Sunday, November 17, 2019

MiLight - Futlight Device Table

DIY.

I've got a bunch of MiLight / Futlight / MiBoxer LED lamps of different types and versions. Unfortunately the original design of the MiLight lamps and controllers might have been a little lacking in foresight. And documentation is piss-poor.

So I created a little table to see what I have collected over time, the lamps that I have and know about, and what works with what.


Unknown(s)

There are white, dual white, RGB, RGBW, RGBWW, RGB+CCT variants. They have been sold under different names (Limitless Led, Mi-Light, MiLight, MiBoxer, and more) and there have been some copies / clones as well.

Some lamps and controllers only work with certain remote controllers. I used the 2017 catalogue and some old offers on AliExpress to build the table below (click to enlarge):


In JPG format 
In ODS format (can be read by Excel)

Note 1: I marked many items with a question mark. Those are not entirely (or not at all) described in the latest online catalog I could find, and I left out any markers in the columns regarding compatibility unless I was fairly sure. Use at your own risk 😁

Note 2: In no way do I claim that the table above is complete... It was mostly for my own use, but perhaps it can help someone else who's puzzled by the MiLight products.

I still have to dig a little deeper into the iBox1, iBox2, and the newer devices and gateways, and there's no way I'm going to spend any money on collecting the older ones... Perhaps, if I would have a sponsor and 48 hours in a day... and nothing better to do, but if you have some left-overs feel free to send them to me 😁

(Of course, this is all related to / triggered by my own little LED driver enclosure project. Just documenting my way, in case I ever need to find it back.)


Types

Note that each type of lamp / LED controller has its own associated remote control. It's one of the weird things of the MiLight design. It looks like the newer products have a bit more flexibility build into them... But documentation is so poor, it's not funny.


Cold White

One color, cold white (blueish).


Warm White

One color, warm white (yellowish).


Dual White / WW / CCT

Two different white colors (for changing white light color temperature).

Note that Warm White is sometimes abbreviated as WW, and Cold White as CW. This can cause some confusion...


Confusion and warning!

A CW ledstrip is a single color ledstrip in cold white, but a WW ledstrip could be a single color warm white strip, or it could be a dual white ledstrip with two LEDs. If a LED strip claims to be RGBWW you can't be sure if it is a 4 LED or a 5 LED strip. Read the description carefully!

If a controller is called RGBWW it is a 5 LED controller.


RGB

RGB, can mix any color. Note that white may or may not feel right, depending on the LEDs. For better white levels use RGBW or RGBWW.


RBGW

Three LEDs for the color, and an extra LED for white light. White light might be cold or warm, depending on the type of LED used.


RGBWW / RGB+CCT

Three color LEDs, one warm light LED, one cold light LED, this type of unit can handle any color.

I have some 😎 clue what the difference is between RGBWW and RGB+CCT... but you'd better check out some YouTube videos. For controllers it doesn't really matter, the older MiLight controllers were called RGBWW and the newer (identical) ones RGB+CCT. Duh.


Some information (in Dutch) here:
https://www.wifilampkoning.nl/wifilampen-informatie/rgb-rgbw-rgww-of-dual-white/

I worked out the behavior of the older ledstrip controllers here:
https://ninelizardsblog.blogspot.com/2019/11/milight-w-ww-rgb-rgbw-rgbww.html


LS2

For LED strips: it looks like all flavors can be driven by the (configurable) LS2 so you might not need the older types any more (FUT035, FUT036, etcetera).

If you plan to use the older controllers this might help:
https://ninelizardsblog.blogspot.com/2019/11/milight-w-ww-rgb-rgbw-rgbww.html


Discount

Some products appear to be discontinued, or will soon be. Lots of discounts at the moment, so if you need spares, this is the moment to grab them.

Of course, pricing is relative. A discount in NL might be just your average price on AliExpress 😑 Shopping around a bit might help keeping things affordable.


Links

Dutch shops
https://www.milightwinkel.nl/milight-controllers
https://www.wifilampkoning.nl/accessoires/led-strip-controllers/

Futlight Homepage (this is the original manufacturer)
https://www.futlight.com/

Easybulb
http://easybulb.com/en/


And, of course, there are much better explanations and videos on YouTube explaining it all 😅

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