Product Library / Sensors & Detectors

Philips Hue Motion Sensor (indoor)

Compiled by SmartHomeWorkflow Research · Philips Hue · Sensors & Detectors · ~$48.99 (at time of research — never treated as a live price)

Compatibility

Protocols: ZIGBEE^[1][2][3][4]

Needs before it works: Philips Hue Bridge (required — the official product page states a Bridge is required for the Motion sensor; there is no Bluetooth-only mode for this accessory)^[2][4][5]

What it can do^[9]

Listed capabilities are what we could establish from vendor documentation. An ability missing here is unestablished — not necessarily absent.

Subscription reality

✓ Works without a subscription: Yes.

Vendor account required: Inconclusive — we read the vendor's own setup material and it does not say either way. Treat it as unanswered rather than as a no.^[10]

No subscription for motion/automation functions. (Hue Secure camera plans exist elsewhere in the lineup but do not apply to this sensor.)

Maintenance reality^[2]

• Batteries: AAA (LR03) x2 — expect roughly 24 months per set
• Works without the internet: Yes — the core function runs on the device or your home network. A vendor cloud may still be involved in remote access.^[2]
• Official spec lists 'Minimal battery lifetime 2' years on 'Battery type AAA (LR03)'. ⚠ The cell count is no longer an assumption: the spec block now states 'Batteries included 2 x AAA', which retires this record's previous '(commonly 2, unverified)' caveat — re-read 2026-08-09. ⚠ A trailing sentence describing Alexa and Google exposure as riding Hue's cloud integrations was REMOVED 2026-08-22: no source cited on this record supports it — the Signify spec block this note rests on covers the battery, the IP rating, the accessory cap and the works-with lists, and never mentions cloud — and the same unsupported mechanism had already been taken out of this record's Alexa and Google catches on 2026-08-19. It also read against this record's own 'works without the internet' finding, which comes from that same spec block. Removed rather than re-asserted, and no replacement citation was sought: the absence of support is the finding.
• Security updates: No security-update support date is on record for this model yet. We haven't yet checked whether Philips Hue publishes one, so this is a gap in our research — not a statement about the manufacturer.

The catch

Nothing works without the Hue Bridge — no Bluetooth-only mode exists — and every third-party exposure (HomeKit, Alexa, Google, Matter) flows through the Bridge rather than the sensor itself. One Bridge also caps accessories: Signify's own specification states a maximum of 12, so a house that keeps adding sensors, switches and buttons runs into a ceiling the sensor's own page states but the box does not.

Who it's for

Suits homes already running a Hue Bridge that want light-aware motion automation (with temperature and lux readings) inside the Hue ecosystem or Home Assistant.

Sources & method

Numbered sources below back the facts marked with the matching number above. This is a research profile: compiled from manufacturer documentation, certification registries, and published testing — we state facts, not verdicts, and we have not physically tested this unit. How we work →

1. [1] philips-hue.com/en-us/p/hue-motion-sensor/046677570972 (re-read 2026-08-09): 'Communication protocol: Bluetooth, Zigbee' in the spec table, alongside 'What do I need to use a Hue motion sensor? Both the indoor and outdoor Hue motion sensors require a Hue Bridge-controlled Hue setup, as well as the Hue app.' — vendor-page research, verified 2026-08-09
   Backs: Protocols
2. [2] https://www.philips-hue.com/en-us/p/hue-motion-sensor/046677570972 re-read from RAW MARKUP 2026-08-09 (official product+spec page). Price $48.99 UNCHANGED since 2026-07-16, taken from the page's schema.org Offer ('price': '48.99', availability InStock) rather than from a page-wide grep. Verbatim from the specification block: 'For a Motion sensor a new bridge is required' · 'Battery type AAA (LR03)' · 'Batteries included 2 x AAA' · 'Minimal battery lifetime 2' · 'IP code IP42' · 'Weight 65 g' · 'Max. number of accessories 12 (with Hue Bridge)' · 'EAN/UPC - product 046677570972' · 'Material number (12NC) 929003067502' · 'Compatibility with 3rd party systems: Alexa, Google Home, Apple Home, IFTTT, Klikaanklikuit, Matter, Samsung Smartthings, Sonos' · 'Voice assistants (Hue Bridge required): Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Apple Home, Microsoft Cortana'. — vendor-page research, verified 2026-08-09
   Backs: Price, Protocols, Maintenance, Required hub or bridge, Product identity, Market availability, Service status, Research status, Works without the internet
3. [3] ⚠ CONTROLLED, NOT ASSUMED — 2026-08-09. The specification block on https://www.philips-hue.com/en-us/p/hue-motion-sensor/046677570972 reads 'Communication protocol: Bluetooth, Zigbee'. It was NOT taken at face value, because that same table carries sections headed 'The bulb' and 'The switch' on a motion-sensor page and therefore renders family-level template fields rather than this accessory's own radios. Two controls, both against Signify's own words: (1) the page itself states 'For a Motion sensor a new bridge is required', which a Bluetooth-capable Hue accessory would not; (2) Signify's Bridge-free guidance at https://www.philips-hue.com/en-us/explore-hue/faq/controls/how-to-connect-philips-hue-without-a-bridge compares the two paths in a table — 'Without Hue Bridge (Bluetooth): Up to 10 lights per control source' versus 'With Hue Bridge (Zigbee/Matter): Up to 50 lights + 12 accessories' — so ACCESSORIES exist only on the Zigbee/Bridge side, and Bluetooth is described throughout as a bulb feature ('Many newer Hue bulbs include Bluetooth connectivity'). `bluetooth` is therefore deliberately NOT added to this record's protocols. Adding a radio a device does not have is the nest-learning-thermostat-4 error, and this is the same shape as the Aqara FP2 cross-sell finding of 2026-08-08. — vendor-page research, verified 2026-08-09
   Backs: Protocols
4. [4] philips-hue.com/en-us/explore-hue/works-with/matter (official Matter page) — vendor-page research, verified 2026-07-16
   Backs: Protocols, Required hub or bridge
5. [5] home-assistant.io/integrations/hue/ (official HA docs) — official-docs research, verified 2026-08-19
   Backs: Required hub or bridge, Home Assistant compatibility
6. [6] community.smartthings.com/t/hue-motion-sensor-brightness-and-temperature/305338 — community corroboration, verified 2026-07-16
7. [7] Signify's Philips Hue product spec sheet for this model and philips-hue.com/en-us/explore-hue/works-with/matter — both already cited on this record or on the `hue-bridge-matter` integration rule attached to it — evidence read against sources this record already cites (BQ-193 bridge-vs-hub audit, R-3), verified 2026-08-19
   Backs: SmartThings compatibility
8. [8] philips-hue.com/en-us/p/hue-motion-sensor/046677570972 (read 2026-08-19), verbatim: 'Voice assistants (Hue Bridge required): Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Apple Home, Microsoft Cortana' · compatibility with 3rd party systems: 'Alexa, Google Home, Apple Home, IFTTT, Klikaanklikuit, Matter, Samsung Smartthings, Sonos' · 'For a Motion sensor a bridge is required'. — vendor-page research, verified 2026-08-19
   Backs: Amazon Alexa compatibility, Google Home compatibility, Apple Home compatibility, SmartThings compatibility
9. [9] Home Assistant's Hue integration documentation, read 2026-08-20, which states the integration supports "Motion sensors (including temperature and light level sensors)" — an ecosystem integration doc enumerating what the accessory exposes, with the Hue Bridge as the path. The same page notes Hue remotes and switches are usable "as device triggers for automations". — vendor-and-ecosystem-doc research (BQ-187 capabilities population, batch 8 — sensors + garage-access), verified 2026-08-20
   Backs: Capabilities
10. [10] Philips Hue's own setup guide "How to set up a Hue motion sensor", read 2026-08-21. Unlike the sibling smart-button guide, which publishes both a "Connect with a Bridge" and a "Connect without a Bridge" tab, this page offers ONE route: "Connect with a Bridge — Your Bridge should be connected and added to your Hue app. Haven't done that yet? Learn how to set up the Bridge. 1. Open the Hue app… 4. Scan the QR code." No sign-in step appears in it. Signify's Matter topic (https://www.philips-hue.com/en-us/support/topic/matter/100024) closes the other door explicitly: "All Philips Hue lights and smart accessories, such as dimmer switches and smart buttons, will work with Matter if connected via the Hue Bridge." — vendor-page research, verified 2026-08-21
    Backs: Vendor account required
11. [11] A cloud-mechanism clause was REMOVED from maintenance.notes on 2026-08-22: "Local control via Bridge; Alexa/Google exposure rides Hue's cloud integrations." No source on this record supports it. The Signify spec block behind that note covers battery type, IP rating, accessory cap and the two works-with lists, and never mentions cloud. The same mechanism had already been taken out of the Alexa and Google catches on 2026-08-19 (BQ-206 records half, PR #972); this was the third location on the same record and the fix did not sweep it. It also read against this record's own finding, drawn from that same entry, that the core function runs without the internet — a reader saw both statements on one page. The supported half ("Local control via Bridge") went with it as redundant: localOperation renders its own line. No replacement citation was sought, because the absence of support is the finding. — claim withdrawn at source; no page fetched, verified 2026-08-22

Compatibility and lifecycle information reflects the last-verified date above and can change without notice (firmware updates, cloud-service changes, discontinuations). It is provided as-is, for information — verify with the manufacturer before purchasing. Spot an error? Tell us and we'll fix it. Full terms: Terms of Service.

Check it against YOUR setup →