Looking to make your TV setup more colorful? Philips Hue has a new smart lightstrip that will do the job – if you have at least $200 to spare.
The Philips Hue Play is a gradient lightstrip that you stick to the back of your TV. The lights can shift their color, brightness, speed, and intensity in sync with whatever you’re watching. You can also customize their responses via an app.
The lightstrip works with the Philips Hue bridge, which lets you control up to 50 smart lights at once, and the Philips Hue Play HDMI sync box, which syncs lights with content on your screen.
Setting the mood.
Image: COURTESY OF PHILIPS HUE
When movie night is over, Philips Hue lets you keep the ambient lighting the same. With its updated Iris table lamp, you can cast dimmed, colored lights all over the room via Bluetooth or the Hue bridge. If you’re just looking to update your current lamps, it also offer E12 candelabra bulbs, similarly outfitted with Bluetooth but sporting a more vintage vibe.
If you’re looking to complete your smart home with smart lights, then prepare for some steep prices. The Philips Hue Play gradient lightstrip will be available Oct. 16 in three different sizes: 55-inch (fits TVs 55-60 inches) at $199.99; 65-inch (fits TVs 65-70 inches) at $219.99; and 75-inch (fits TVs 75-85 inches) at $239.99. The Iris lamp debuts on Oct. 19 at $99, while the light bulbs come in at $24.99 to $49.99 for a single pack, depending on your color preferences.