Home LivingSmart HomeIs Philips Hue worth it? I’m a smart lighting expert and this is my opinionHue smart lights aren’t the cheapest smart bulbs but they’re my favourite ones to buyWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

Home LivingSmart HomeIs Philips Hue worth it? I’m a smart lighting expert and this is my opinionHue smart lights aren’t the cheapest smart bulbs but they’re my favourite ones to buyWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

Hue smart lights aren’t the cheapest smart bulbs but they’re my favourite ones to buy

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Signify)

Philips Hue home entertainment setup

(Image credit: Signify)

IsPhilips Hueworth it? Yes. It’s not the cheapestsmart lightingsolution, but as someone who’s been reviewing thebest smart bulbsfor many years now, I think it’s the best smart lighting system you can buy.

And I’ve repeatedly put my money where my mouth is, too: within a few metres of my desk I have multiple Hue white & color ambience bulbs, a couple of Hue white bulbs, a Hue Play HDMI Sync Box and a Hue Gradient Lightstrip.

These weren’t presents from Philips' PRs; I bought them with my own money because I think they’re brilliant products.

Here are the three reasons I think Philips Hue are the best smart lighting products to buys.

1. The range of Hue products is massive

2. The app is brilliant

My smart home kit is on anAppleHomeKit setup, and Apple’s Home app is a constant reminder of how much better the Hue app is. It’s incredibly easy to use and to create great light “recipes”; the automation features are excellent, with good use of geofencing and scheduling; it integrates with your personal digital assistants and (depending on what you have installed) music services such as Spotify, and it’s a great way to keep the kids amused when the Fortnite servers are down. And it’s very fast to respond too.

3. It’s cheaper than redecorating

I rent my home, and that means I’m very limited in what I can do to personalise it: if I were to paint one of the walls copper red or shocking pink, my landlord would want to have a stern word. But with Hue I can completely transform any room, any time, as often as I want. Bisexual lighting for the front room? A horror themed hallway for Halloween? Subtle ambience for a little atmosphere? All available with a single click or command. And unlike real redecorating, there’s no risk that I’ll make a complete arse of it. It’s the kind of thing you don’t really appreciate until you have it, and now I do I’m not going back: Hue is one of my very favorite bits of tech and my whole world would be a lot less colourful without it.

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