Smart Lighting: Illuminate Your Home the Intelligent Way

Ready to step into the future of home lighting? Upgrading to smart bulbs is a fantastic and relatively simple way to begin transforming your house into a smart home. These intelligent lights offer a range of features that traditional bulbs simply can’t match, from remote control and customized schedules to color adjustments and more.

Beyond basic smart bulbs, the world of smart lighting extends to encompass string lights, light strips, wall and ceiling fixtures, smart lamps, and even dedicated outdoor lighting solutions. Navigating the vast selection of options can feel overwhelming, but this guide will help you understand the key considerations, from choosing the right manufacturers (such as Philips Hue, LIFX, Nanoleaf, and Wyze) to understanding connectivity standards (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, and Matter). We’ll also clarify which voice assistants (like Alexa, Apple’s Siri, and Google Assistant) are compatible with different lighting systems.

TechHive’s editors and contributors have extensive experience testing smart bulbs and lighting products since the early days of the category. We consistently evaluate the latest smart lights, accessories, and the accompanying control apps. Our expertise covers a broad spectrum of smart lighting devices, including standard A19 bulbs, color light strips, outdoor fixtures, and touch-sensitive light panels. You can rely on our expertise to guide you toward the best smart lighting solutions for your home, office, backyard, and beyond.

Top Smart Lighting Recommendations

Here are some of our top picks for smart lighting, along with their key pros and cons:

Philips Hue White and Color Ambience:

Philips, now known as Signify, was an early pioneer in the smart lighting market, and their experience is evident in the quality and breadth of their products. The inclusion of Bluetooth support allows you to use these bulbs without the need for the Philips Hue Bridge (although the Bridge provides expanded functionality). The Philips Hue ecosystem is incredibly extensive, offering a vast selection of bulbs in various shapes and sizes, as well as lighting fixtures and landscape lighting options.

Pros: Easy setup, optional Hue Bridge, compatibility with Alexa, Apple HomeKit, and Google Assistant, excellent reliability, broad ecosystem.

Cons: Relatively higher price compared to some competitors.

Wyze Bulb Color:

While Wyze Labs may not have the same depth as Philips Hue in terms of its smart lighting ecosystem, it excels in affordability. Wyze offers a wider range of smart home products, particularly in the area of home security. The Wyze BR30 color smart bulb is an excellent addition to their lighting lineup.

Pros: Extremely affordable, no bridge required, integration with Wyze Cam for motion-triggered lighting.

Cons: No Matter support (incompatible with Apple HomeKit), less extensive ecosystem compared to Philips Hue.

Philips Hue White Ambiance (Bluetooth + Zigbee):

The Philips Hue White Ambiance offers a wide range of white light color temperatures, allowing you to adjust the lighting to suit your mood and activities. It can be controlled via Bluetooth or Zigbee (the latter requires the Philips Hue Bridge).

Pros: High-quality light, strong warranty, optional Hue Bridge, easy setup, compatibility with major smart home ecosystems, more affordable than the Hue White and Color Ambience.

Cons: Can be more expensive than other white smart bulb options.

Linkind Smart Bulb (Matter Compatible):

The Linkind smart bulb offers impressive value, with a very competitive price point. It includes Matter compatibility, tunable white light and color options, dimming capabilities, and even a music sync feature that uses your smartphone’s microphone.

Pros: Very affordable, Matter compatibility, tunable white light and color, music sync feature.

Cons: Manufactured in China, which could potentially lead to price fluctuations due to tariffs.

Philips Hue Lightstrip Plus:

The Philips Hue Lightstrip Plus is a versatile way to add accent lighting to kitchen counters, stairways, and other indoor areas. While it’s more expensive than some other light strips, its reliability and the strength of the Hue ecosystem make it a worthwhile investment.

Pros: Reliable, robust ecosystem, support for major smart home platforms, optional Hue Bridge.

Cons: More expensive than competing light strip options.

TP-Link Kasa Smart Light Strip:

If budget is a primary concern, the TP-Link Kasa Smart Light Strip is a solid alternative. It offers features like scheduling, grouping with other Kasa lights, and compatibility with Alexa, Google Assistant, and Samsung SmartThings.

Pros: Affordable, scheduling, grouping, compatibility with popular smart home platforms, animated lighting scenes.

Cons: Not extendable, less durable feel compared to the Philips Hue Lightstrip Plus.

Nanoleaf Shapes:

Nanoleaf Shapes are interactive light panels designed to create a unique and eye-catching atmosphere. They are easy to install and remove, work with Matter, and feature unmatched touch functionality.

Pros: Easy installation and removal, Matter compatibility, touch functionality, unique aesthetic.

Cons: Not designed for primary room illumination.

LIFX SuperColor Ceiling Light:

The LIFX SuperColor Ceiling light is designed for easy installation, thanks to its mounting bracket and clip. It offers two-zone lighting and Matter support, making it compatible with various smart home ecosystems.

Pros: Easy installation, two-zone lighting, Matter support.

Cons: N/A

Philips Hue Lily Outdoor Spot Light:

The Philips Hue Lily spotlight is part of a comprehensive collection of outdoor and landscape LED lighting options. It’s weatherized, compatible with major smart home ecosystems, and works with Hue outdoor accessories.

Pros: Weatherized, compatibility with major smart home ecosystems, integration with Hue outdoor accessories, high-quality design and construction.

Cons: High price tag.

Home Depot Hubspace Landscape Lighting Kit:

The Home Depot Hubspace Landscape Lighting Kit offers an affordable alternative to the Philips Hue Lily. It’s relatively easy to deploy and works with a growing range of Hubspace lighting devices.

Pros: Affordable, easy to deploy, compatible with Hubspace lighting devices.

Cons: Less robust construction, less sophisticated wiring, slightly dimmer brightness, less comprehensive smart lighting ecosystem.

Philips Hue Calla Outdoor Pathway Light:

The Philips Hue Calla outdoor pathway light adds sophisticated safety to outdoor walkways and patios. It seamlessly integrates with other Hue lights in your yard.

Pros: High-quality construction, seamless integration with other Hue lights, part of a complete smart lighting ecosystem.

Cons: Requires an outdoor outlet for power, expensive.

Ring Smart Lighting Solar Pathlight:

The Ring Smart Lighting Solar Pathlight boasts solar charging and built-in motion detection, features not found in the Hue pathlights. It’s a natural choice for those already using the Ring Alarm system.

Pros: Solar charging, built-in motion detection, integration with Ring Alarm system.

Cons: Requires the Ring Smart Lighting Bridge, all-plastic housing.

Jasco Enbrighten Wi-Fi Café Lights:

The Jasco Enbrighten Wi-Fi Café Lights are durable and customizable outdoor string lights that respond to Alexa and Google Assistant voice commands.

Pros: Durable, highly customizable, compatibility with Alexa and Google Assistant, daisy-chainable.

Cons: Expensive.

Jasco Enbrighten Eternity Lights:

The Enbrighten Eternity Lights are designed for year-round outdoor decoration, allowing you to program them for every season. They connect to your Wi-Fi network and can be controlled via a schedule, geofencing, or voice commands.

Pros: Year-round use, customizable for different seasons and events, compatibility with Amazon Echo and Google Home.

Cons: Not compatible with Apple Home, Matter, or IFTTT.

Choosing the Right Smart Lighting Technology

Three primary control technologies dominate the smart bulb market: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Zigbee. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages.

• Wi-Fi: Wi-Fi bulbs connect directly to your home’s Wi-Fi network, eliminating the need for a separate hub. They offer good range and control options.

• Bluetooth: Bluetooth bulbs connect directly to your smartphone or other Bluetooth-enabled devices. They are easy to set up but have limited range and cannot be integrated into broader smart home systems.

• Zigbee: Zigbee bulbs require a hub to connect to your home network. They offer excellent range and reliability, and they can be integrated into a variety of smart home systems.

Matter: Matter is a new, unified connectivity standard that aims to improve interoperability between smart home devices. Look for Matter-compatible smart lights for future-proof compatibility.

Smart Bulbs vs. Smart Switches

There are two main approaches to installing smart lighting: using smart bulbs or using smart switches with "dumb" bulbs. Both have their pros and cons.

• Smart Bulbs: Easier to install, offer individual bulb control (color, brightness), but can be more expensive.

• Smart Switches: More complicated to install, control all the lights on a circuit, more affordable, but do not offer individual bulb control or color changing.

Key Considerations Before Buying

• Hub Requirement: Do you want a system that requires a hub (like Philips Hue) or one that connects directly to your Wi-Fi network (like Wyze)?
• Compatibility: Ensure the smart lights you choose are compatible with your preferred voice assistant (Alexa, Google Assistant, Siri).
• Color Temperature: Do you want tunable white bulbs that allow you to adjust the color temperature of the light?
• Dimmability: Make sure the bulbs you choose are dimmable if you want to control the brightness.
• Grouping and Scenes: Look for features that allow you to group lights and create lighting scenes.

Tips for Setting Up Smart Bulbs

• Smart bulbs are usually in pairing mode when first powered on.
• If you need to put a bulb back into pairing mode, check the manufacturer’s instructions. Usually this involves turning the bulb on and off a set number of times in rapid succession.

Conclusion

Smart lighting offers a wealth of possibilities for enhancing your home’s ambiance, security, and convenience. By understanding the different technologies, brands, and features available, you can choose the right smart lighting solutions to create the perfect atmosphere in your home. Whether you’re looking to add a touch of color, automate your lighting schedules, or simply control your lights from anywhere, smart lighting can transform your home into a truly intelligent and responsive living space.