Running Philips Hue Entertainment with 3rd-party lightbulbs?

Question

I bought this innr light bulb for my Hue system and it works just fine except for the fact that it isn't compatible with Hue Entertainment. As it turns out, no 3rd-party light bulbs are supported by Hue Entertainment (yet).

So I tried the following:

I went into the API Debugger and tried to change the parameters of the light bulb manually, so it gets recognized as a "Philips Hue color capable light". Parameters I tried to change were the modelid and the different capabilities parameters. However, I always got back an error 8 or an error 6:

    "error": {
        "type": 8,
        "address": "/lights/4/capabilities",
        "description": "parameter, /lights/4/capabilities, is not modifiable"

or

    "error": {
        "type": 6,
        "address": "/lights/4/manufacturername",
        "description": "parameter, manufacturername, not available"
    }

My questions are now:

• Is there any technical difference that makes it impossible to use 3rd-party lights with the Hue Entertainment system?

As far as I understand Philips Hue lights communicate over the ZigBee protocol, just like every other Hue compatible light, therefore the communication beetween the bridge and a 3rd-party light shouldn't be a problem. The only difference between original Philips lights and other lights is there brightness and their color range but there isn't any technical barrier that would prevent these lights from working with Philips Hue Entertainment. Am I correct with this?

• Is there any way to make Philips Hue Entertainment work with non-philips lights? (Maybe by manipulating the firmware of the bridge?)

Answer 1

Have you considered replacing the hub with something that can heave more than hue? Something like diyhue?

That may allow you to do both. If you try it, let us know how it goes.

Answer 2

Philips Hue Entertainment is a feature that allows the synchronization of multiple Philips Hue lights to create immersive lighting experiences. It uses a proprietary protocol called Entertainment API to control the lights, which is not publicly available. As a result, third-party lights cannot directly communicate with the Hue Bridge using this protocol, and thus cannot be used with Hue Entertainment.

There are some technical differences between Philips Hue lights and third-party lights that may make them incompatible with Hue Entertainment. For example, third-party lights may not have the same color range or brightness as Philips Hue lights. Additionally, third-party lights may not have the same capabilities or features as Philips Hue lights, such as support for the Entertainment API.

Manipulating the firmware of the bridge could potentially allow for non-Philips lights to work with Hue Entertainment, but it would be a complex process and would likely void the warranty of the bridge. Additionally, it would require a deep understanding of the underlying protocols and software of both the bridge and the third-party lights, which may not be available to the general public.

In conclusion, while it may be technically possible to make non-Philips lights work with Hue Entertainment, it would likely be difficult and may not be a viable solution. But beware that it may also be in violation of the terms of service of the product.