Having a light turned on automatically using a smart home security routine is cool but before you spend a cent, ask yourself if a simple night light would do the trick?
One of the reasons why so many people have not jumped on the smart home bandwagon is cost. Smart home devices aren't cheap and most people are old school including myself. We would rather use our house key to open and lock our doors instead of keying in a code or using our smartphone.
I think having a smart home is convenient, useful and I love writing this blog about everything you can do to add the smarts in your home but I'm budget-conscious like I know a lot of you are too.
Back to the night light question, will a simple night light solve my problem or do I have to use a smart home device? I go to my favorite online store, Amazon to search for 'night lights' and I find a huge list:
As you can see, there are a number of night lights to choose from. I suspect there are over a hundred night lights on the market so I will try to shortlist some for you to consider. In my opinion, I would look for three requirements in a night light.
Dusk-to-Dawn Sensor
To save on electricity, it's important that a night light has a dusk-to-dawn sensor so that in the day, it doesn't light up. As soon as the light fades in the room, the sensor will detect low light conditions and turn on the light. The light will stay on until dawn or when there is sufficient light in which case it will turn off.Power-Failure Capability
The second requirement is a nice-to-have feature meaning that if you live in a place where there is a lot of power outages then you will appreciate a night light that continues to light the way long after the power goes out. These night lights have a rechargeable battery inside the unit that continually charges when there is power. When power is cut off, the flashlight portion lights up using the rechargeable battery and stays on for at least an hour.Adequate Lighting
The third requirement for a night light is that it provides adequate lighting. For stairways and hallways, a night light should light up the path instead of act like a mood light. Mood lights or planetarium-type projectors should be restricted to bedrooms or entertainment rooms.If you're looking for the best night light for a stairway or hallway, you may want to find a night light that has all three of these requirements. You will find that some night lights have a motion sensing sensor which I do not recommend. The reason for a night light is to provide adequate lighting to a path at all times. Motion sensing night lights only provide lighting when motion is detected and shut off after a few minutes. This is great for security lights outdoors when you want light up the garden or a dark corridor if someone walks by but not for a night light inside your home. Most motion sensors used in night lights do not provide a wide enough angle meaning that if the path is perpendicular to the placement of the sensor, the night light may fail to work. That's why I don't recommend motion sensing night lights for stairways and hallways.
The night lights I recommend are the following:
1. Rechargeable LED Emergency Flashlight with Power Failure Light and Dusk-to-Dawn sensor - This is the best of the 3 night lights that I have tested. These are reliable and well made. As night lights, they provide adequate lighting to light stairs or a hallway. When the power cuts out, three LED's light up the room or can be unplugged and used as a flashlight.
2. Multi-Function LED light with Power Failure Light and Dusk-to-Dawn sensor (2-pack) - This is the next best choice of the 3 night lights that I have tested. Not as good as the first one listed because it doesn't provide adequate lighting for a stairway or hallway. I had to use 2 of them, one on either side of the hallway to light the path.
3. Night Light with Power Failure Light and Dusk-to-Dawn sensor, 2 USB ports for charging smartphones and connects to Alexa or Apple HomeKit - Upon testing this night light, I found that the app is very confusing. I would still recommend this as a night light because it satisfies the 3 requirements but I would not compare it to a smart device, even if it connects to Alexa or Apple HomeKit.
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Smart Home Solution
The ultimate smart home solution is to use strip lighting such as the 
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to line the stairs or hallway. At sunset, a IFTTT routine powers up the strip lighting. When you approach the stairs or hallway, a motion sensor such as the Philips Hue Indoor Motion Sensor instructs the smart home to brighten the lightstrip so that adequate lighting is provided. When you leave the stairs or hallway, another motion sensor instructs the smart home to dim the lightstrip to a minimum. To implement this solution, you will need the following materials:
ow" target="_blank">Philips Hue lightstrip - Philips Hue Lightstrip
- Philips Hue Smart Hub
- 2 x Philips Motion Sensor
- IFTTT app (free download)
If you're interested in implementing the smart home solution above, please click on the links above to add these items to your cart then email me for detailed instructions.
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