
- Enable Bluetooth on your phone.
- Download the Philips Bluetooth app, which is different from the main Philips Hue app, which requires a bridge.
- Open the Philips Bluetooth app and tap “Get Started.”
- Tap ‘Yes” to confirm you have Bluetooth-compatible lights.
- Enter your name and accept the Terms and Conditions.
- Tap “Add light.”
- Then allow “Nearby device permission” to allow the app to search for nearby devices even if Bluetooth is off. Ensure you’re at least 3 feet from the bulb.
- You will receive a Bluetooth pairing request. Accept it to add your Hue bulb to the app.
- You can configure your scenes, control brightness, and remotely switch the bulb on and off.
How to reset Philips Hue bulb without a bridge
If you haven’t paired up your bridge to the app, you can still use a Bluetooth connection to reset your Hue bulb manually. Follow the detailed steps below to reset your Philips Hue lights without a bridge.
- First, download the Philips Hue Bluetooth app.
- Connect your Hue bulb to the Philips app. Ensure you can control the bulb using the app before resetting it.
- Turn on the light bulb.
- Open the Hue Bluetooth app, and tap the three dots on the top right corner of the screen.
- Go to “Settings.”
- Tap on “Light.”
- Select the bulb you want to reset.
- Scroll down and tap “Reset Hue bulb.”
- Tap “Reset” again to confirm, and the bulb will flicker to indicate its back to factory settings.
How do I reset my Hue bulb manually?
If you don’t have a bridge or the Philips Hue app, you can use a Hue dimmer switch to reset individual bulbs manually. Here’s how to do it:
- First, turn on the bulb you want to reset.
- Next, hold the dimmer switch about 6 inches near the bulb you want to reset.
- Press and hold the dimmer switch’s power button at the top and the Hue button at the bottom for 10 seconds. For older dimmer switches, press and hold the power on and power off buttons instead.
- Wait for the Hue smart bulb to blink three times, then release the buttons. The bulbs have now successfully reset to factory default settings.
- You can use this method to reset Hue bulbs, light strips, and lamps. Hold the dimmer switch close to the Zigbee module on the lamps, not the bulb itself.
How to reset Philips Hue bulb with serial number
You’ll need your Hue bulb’s serial number to reset the bulb with the bridge. Here’s how to reset your Philips Hue bulb with a bridge.
- Find your bulb’s serial number on the bulb, typically around the connector and on the control box for the light strip and Hue outdoor lights. Note down the serial number.
- Turn on your Hue light bulb, then wait a few seconds for the bridge to discover it.
- Go to the Hue app and tap on “Settings.”
- Scroll to “Light setup.”
- Tap “Add light” to add the bulb to your system.
- Click on “Serial number” and enter the six-character serial number for the bulb you want to reset.
- Tap “Search,” and your bulb will reset.
When to reset a Philips Hue bulb
Knowing how to reset Philips Hue lights is easy but important. Below are the instances when you will need to reset a Hue bulb.
- Resetting to troubleshoot the bulb when it is acting up
- Reset your smart bulbs when selling them or giving them out.
- Reset to clear bugs and glitches from the system.
- When you want to set up your lighting system afresh
- When reconnecting an old Hue bulb
Conclusion
Worry not if you don’t have a Hue bridge and you need to reset your Philips smart bulb. Connect your bulb to the Philips Hue app, go to Settings and reset your desired bulb.
If you don’t have a smartphone app, a Hue dimmer switch will come in handy to reset the bulb manually. If resetting becomes an issue, contact Philips customer support for assistance.