Though a Jetsons-style smart home appears to be decades off still, the concept of smart homes is increasingly gaining traction among consumers. As smart speakers and smart thermostats make people more comfortable with smart home tech people are turning to addiction gadget to give their home a boost. One of the most common of these is smart lights. Smart lights allow you to automatically adjust the lighting in your home from your smartphone or set the lighting to look a certain way according to a pre-programmed schedule. There’s no shortage of smart lights out there, so to help you whittle down your options we went through a bunch of them and picked out some of our favorites to help get you started.
Philips Hue White Personal Wireless Lighting LED Starter Kit
Depending on which smart lights you opt for, they may need a hub device so you can use more than one bulb in unison. the Philips Hue White Personal Wireless Lighting LED Starter Kit is an excellent starter pack for those just getting started turning your home into a smart home. It includes 2 bulbs and the Hue Bridge, that lets you connect up to 50. Plus it's Apple’s HomeKit and Amazon Echo compatible. Pick it up on Amazon for £49.99.
LOHAS WIFI A60 Colour LED Smart Bulb
If you’re just looking to get started with a single bulb to see if smart lighting may be for you, the LOHAS WIFI A60 Colour LED Smart Bulb is a great choice. The bulb talks to your smartphone via Wi-Fi and you can use the companion app to turn it on or off, dim it, set it to activate or deactivate at a certain time, and even display light in a variety of colors. It’s also Amazon Alexa and Google Home compatible. Get it on Amazon for £22.99.
TP-Link LB130 Smart LED Wi-Fi Light Bulb
The TP-Link LB130 Smart LED Wi-Fi Light Bulb is another bulb that can be used by itself or in unison. It comes in various varieties including only white light or a multicolor-capable bulb. One nice thing about this bulb is that it comes with a B22 bayonet adapter, which means you can plug it into any lamp you have. The bulb is also compatible with Amazon Alexa and Google Home devices. Pick it up on Amazon for £34.99.
Expower Smart WiFi Light
The Expower Smart WiFi Light is one of the cheaper smart light bulbs we’ve found. Like other smart lights, it talks to an app on your smartphone over Wi-Fi that allows you to turn it on or off and set it on a timer. The bulb is a multi-colored one, so you have your choice of colors you can set it to display. It also works with Amazon Alexa. Grab it on Amazon for £16.99.
WenTop USB LED Strip Light
WHo says smart lights have to come in the bulb form factor? We love the WenTop USB Led Strip Lights because it allows you to get creative with lighting in your home. The strip lights feature adhesive tape on the bag that allows you to install them on (or behind) almost any surface or object. They are great for atmospheric lighting for holiday events or parties. Though they don’t talk to your smartphone, they can be controlled with the included remote. They also can be plugged in via any USB port–handy if you want to plug them into the back of your smart TV to cast a colorful glow on the wall behind it. Grab them on Amazon for £10.99.
