If you're comfortable shutting off the power in your home, using a voltage tester and swapping out electrical outlets and switches, you shouldn't have a problem installing the Brilliant controller. Brilliant also goes beyond competitors like Belkin and Lutron by adding the option to control a lot of other smart home gear. Should the assistant become too intrusive, you can adjust Alexa's sensitivity and volume. Closing argument: The Brilliant Smart Home Control Panel was created for folks like me who are buried in dozens of smartphone apps and who are looking for a better, more streamlined, all-in-one solution for managing and controlling their smart home devices. You don’t need to be a smart home expert to use the Brilliant Smart Home System. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io, Caraway Cookware Is Both Functional and Pretty, Great Jones' Holy Sheet Pan Has Changed How I Cook, Sunbeam's Heated Blanket Is a Winter Essential, This Lazy Susan Is a Must-Have for All Weed Lovers, I Tried Glerups' Stylish and Comfy Felt Slippers, We Love Wild One’s Everyday Pet Essentials, Swoosh Away Dirt With This Magnetic Window Cleaner, This Chic Dutch Oven Is a Home Chef’s Dream, These Gaia Elderberry Gummies Boost My Immunity. As much as I loved having a one-stop shop for adjusting my Nest thermostat, turning off lights in specific rooms, and being able to skip songs without fishing my phone out of my pocket, as convenient as it is, the Brilliant control panel doesn’t seem all that revolutionary given its steep price point. Plus, it'll please HomeKit users, as the Brilliant controller is among the best Apple HomeKit products. In our I Tried It series, we set out to use them in the real world and have determined that, in fact, they really do. Smart switches are functional, but let's be honest, they're also kinda boring. Today's best Brilliant Smart Home Controller deals, We check over 130 million products every day for the best prices, Best Smart Light Switch - Reviews of Wi-Fi Connected, Best Smart Plugs - WiFi Outlets That Make 'Dumb' Devices Smart, Samsung Galaxy S21: 7 biggest upgrades to expect, How to watch The Bachelor 2021 live without cable. Tom's Guide is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Should Brilliant keep adding support for more connected hardware, its controller will truly live up to its name. The company says support for Nest and other devices will be forthcoming, though it didn't offer a time frame. When you're away from home, you cannot turn your Sonos music on and off using the smart-phone app. I Tried It: Testing Products in the Real World, Why Your Home Needs These Smart Lightbulbs, A Smart Display Is Essential for a Connected Home, It’s Time You Had a Smart Speaker in Your Life, 8 Keyless Smart Locks for Fortifying Your Home, 7 Best Smart Lamps for Easy Illumination Anywhere. 6 Best Peloton Alternatives That Are Just as Good, The Best Fleece-Lined Leggings for the Winter, The Best Juice Cleanses for a Total-Body Detox, 100 Fitness Essentials for a Healthier You, Achieve Your Goals With the Best Fitness Tracker, This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. Device sharing: One tap to share devices among family members 5. Brilliant has added a more affordable smart dimmer switch to its home system for smaller rooms and spaces. Does it make things easier? My biggest complaint about Brilliant is its expensive asking price. One additional feature: The Alexa weather skill also displayed my location and the three-day forecast on the Brilliant screen. All of which works to justify the single-switch controller's seemingly steep $299 price. Whether you have a full-blown smart home or you just started dabbling in home automation, chances are, you have a cluttered folder on your smartphone with several apps from all of the past smart home devices you’ve installed. Brilliant lets you combine your lighting, music, temperature, and other settings to quickly control your smart home with a tap, a voice command, or simply by walking into a room. The price goes up with the number of switches you want on the unit. The Brilliant panel also works with a wide range of smart home systems, such as Alexa, Google Assistant, HomeKit, Ring, August, Ecobee, Honeywell, Sonos, Philips Hue, and Genie. The vast majority of smart light switches can control one thing — your lights. Do not confuse this brand with Brilliant Smart home controllers (US-based) and many devices advertising Brilliant smart XYZ. It's a handy feature I used to trigger a light at the top of  the stairs where I usually have to fumble for the switch. Why trust us? Brilliant isn’t just smart, it’s brilliant. The Brilliant Control ($299) is a unique wall switch that uses Wi-Fi to connect to and control various smart devices in your home. On Trial: Brilliant Smart Home Control Panel. Its motion sensor is invaluable, and its display makes it easy for other family members to use it without you having to provide continual tech support. MORE: Best Smart Light Switch - Reviews of Wi-Fi Connected. I also have smart lightbulbs in my bedroom lamps, meaning that if I accidentally left the lights on, I could turn them off from the hallway using the Brilliant switch. Still, for less expensive options be sure to check out our best smart light switches page. Smart control panels are pricey, and the same goes for the Brilliant Smart Home Control. So I had to add the supplied extensions that used thinner gauge wires. For those who find cameras lurking inside the home creepy, Brilliant was smart enough to provide a feature we wish was a part of every webcam: a physical sliding cover to prevent anyone from spying on you. They now sync their own scenes within Alexa when you connect your account using the home skill. © Since the Brilliant controller replaces a light switch, it's first and foremost a really intelligent light switch. That means I can use both Alexa routines and Brilliant Scenes within Alexa. In my case, the heavy-gauge copper wiring in my house didn't fit securely into the screw-in connection points on the back of the Brilliant controller. Visit our corporate site. The Best Smart Home Devices for 2021. Finally, its smart design includes a motion sensor to turn lights on and off, which, like your other smart home devices, will save you more money the longer you use it. That’s a decent start, but much more is needed. In addition to the touch-screen-only model I tested, Brilliant also makes a controller with the touch screen and two touch-sensitive slider controls for $349. Follow BestProducts.com on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter , and Pinterest! Similarly, the video intercom  works only between Brilliant switches within your home. However, the biggest difference here is that the Home Control includes a 5-inch LCD touchscreen display as well as convenient physical controls on multi-pole variants. And you can add any skills you've already enabled by simply linking Brilliant to your Alexa account. The control panel is available in six colors to seamlessly blend with your home decor. There was a problem. Brilliant Smart Home Review: My Setup, Scenes, and Smart Home Integration. It was not compatible with cameras like Piper or a raft of other connected devices, such as garage door openers, door locks and water sensors. What I liked most about the Brilliant, though, was using it as a digital photo frame. In the meantime, Google Home (works with August, Ring and SkyBell) and Alexa (works with Ring, Nest and SkyBell) are leading the way, giving you the chance to ask your home device who is at the door. Most recently, Brilliant added support to control an internet-connected garage door opener, but you can find a full list of compatible products on their website. It's a familiar process to anyone who has set up a Nest or similar smart-home device. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links. It lacks the volume levels and clarity to play music satisfactorily. Simultaneously control: control multiple devices with one App 3. The process is quick and efficient. Engaged on Brilliant Smart support forum on Facebook to clarify this and was blocked by them, accused by their staff of lying and defaming them on social media (publicly - then all comments including mine subsequently deleted), they then denied I was told this despite me being given names of their warranty manager who I could “escalate” it to regarding costs for the reinstallation. Brandon Carte has been the technology editor at BestProducts.com since 2017, where he's been covering the latest gadgets and scouring the internet for the greatest deals; His tech reporting has been featured on TopTenReviews.com and USA Today. That effectively doubled the amount of wiring that had to be tucked back inside the switch's electrical box, making it difficult to pack it back into the wall. Brilliant supplies a preprogrammed set of photos, including shots of landscapes and puppy dogs, but you can upload your own photos from your phone if you prefer. Brilliant works with some of the more popular smart home devices on the market, including Sonos, Ring, Hue, SmartThings, Ecobee, Schlage smart locks, and more. Then Brilliant scans for Wi-Fi networks, you pick the correct one and supply the password and add names to the device location and place (room). For the moment, it's not terribly flexible, however, given the limited number of compatible products. Use Brilliant to control your smart lights, doorbell, lock, thermostat, and more. New York, It's a convenient option if you don't want the LCD screen on all the time. You also can trigger all the usual Alexa skills, such as setting an alarm or asking for the weather forecast or the latest news from the BBC. Although the Brilliant control panel does what it says it does, $300 is an expensive cost of entry for such a specific use. The Brilliant controller can be operated without a smartphone, for example. Please refresh the page and try again. This All-in-One Brilliant Smart Home Control can help you simplify all your smart home products into one app, but is it worth $299? After the wiring is done, you sign up for an account, validate the controller online and link it to an email address so that settings can be backed up. I didn’t have any issues linking my Sonos speakers to the Brilliant ecosystem. The gadget starts at a whopping $300. Connect wires directly to base unit or to wires which are connected to base. These sliders can be used to dim lights, or be configured to raise and lower the volume of a connected speaker. "In most cases" is the pivotal phrase here. But that means that anytime I say “Alexa” the Brilliant would cheekily respond “You are not logged into Amazon,” which got annoying quickly. Brilliant can also act as motion-triggered night light so that you don't stumble around in the dark. If you buy something from the links on this page, we may earn a commission. By Dave Moore / October 23, 2019 October 23, 2019 / Reviews / Home Automation, smart home / Leave a Comment. BTW – I noticed some stores use two words Brilliant Smart and some list under Brilliant Lighting. But it supports only a few products so far. Even though the Brilliant looks like a smartphone, there aren’t any apps, so I couldn’t type in “The Rolling Stones” from its touchscreen to play the Stones. A company called Brilliant hopes to end all of your smart home woes with its Brilliant Control, a smart home control panel that aims to make interacting with all of your smart home devices simpler and more streamlined. The best smart switches and dimmers: Lighting is the foundation of the smart home In-wall smart lighting controls bring convenience, security, luxury, and sophistication into your home. We just wish Brilliant had the intellect to control more than a handful of devices. (No subscription is required.) Also available are panels with three sliders ($399) and four sliders ($449). But what if that switch could control everything in your home? The Brilliant Control Panel, which looks like a tiny smartphone display, replaces your existing light switch to give users touch and voice control over their smart home, without the need to juggle dozens of apps on a smartphone or tablet. As of this review, Brilliant can work with Ring, Sonos, Philips Hue, Google Assistant, Alexa, SmartThings, Ecobee and Honeywell Lyric smart-home devices. All you need is access to a circuit box and a neutral wire. You can't use the feature to Skype friends on the other side of the planet the way you would with an Echo speaker. English:Brilliant Smart 1. In addition to providing Amazon Alexa services when connected to … Smart. Smart doorbells are still quite new but as we start to embrace the smart around our home, it is only matter of time before all the big-name home assist devices hook up with smart doorbell tech. So, rather than stringing one into the back of the Brilliant switch, those wires had to be ganged together and a white extension wire added to reach the Brilliant connection — something not covered in the instructions. Read honest and unbiased product reviews from our users. Absolutely! If you have multiple Brilliant Control Panels installed throughout your home, you can use them as a video intercom system, which would be convenient for owners of large homes. Brilliant competes with a wide variety of rival products, ranging from Amazon's Echo to Samsung's SmartThings hub. Now on to the actual smart home skill review: - Alexa on Brilliant continues to get better each month! Its design and overall approach provides many advantages over competing smart speakers and dedicated hubs. Although the Brilliant's tiny built-in speaker is sufficient for spoken programs like the news summary, it is not intended to be a substitute for a Sonos speaker. There is an integrated privacy shutter that keeps the camera blocked when the camera is not in use. The Brilliant panel is a simple computer, rather than an upgraded smart switch. Brilliant has a built-in motion detector that can be enabled to turn on the lights automatically and then turn them off after 5 minutes of inactivity. You will receive a verification email shortly. But while it promises to deliver easy access to your smart-home gadgets, the Brilliant remains in a nascent stage. NY 10036. Brilliant’s smart-home controller obeys Alexa commands and adds its own motion sensor and in-home video intercom to the mix. Now everyone at home—spouses, kids, family, friends and guests—can easily enjoy all the benefits of living in a smart home. So you can turn lights on or off with your voice, for example. The panel also has Alexa built in, so you might not even need to tap the Brilliant if you so choose. After being targeted by Brilliant’s flashy Instagram ads for weeks, I set out to test its smart home system to see if it was — ahem — as brilliant as it seemed. Smart lights can be the most magical part of any smart home, but for some people smart bulb s aren't practical.We instead have to turn to smart switches to get our smart light game on. For example, I found that there were three (unused) white neutral wires in my existing switch. I don’t consider myself an electrician by any means, and I was able to install the Brilliant Control without a hitch. With the tangle of smart devices that are running unchecked through your home, the Brilliant … Brilliant’s smart home controllers provide an alternative. Brilliant's list of compatible devices is very short, however, and so far, it  works with only two other smart systems, Ring and SmartThings. Brilliant unites all your favorite smart home devices together in one simple to use control, and helps them work better together. The Tester: Brandon Carte, gadget-obsessed editor who is overwhelmed with smart home apps. Depending on whether you have one, two, three or four switches, installation time will vary. If you've got favorites listed in your Sonos app, they will also appear on the Brilliant screen. It took me about 20 minutes to remove my existing single switch and replace it with the 5-inch Brilliant touch screen. Brilliant Control review: Impressive blend of switch and smart home controller, but there’s room for improvement Still using toggles to turn on the lights? You’re able to control music playback and adjust volume from the panel, but Brilliant unfortunately, does not let you browse music that’s uploaded on streaming music apps like Spotify. The Brilliant Control Panel, which looks like a tiny smartphone display, replaces your existing light switch to give users touch and voice control over their smart home, without the need to juggle dozens of apps on a smartphone or tablet.The control panel is available in six colors to seamlessly blend with your home decor. We review four BrilliantSmart devices from a comprehensive range of products (all are smart, Wi-Fi-connected) Conversely, you can use it as digital picture frame, displaying a slideshow of meditative photos. The Brilliant panel has a 5-inch touch-screen display that connects to a home network over Wi-Fi and can then control a variety of smart-home devices like a Sonos sound system, Ecobee and Honeywell Lyric thermostats or Philips Hue lights. While Brilliant's  supplied instructions are adequate for helping you  connect the wires in different configurations, including those with dimmer switches, some additional, online help to cover more unusual situations might be appreciated. It's also one of the best Apple HomeKit products. The Best Amazon Tech Products You Can Buy, 20+ Smart Home Devices for Living a Connected Life, Find Out Which Amazon Echo Is Best for Your Smart Home. There is a lot to like about the Brilliant controller. Future US, Inc. 11 West 42nd Street, 15th Floor, If you’re tired of controlling all your smart home devices with your phone, Brilliant is worth considering. Whether you're looking for a connected light bulb, security camera, or thermostat, start with the best smart home devices we've tested for every room in … The new smart home control panel that’s designed to replace a light switch looks amazing and works effortlessly. Once the Brilliant controller is connected to your Wi-Fi network, it will try to suss out compatible devices. Credit: Nicole Gray I’ll be upfront and say Brilliant’s smart home controllers are, well, brilliant. Setting up music control was a simple matter. However, none of the competition offers as many hardware features, such as a touch-screen home controller, motion sensor and video camera, as Brilliant. It does, however, integrate with SmartThings, so once I linked my Lutron lights to SmartThings, I was finally able to control and dim all of my lights using the switch. If not, you simply add favorites — say, your top Pandora stations — to the Sonos favorites list and they will automatically appear on the Brilliant screen. That’s the value of having a touchscreen on your wall and smart lighting. It had no trouble finding Honeywell and Sonos devices, for example, in my test house. The Brilliant Control ($299) is a unique wall switch that uses Wi-Fi to connect to and control various smart devices in your home. The Brief: Although smart homes are designed to make your life easier, they come with their fair share of headaches, especially when it comes to setting new devices up and managing them all with your smartphone. I chose not to set up the Alexa functionality since I have an Alexa speaker in my office. Brilliant does note that the controller will not work with some unusual dimming switch configurations, but in most homes, you should be able to find a switch where the controller will work. The Brilliant app will even allow you to center and crop the photos to fit the vertical screen of the controller. Timer: set timer to perform multiple functions 4. Brilliant also has Amazon Alexa built in, which is good if you don’t have Alexa in your home already. At its core, the Brilliant Home Control acts just like any other smart light switch, with remote control capabilities, dimming, and smart home integration. Thank you for signing up to Tom's Guide. MORE: Best Smart Plugs - WiFi Outlets That Make 'Dumb' Devices Smart. The Brilliant smart home controller obeys Alexa commands and adds its own motion sensor and in-home video intercom to the mix. Better still, Brilliant comes with Amazon Alexa services built in; no need for a Dot or Echo. The app lets you upload photo albums so you can always have a miniature slideshow playing on your wall. However, you can access and adjust other devices, such as lighting and heating. Thanks to the large touchscreen display and smart device integrations, Brilliant is one of the most approachable smart home controllers on the market today. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. 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