ᐅ Implementing Ceiling Spotlights Control – How to Do It Without a Smart Home

Hello. Unfortunately, we don’t have any smart home technology installed in our house. In the bathroom and kitchen, we have recessed ceiling spotlights. I would like to control these spots using Alexa. There are various options available on the market. Which ones would you recommend in terms of price and performance?

Also, what exactly is the setup? I only have the ceiling outlets for the spotlights. Does each spot require a receiver or something similar? I’m not referring to the home hub. Are there alternatives without a control unit? I don’t have space for one in the ceiling.

Which spotlights do you have, exactly?

So far, none yet. So I can still purchase everything flexibly, including light bulbs and spotlights.

Generally, it’s better to consider the actuator (switch/dimmer) rather than "Alexa-compatible" light bulbs. The only light bulbs that come to mind immediately are those like Hue or Wi-Fi bulbs, with Hue also available as GU10 – but they get very expensive when you need many of them.

The cheapest solution would probably be Shellys, provided you have Wi-Fi. You can connect them behind any push button or switch in the wall, and they come as either switches or dimmers. The bulbs themselves don’t matter much, but if you want dimming, you’ll of course need dimmable bulbs. The Alexa integration works well. I have a Shelly 1, an RGBW, and a dimmer here for testing. They work perfectly once you manage to set them up in the somewhat tricky app. They are quite handy problem solvers if you forgot to plan something in advance.