Philips adds new HomeKit-compatible Hue lights, puts more bulbs in Starter Kits
Philips on Thursday announced an upcoming collection of Hue lights compatible with Apple's HomeKit, as well as three bigger Starter Kit bundles.
The main addition is the White Ambiance Cher Suspension, a 3,000-lumen fixture meant to sit over a kitchen area or dining table. The White Ambiance series lacks the full color-changing abilities of Philips's top-end bulbs, but does support a mix of warm and cool tones.
The White Ambiance downlight is intended for for recessed ceiling lights, and will be available in 4-inch and 5/6-inch versions, rated at 700 and 750 lumens respectively.
The downlight and the Cher Suspension fixture should both ship in October, at prices of $34.99 and $229.99. Also due that month is the $49.99 White and Color Ambiance candle bulb, which has an E12 base and provides dimmer 450-lumen output.
Coming sooner should be new White, White Ambiance, and White and Color Ambiance Starter Kits, all of which will have four A19 bulbs, plus the standard Hue bridge. The current White and Color kit comes with three bulbs, while the White Ambiance kit has two plus a dimmer switch -- the basic White kit drops the switch as well.
The White and Color Ambiance kit will remain at roughly $200, but the cost of the White Ambiance bundle is rising from $129.95 to $149.99, and the White kit is jumping from $69.95 to $99.99.
The main addition is the White Ambiance Cher Suspension, a 3,000-lumen fixture meant to sit over a kitchen area or dining table. The White Ambiance series lacks the full color-changing abilities of Philips's top-end bulbs, but does support a mix of warm and cool tones.
The White Ambiance downlight is intended for for recessed ceiling lights, and will be available in 4-inch and 5/6-inch versions, rated at 700 and 750 lumens respectively.
The downlight and the Cher Suspension fixture should both ship in October, at prices of $34.99 and $229.99. Also due that month is the $49.99 White and Color Ambiance candle bulb, which has an E12 base and provides dimmer 450-lumen output.
Coming sooner should be new White, White Ambiance, and White and Color Ambiance Starter Kits, all of which will have four A19 bulbs, plus the standard Hue bridge. The current White and Color kit comes with three bulbs, while the White Ambiance kit has two plus a dimmer switch -- the basic White kit drops the switch as well.
The White and Color Ambiance kit will remain at roughly $200, but the cost of the White Ambiance bundle is rising from $129.95 to $149.99, and the White kit is jumping from $69.95 to $99.99.
Comments
https://www.engadget.com/2017/08/31/philips-hue-entertainment-lights-movies-games-music/
Dimness aside, I really like my Hue gear. Tho I stopped using their app and use Apple’s Home app to control them and program scenes now.
The impending arrival of HomeKit sensors explains why they've been on sale recently. I only bought one (for a grand total of two). I can use a couple more so I'll wait for the HK versions. I wonder if the older sensors can get a firmware upgrade like the bridges, or if HK compatibility is a hardware issue.
I would like to see some 100W equivalent Hues, and would love to see some competition force their prices down. Somebody needs to do a Hue Lighting for Dummies book.
Alexa will control my lights in a fairly capricious manner, occasionally bowing to my commands, but generally ignoring them. I'm hoping the HomePod will do much, much, much better.
The Hue seems a bit of a novelty (a fun novelty though), but the White Ambiance would be really nice to have in some applications.