Tuya Smart-Life RGBW Bulb Scene Control: Exact Colour Commands, Firmware, Grouping

User question

what is the solution?

Artificial Intelligence Response

Direct answer to the question

• The only reliable way to force a Tuya / Smart-Life RGB(W) bulb to come on in a precise colour is to send a complete, explicit command sequence for every bulb involved:
  1 Switch = ON → 2 Mode = Colour (RGB) → 3 Colour = desired Hue/Sat (or RGB) → 4 Brightness = desired level.
• Do not omit the “Mode = Colour” step; if the lamp is left in “White” or “Scene” mode it will ignore RGB data or revert to white.

Key points
• Build the scene (“Tap-to-Run” or “Automation”) with four separate actions per lamp in the order above.
• If several lamps are used, repeat the same four actions for each device (or for the group, if the firmware supports grouped mode changes).
• For advanced control (Home Assistant, MQTT, TinyTuya, OpenBeken) send the same parameter block in a single JSON payload.

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Detailed problem analysis

1. Operating states in Tuya RGB(W) lamps
   • Power (dp 20 or 1)  ON / OFF
   • Mode (dp 21 or 2)  white, colour, scene, music
   • Brightness (dp 22 or 3) 0-100 % (or 0-1000 in raw)
   • Colour temperature (dp 23 or 4) 2700-6500 K (white mode only)
   • Colour (dp 24 or 5) Hex-encoded HSV or HSB string (colour mode only)

2. Why colour scenes often fail
   • The phone UI lets you pick a colour, but if Mode remains on its last value (often white) the bulb firmware ignores the incoming RGB string.
   • Tuya’s cloud shrinks a “one-click colour” into a single compressed command, so if any parameter is missing the lamp defaults to previous values.

3. Scene construction inside the Tuya / Smart-Life app
   a) Smart → Tap-to-Run → “Launch Tap-to-Run”.
   b) THEN → Add task → Run the device → Lamp X
   • Switch → ON  (saves the power state)
   • Mode → Colour  (crucial)
   • Colour → pick colour wheel or type RGB/HSV
   • Brightness → set global intensity
   c) Repeat for every lamp (or for a pre-made group).
   d) Save → give scene a name → test.

4. Home Assistant / LocalTuya example (one JSON call)

service: localtuya.set_dp
data:
device_id: 1234567890abcdef
dp: 1
value: true # power
---
service: localtuya.set_dps
data:
device_id: 1234567890abcdef
dps:
20: true # switch
21: "colour" # mode
24: "00ff0000ffff" # Tuya HSB HEX (H,S,V,R,G,B)
22: 255 # brightness (0-255)

5. API / firmware alternatives
   • TinyTuya CLI → tuya-cli set --id --key --dps 21 colour --dps 24 00ff00ffff
   • Flash OpenBeken / Tasmota for full MQTT RGB control (voids warranty).

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Current information and trends (2023-24)

• New Tuya Wi-Fi firmwares (1.0.7+ in WBx chips) tighten cloud packet size; colour + brightness often must be in a single packet—LocalTuya ≥ 5.0 has a helper for this.
• Matter-over-Wi-Fi is arriving on some 2024 Tuya modules; once certified, colour scenes will be exposed as standard Matter “OnOffLight” clusters.
• Tuya’s developer console now documents the “colour_data” JSON field allowing direct HSV or RGB hex input; third-party apps (e.g., Tuya IoT Platform → Cloud Functions) can call it.

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Supporting explanations and details

• HSV vs RGB in Tuya: internally the bulb stores colour as 6-byte HSB hex (HHSSBB, each 0-255). Example for pure orange: FF8032 becomes FF8032FFFF when padded to 6 bytes.
• Brightness duplication: HSB “V” already contains brightness, but most TUYA firmwares still need dp 22 brightness—setting both prevents unpredictable dimming.
• Groups: only lamps with identical firmware types can form a native group that accepts a single colour packet; otherwise send commands per lamp.

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Ethical and legal aspects

• Flashing custom firmware (OpenBeken, Tasmota) violates Tuya’s EULA and may void CE/FCC conformity; keep original binaries and follow RF exposure limits.
• Automations that change colour based on camera or sensor events must respect local privacy laws (GDPR, CCPA).
• Always secure local API keys—Tuya keys allow full device control.

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Practical guidelines

1. Always update bulb firmware first; many early colour bugs (e.g., HSV wrap-around) are fixed in 2023 builds.
2. Test latency: scenes execute sequentially; with >10 lamps consider grouping or a LAN/MQTT broadcast to avoid a “colour wave” effect.
3. For parties use built-in “scene” mode; for photography use “colour” + fixed brightness to avoid PWM flicker.

Potential challenges & mitigation
• 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi congestion → move bulbs to guest SSID or channel 1/6/11.
• Out-of-range colours (deep reds on cheap RGB-only bulbs) → pick lower saturation or upgrade to RGBCCT lamps.

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Possible disclaimers or additional notes

• Exact datapoint numbers vary with OEM firmware; diagnose with TinyTuya -dps scan first.
• Some very low-cost bulbs use 3-channel PWM without separate white LED—colour accuracy is limited and can’t render warm whites while in colour mode.

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Suggestions for further research

• Evaluate new ESP-QCloud Tuya modules that speak Matter-bridge for native HomeKit/Google integration.
• Study “Adaptive Lighting” (Apple) or Circadian-Lighting (HASS) to blend CCT and RGB automatically.
• Follow Tuya Developer docs: “Standard instruction set of lights (dj)” and “Colour Temp Configure” for upcoming extended gamut commands.

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Brief summary

To guarantee a Tuya RGB(W) lamp lights in the exact colour you want, always transmit a full state package: Power ON → Mode Colour → Colour value → Brightness. Implement this either through four explicit tasks per device in the Smart-Life scene editor, or a single JSON packet when using LocalTuya, TinyTuya, MQTT, or custom firmware. Firmware differences, cloud packet limits, and Wi-Fi latency are common pitfalls; staying up-to-date and testing each bulb individually ensures predictable, repeatable colour scenes.

Disclaimer: The responses provided by artificial intelligence (language model) may be inaccurate and misleading. Elektroda is not responsible for the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of the presented information. All responses should be verified by the user.