Philips Hue Motion Sensor Review

Philips Hue Motion Sensor: Introduction

One of the oldest sensors in the Hue line-up, the Philips Hue Motion Sensor is still one of the best for automated light control, plus it can be added to other systems via Matter to give you basic motion-activated routines.

It’s simple to set up and, inside the Hue app, extremely powerful to get the exact control over your lights that you want, with a few caveats. Should this still be on your list, or should you hand control over to a presence sensor instead? Read on for my full review.

Design and components

• Compact
• Runs off two AAA batteries

As far as motion sensors go, the Philips Hue Motion Sensor is about as expensive as you can get for a fairly straightforward device ($48.99/£40). But you’re not paying for the hardware so much as you are for the tight integration with Hue devices, for which you’ll need a Philips Hue Bridge Pro (or the older model).

The motion sensor is tiny (55 x 30 x 55mm) and weighs just over 6g. It comes with a magnetic mount that needs to be screwed to a ceiling or wall, and then the motion sensor can be attached, pointing at the area you want to cover.

There’s no tilt in the stand, so the motion sensor points straight forward, and can cover a range of up to 5m, with a 100° field of view. I’ve not had any trouble getting the sensor to work in a variety of rooms.

The sensor is powered by two AAA batteries (provided), which should last for between two and three years. I’ve had mine for years and honestly can’t remember when I last had to change the battery.

This is an indoor only model, but you can get the same features in a weatherproof version, with the Philips Hue Outdoor Smart Motion Sensor.

Features

• Needs a Hue Bridge
• Flexible lighting controls
• Can be used in third-party systems

Designed for use within the Hue app, the Philips Hue Motion Sensor controls lights automatically when motion is detected. It’s a lot more flexible than this sounds.

Rather than just a bog-standard setting that’s in operation the entire day, you can set up multiple time slots, with different actions for each. For example, during the day, you might want the lights to turn on with the last saved state; in the evening you might want something cozier; and at night, you may want a dimmed option.

Each time slot also lets you set what to do after motion has not been detected for a period that you set in minutes, such as 10 minutes. The default is to turn off the lights, but you can also return the lights to a previous state.

That’s some quite clever logic, and this is how it works. If you have the lights set to turn off after a period of inactivity, then the motion sensor will only turn the lights on to the scene or mode you set if the lights are off. This stops the motion sensor from overriding a scene that you’ve set manually, which was an issue when the sensor first launched.

Set the lights to return to the previous state, and the motion sensor will always change your lights to the set mode when motion is detected, but after the timeout, your lights will return to the previous setting. 

For example, if you’ve got lights in a hallway, you might want them on a very dim, nightlight setting, but when motion is detected, have them spring up for a few minutes before returning to the nightlight setting.

The Philips Hue Motion Sensor also has a built-in light sensor. Using the slider, it’s possible to adjust when the sensor is active. For example, you probably don’t want lights turning on automatically when it’s very bright, but you do want them to turn on when it gets dim.

The app, usefully, tells you if the sensor would or wouldn’t control lights based on the current reading and where you’ve set the slider. However, it does mean that to set the motion sensor to work when it’s dark, you ideally need to wait until the right level of darkness, and then adjust the slider.

Motion sensitivity can be adjusted, too, if you’re finding that the Philips Hue Motion Sensor either doesn’t work or triggers too frequently.

I should also say that there’s no need to actually have the Philips Hue Motion Sensor turn on lights at all. Instead, you can set it to ‘Do nothing’ when motion is detected, but to turn off lights when there’s no motion for set number of minutes. I do this in my office, manually turning the lights on when I want them, but the Philips Hue Motion Sensor turns off the lights automatically after 10 minutes without motion.

As the Hue system works without an internet connection, the Philips Hue Motion Sensor will keep working even if you don’t have an internet connection. This is one of the reasons that Hue is such a good smart lighting system: it works even if your phone’s dead or the internet is down.

In addition to working in the Hue app, if you add your Bridge to another system, such as Apple Home via Matter, the motion sensor appears there, too. In fact, it appears as two devices: a motion sensor and a light sensor, with the readings in lux.

This makes it possible to automate other devices. For example, I can turn off a fan when there’s no motion for 10 minutes.

Performance

• Accurate motion detection
• Works flawlessly
• Quite basic

I’ve had the motion sensor since launch, and the software has been tweaked, so now the sensor controls lights how you want it to, without risk of overriding a manual setting.

Detection accuracy is very good. My sensor is screwed into the ceiling, and it picks up motion throughout my office with ease, and I’ve not had it trigger by mistake.

The only real downside is that as a basic motion detector, you need to keep moving to stop things turning off. Typing away at my desk, the Philips Hue Motion Sensor isn’t sensitive enough to pick up my hands moving, so I need to make a few more exaggerated movements. That’s generally alright, as turning in my chair or reaching for a cup of coffee provides enough movement.

Even so, as the sensor needs a decent amount of movement to detect presence, I find that it’s best to set a relatively long period without motion (say, 10 minutes) before turning off the lights, as I’ll typically move enough within that period to trigger motion. With a presence sensor, such as the Aqara Presence Multi-Sensor FP300 it’s easier to set a lower no-motion timer, as it detects smaller movements more accurately.

Use in third-party systems is handy, and the Philips Hue Motion Sensor works reliably elsewhere, particularly if you’ve connected a Hue Bridge via Matter. It’s handy having the light sensor for triggering routines, too. Again, I just have to be careful how long I set the no-motion timer for in routines, to avoid things happening just because I’ve sat still for quite a while.

Final thoughts

A presence sensor is more accurate and flexible, but the Philips Hue Motion Sensor is still one of the most useful devices you have if you have a Hue system. With very flexible light control, this sensor can turn your lights on and off, as and when you need them to, and it will even keep working if the internet is down.

It’s useful to be able to add this sensor to other systems, too, giving more flexibility if you just need basic motion detection.

How we test

When we publish our reviews, you can rest assured that they are the result of “living with” long term tests.

Motion sensors usually live within an ecosystem, or a range of products that – supposedly – all work in harmony. And they are designed to offer a range of different cleaning options. Therefore, it’s impossible to use a motion sensor for a week and deliver a verdict.

Because we’re testing smart home kit all day, everyday, we know what matters and how a particular motion sensor compares to alternatives that you might also be considering.

Our reviews are comprehensive, objective and fair and, of course, we are never paid directly to review a device.

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