I made the Varmblixt mirror lamp smart with Tradfri and it was surprisingly easy!
Hi everyone, I thought this might be worth sharing. First and foremost, shoutout to this post from which I drew my inspiration:https://www.reddit.com/r/ikeahacks/comments/1rp3vx2/varmblixt_internal_power_supply/#lightbox
My goal was to integrate the Varmblixt mirror into my Hue system and is triggered by a motion sensor. At first, I simply used a Hue smart plug. However, the mechanical "clicking" sound of the plug turning on and off was super annoying – not to mention the lack of dimmability.
After finding the post mentioned above, I remembered I had an old, grey Tradfri driver laying around (Product No. 503.561.87) that I previously used for cabinet lighting, which I knew definitely works with Hue.
Since the actual light inside the mirror is just a standard 24V DC LED with two wires, and the Tradfri driver outputs 24V DC as well, it perfectly matched. As seen in the second image, I opened the internal connection box of the mirror, released the wires from the proprietary IKEA module (there's a little spring mechanism where you need to put a very thin screwdriver or similar in the opening to release the wire. It's very finicky), and connected them to a stripped Tradfri connection cable seen in image 3 (sacrificial lamp) and 4 (I used Wago terminals which are very common and readily available, at least in Germany).
It works like a charm! Totally silent, fully integrated into Hue, and fully dimmable. It's probably obvious, but I want to emphasize that the original switch / dimmer of the mirror is no longer working (i don't have a picture of it but the original power cable is now hidden behind the mirror). It's just the Hue / Tradfri combo now.
All in all, it took about 30 minutes of effort. If anyone wants to replicate this, here's what I used:
- TRÅDFRI Driver and the accoridng FÖRNIMMA power cable
- A sacrificial connection cable to get the proprietary plug for the driver (I used an old Vaxmyra lamp)
While I cannot assure compatibility, I could imagine that other IKEA smart home products could work as a substitute, like the VÅGDAL cable or the cable from the MITTLED light.
Little bonus side note (though not a hack): The rest of the furniture in the picture is a NORDLI drawer for shoes, mixed with a METOD high cabinet for jackets and stuff. :')