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The best intelligent start buttons for automation, controls, routines and more
Press the button and make your smart home work for you
Intelligent start buttons are a big thing now. He may think that, as we move away from remote controls, switches and applications to a voice -controlled smart home, he would not need another physical controller at home.
However, the brilliance of the best intelligent home buttons is found in its simplicity and multifunctionality in a single press.
Of course, you can light the light of your room with your wall switch as your grandfather used to; But can that switch also turn off any light that may have left on the ground floor, turn on all your safety cameras, configure your alarm and tune in some sleeping sounds on your smart speaker? It cannot.
Unless it is an intelligent light switch, of course, but that is a different story.
That’s where the current harvest of smart buttons enter. With a simple touch, double touch or long press (or maybe a turn), you can activate a variety of intelligent start scenes and automation.
Of course, you can ask Alexa or the Google assistant to start these routines and control their smart devices, but sometimes it is much easier to press a button, especially because you can strategically place them (and move them) to the house where they will be more useful.
In addition, many smart buttons, including Hue and FLIC tastes, can even act as triggers for Home Smart routines and automation within its Smart Home ecosystem chosen today.
Keep reading for more information …
Smart buttons: what to consider before buying
Smart buttons are still a rather new idea, and the market is not exactly exploding in seams with options. However, even if they come to the party, they really will not do much more than the current offer can.
Once you go beyond a button that offers some scenes with the touch of a button, enter the scope of a remote control, and that would be losing the point.
But brands like FLIC are following this by intelligently integrating additional controls such as turns and even gestures.
However, what you should consider is what intelligent starting devices and platforms is the smart button you are thinking of buying taps (see what I did there?).
Do you support Homekit scenes? Can you start a Alexa routine? Will you integrate with how your smart home is already executed? Will you provide key control for your most important intelligent device?
We detail some of these factors in each entry next, and you can look for more information from each manufacturer. We have lived with the previous examples for a while, and simply work.
You will almost never click (or double, or triple, or long press) will go unnoticed and, on the strange occasion, this happens, no button is below more guilty than any other bad behavior; We find that they are a lot to par when it came to reliability.
The best 2025 smart buttons
These are our choices for the best smart buttons you can use in your smart home, whether you are trying to control a single device, or you are looking to configure more involved routines and systems.
The best general intelligent start button: Flic 2
Flic has been in the smarter button game than the majority: first he launched in Indiegogo in 2014, breaking its target of $ 80,000 and raising almost $ 1 million. Flic 2, which also began its life as a crowdfunding campaign, is easily the smart button more similar to the button, which weighs less than 10 g.
The first -generation FLIC system was excellent and the sequel is even better. The range of technology with which it is compatible is enormous: the most prominent aspects include Hue, LIFX, Sonos, Ecobee, Ikea Trådfri, Wemo and much more, and the spaces can be filled with controls and recipes of Harmony Logitech and Logitech too.
Like the (now discontinued) Logitech Pop, it is a simple, two or long touch control method.
Flic allows you, quite easily, programming routines and actions as simple or complicated as you. The hard bit is to remember exactly what each press of each button does.
The application is also full of ‘fun’ (that is, Naff games) and extras; The most useful is the function of “finding my phone” that reproduces a strong alarm through the FLIC application on your smartphone. It is also compatible with a series of physical conditioning platforms: you can start and stop a Strava execution with it, for example. It even comes with a small belt clip so you can use it.
It is much cheaper than some of its rivals, since you do not need to disburse for a center: you can simply use your phone as a gateway.
Now, that has its defects, of course, you must allow the application to run at all times and only work if it is in the Bluetooth range of your phone, and that is why Flic offers a center to combine with Flic buttons (from $ 100 / £ 100).
The Flic Smart Home button also has a massive weapon in its arsenal: it can act as a trigger for Alexa’s routines.
You can create a morning routine that, after clicking on the FLIC button, read the news of an ECO program, tells you what is at your time, turn off the smart security alarm and turn on a smart plug in the kitchen to take The Maker coffee lit.
While we have highlighted the FLIC 2 here due to its simplicity, it is possible that you also want to consider the surprising turn of FLIC, which adds a dial on the smart button to expand the number of entries that you can program.
Turning a dial is much more intuitive and natural for certain control behaviors; Think about light attenuation, volume adjustment, blind and similar positions.
And then there is the next FLIC duo, the last current intelligent controller of Labs.
The duo is not simply a double UP of a normal FLIC button. If you separate it from your magnetic mount, you can unlock a completely new world of possibilities.
The blows, rotations and other gestures transform it into a complete remote control for your smart home.
Regardless of what you choose, the ecosystem and the integrations are the same and the centers work with all the buttons offered.
What we love
- Compact design
- Alexa’s routine trigger
- Works without a center
- Extras fun in abundance
What we don’t love
- The application can be a bit scratched
- Hub costs extra
THE BEST FOR PHILIPS HUE: Philips Hue Smart button
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The smart button of Philips HU is the latest incorporation into the range of increasingly growing accessories of signify. Paste anywhere to control the lights in a room, area or the whole house, and observe while intelligently adjusts those based on the day.
Less than $ 20, the smart button is the least expensive option to mean to control its tone lights outside voice control or application. The button is preprogrammed to turn on the lights selected in an appropriate shine/lighting scene depending on the time of day, with 5 schedules.
All this is customizable, but very well works immediately, without the need for programming or scene creation to advance.
However, it is not just tone controls: it can synchronize the button with its homekit configuration, where it can function as an intelligent button to control any homekit connected device. The best case of use for Homekit is to activate a homekit scene, but there are better smart buttons options if it is looking for, such as the Eva button that we have listed in this guide.
Although it does not play well with other bulbs, it requires the tone bridge and only has limited control when combined with homekit, it is a great addition to anyone inverted in the egg ecosystem that seeks a simple and economical way to control the lights In a room.
Like FLIC, the intelligent egg buttons can now act as triggers within a Smart Alexa domestic system. You can configure them to start a Alexa routine within the Alexa application, as is the FLIC 2 button.
In addition, just like the FLIC turn, there is the option to go bigger with the Dial Hue Tap, but it is venturing in the Smart Switch territory there, instead of an intelligent button.
What we love
- Native of tone
- Skilled design
- At a good price
What we don’t love
- Homekit Limited
- Needs the egg bridge
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The best smart button for the Homekit button: Eve
Unlike the smart and logitech smart buttons, the Eve button does not allow you to specify individual intelligent technological devices, or add multiple devices to a touch control; It is based on homekit to do heavy job.
Living within the EFE application, which is essentially the Apple start application with different clothes (you can actually make all the configuration within the start application, in fact), its individual, double or long press options are reserved to begin Homekit scenes, and nothing else.
Now, although that sounds a bit restrictive compared to its rivals, if you live in a smart home controlled by the Apple ecosystem, then it is actually a great configuration. Of course, if you only want to activate or deactivate a single intelligent light, it is a bit a bit fafo to establish a local scene for that basic control but, for chains of more advanced events, it certainly makes sense.
If you have an Apple Homekit Hub dedicated, that is, a Homepod or an Apple TV, then the EVA button will work without defect at home without problems.
However, if you are only feeding your smart home using the iOS Home application on your iPhone, you will need that phone located nearby so that things work.
As for the design, the eve is the most voluminous beast of the group, although the anodized aluminum finish is more premium than the tone and construction of FLIC plastic.
As it is only Bluetooth that feeds the show, the battery life is always that the DURE coins battery (that is, a long time) so that it does not need to bother to load it.
What we love
- Homekit compatibility
- Flexible uses
- Long battery life
What we don’t love
- Homekit restrictions
- Slightly involved configuration
- Slightly bulky
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The best for Z-Wave systems: fibaro the button
The fibaro button may seem like a panic alarm, because it is, but it is also an intelligent battery button that brings multiple control options to its smart home.
Compatible with any Z-Wave or Z-Wave Plus controller, such as Smartthings Hub or a Pro Homey Pro, and will allow you to administer a multitude of devices and activate scenes with a simple press, and not just Z-Wave devices.
The button recognizes up to six different actions, ranging from one to five clicks, as well as holding the button, which allows you to control several devices or start complex scenes effortlessly.
Its design means that you can mount it practically anywhere, next to your bed, under a desk, or you can even take it with you.
Promoted by an ER14250 battery, the button has an estimated battery duration of up to two years in the predetermined configuration with typical use.
In panic mode, each press can activate an emergency scene, so it is a valuable tool to alert household members during urgent situations.
It is available in black, white, red, green, blue, yellow, orange and brown, and there is also a homekit version too.
What we love
- Recognize multiple press patterns for diverse control
- Many color options
- Long battery life reduces maintenance
- Panic mode adds an additional security layer
What we don’t love
- Requires a Z-Wave controller for the operation
- It lacks native support for ecosystems that are not Z waves
- Not exactly discreet
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Smart value button: Tapo smart button
The Smart Tapo button is an affordable option for anyone who wants to add simple and customizable controls to their smart home, even if it is an intelligent home full of tapo devices.
The track is in the name … from the tapo range of TP-Link, it is designed to function without problems with other Tapo devices, so it is an excellent option if it already has plugs, lights or intelligent cameras of Tapo.
Like most smart buttons, it is compatible with a single pressure, double pressing and long actions, so it can assign multiple functions to a single button.
The button is small and with battery, so you can place it anywhere and use a patented wireless protocol of ultra -low power, which works at 868 MHz or 922 MHz, for quick and reliable responses.
But like many devices that use proprietary protocols, it requires a compatible tapo center: it cannot speak directly with its Wi-Fi plugs and bulbs.
That is something to take into account if it is starting from scratch, although Hub adds additional functionality such as local control and improved reliability compared to the Wi-Fi buttons.
While it is ideal for the basic control of the smart home, it lacks the deepest integrations of more complete options such as FLIC 2.
Nor does it work natively with Apple Homekit, which can be a decisive factor for some.
However, if you are looking for an intelligent economic and reliable button that works well inside the Tapo ecosystem, it is a decent option.
What we love
- Economic and reliable
- Admits multiple press actions
- Compact and battery
- Wireless ultra -low power protocol for fast responses
What we don’t love
- Requires a tapo center
- There is no native homekit support
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The best for the garden: Senic Friends of Hue Outdoor Switch
Senic’s Outdoor Switch is the first beloved Smart Switch created for outdoor use; But technically it is not an intelligent light switch: it is much more an intelligent button.
There is no need to connect it to wiring or wear screws, there are sticky pads in the box and I had mine stuck in a wall rendered for weeks and has remained in its place without problems.
You can, if you want a little more tranquility, remove the rear cover plate and secure it safely to the wall. The switch then appears on this base.
There is no battery; The Senich is driven by the Energy Energy Collection Technology: the movement of the button that is pressed (and bouncing) maintains the topped power.
To configure, simply use the ECP application and add the Senic switch outdoors as an accessory. The four buttons configuration offers a basic but effective control method for its tone bulbs. When configuring in the Hue application, you simply choose what you want to happen when each button is pressed or pressed.
Therefore, there are 8 entries in total, but you can extend this to 12 using third -party tone applications such as IConnecthue, which adds a double touch to the equation.
The outdoor switch is also compatible with Homekit and this opens a world of additional controls such as smart speakers, heating and more.
Essentially, you can schedule Senic to do almost anything at your homekit home, in terms of controls, automation and scenes, although, unlike a hue configuration, it is limited to only four buttons; There is no retention method within the use of homekit.
What we love
- Super simple installation
- Weatherproof
- Great for tone
- There is no need for a battery
- Extra homekit smarts
What we don’t love
- Needs a bridge
- Homekit Controls is only 4 buttons
Frequent questions
Smart buttons vary in their compatibility. Some, such as the smart button Philips Hue, are designed for specific ecosystems (in this case, Hue). Others, such as FLIC 2, offer a broader compatibility through integrations with platforms such as IFTTT, Alexa Routines and Google Assistant. Always verify the specifications of the smart button that you are considering ensuring that it works with its existing smart house configuration.
Whether or not it needs a center depends on the specific smart button and its ecosystem. Some buttons, such as FLIC 2, can work directly with their smartphone through Bluetooth, although an enlarged range and reliability concentrator is recommended. Others, such as the smart button of the tone, require a bridge (in this case, the bridge of tone) to work. Be sure to verify the product description to confirm the requirements of the HUB.
Most smart buttons work with battery, they usually use coins cell batteries. The battery life varies according to the use and the specific button, but in general, you can wait several months or even a year or more use before you need to replace the battery. Some smart buttons, such as Senic Outdoor Switch, use energy collection technology and do not require batteries at all.
While both provide physical controls for their smart home, smart buttons and smart switches have different purposes. The smart switches replace their existing light switches and directly control the wiring of their lights. Smart buttons, on the other hand, are usually wireless and can be placed anywhere. They act as triggers for scenes and automation, controlling a broader range of smart devices beyond the lights. Smart buttons offer more flexibility in location and functionality, while smart switches provide more traditional control mounted on the wall for lighting.