Philips Hue Line Gains New Wall Light, Pendant Cord and More

[MacRumors]

Philips Hue parent company Signify is announcing several product updates today, with new products, colorways, and U.S. availability for some devices.

A new wall light, the Philips Hue Dymera, offers two beams of light that shine both up and down. The light, which supports both white shades and color, can illuminate large surfaces and is able to be used both indoors and out.

The Philips Hue Pendant Cord can be used with Hue Filament bulbs or the Hue Ellipse. 3D printed from 55 percent bio-circular material, the pendant cord comes in either black and white and can be purchased in two sizes.

For those with the Hue Perifo track lighting, there are new connector options. The T Connector allows rails to run in three directions, while the Flexible Connector allows rails to run in any direction and beyond 90-degree angles.

The Hue Being Ceiling Light is now available in black and white, rather than just the aluminum color. The Hue Being supports 50,000 shades of warm-to-cool white light.

Signify is selling the Hue Go Portable Table Lamp in updated colors that include black with an orange grip and white with a teal grip. The silicone grips are designed to make it easier to move the lamp from place to place. The lamp is able to charge in three to four hours with the included charging stand, and the battery lasts for up to 48 hours.

The Hue line now includes the Philips Hue Secure Floodlight Camera (U.S. availability is new) and the Hue Secure Camera Starter Kit. The indoor/outdoor Starter Kit has a wired camera, two Philips Hue bulbs, a Hue Bridge, and two Philips Hue Secure contact sensors that let users know when a door is opened or closed. The Floodlight Camera is meant to be used outdoors, and it offers both recording functionality and colored/white Hue light.

New app updates are expected for the Security Center of the Hue app in the first half of 2024. Signify is improving security push notifications and the event timeline, as well as options for automatic light and sound alarms when motion is detected.

The Hue Dymera light is priced at $220 in the U.S. and will be available on February 27. The Hue Perifio connectors will be coming in February and April and will be priced at $35, while the updated Hue Being lights will be available on March 26 and are priced at $220.

The Hue Go table lamps with colored grips are available now from the Hue website and are priced at $160. The Hue Pendant Cord is priced starting at 60 euros and will launch in the EU in February.

The Hue Secure Floodlight Camera will be available on February 27 and is priced at $350, and the Hue Secure Starter Kit is priced at $400 and is available today.

Article Link: Philips Hue Line Gains New Wall Light, Pendant Cord and More

 

[RandomTox]

Overpriced toys.

 

[Kleber20]

Why after maaaaany years this stuff is still expensive and kind of unjustified to what they do?

 

[ralph_sws]

Philips? No, thank you

 

[mattaaron]

Gotta love the toxicity around here

For people who do like Hue and don't mind the premium tag, this is great news, having more lighting options is a good thing in my book.

 

[Dredd67]

I have invested in quite a few of these lights back in the day when there wasn't many options.

With the current state of home automation still a mess switching from one standard to another and unable to reach a working consensus, I simply refuse to invest one more dime in this kind of stuff, however attractive they might look.

I feel like this is a missed opportunity and instead of having a thriving market, all these home stuff makers tried to squeeze all the money they could in the most consumer hostile way possible, making everything they could to screw any kind of initiative to simplify the usage and make reliable and interoperable.

Ensh*ttification doesn't simply apply to the web platforms, but to every "modern" company it seems.

Like these ridiculously overpriced and silly triangle tiles you see on the walls of every youtuber, these are now just gimmicky accessories and not real and useful home appliances.

 

[orbital~debris]

Lots of interesting options here! 💡

I’m very impressed by Philips Hue, despite using basic elements of their lineup that date back a few years now.

Every bulb I’ve bought works as expected and with solid performance. They integrate with Apple Home so well and are very convenient even without use of the Hue app which brings additional functionality.

It’s great to see Philips both broadening the Hue catalogue but also giving more options within each product category.

I think there’s a sentiment around here of wanting aesthetic things without a high price tag… But the way things tend to work is that you can get ‘standard’ for lower expense, and ‘premium’ for greater outlay.

 

[Dredd67]

Lots of interesting options here! 💡

I’m very impressed by Philips Hue, despite using basic elements of their lineup that date back a few years now.

Every bulb I’ve bought works as expected and with solid performance. They integrate with Apple Home so well and are very convenient even without use of the Hue app which brings additional functionality.

It’s great to see Philips both broadening the Hue catalogue but also giving more options within each product category.

I think there’s a sentiment around here of wanting aesthetic things without a high price tag… But the way things tend to work is that you can get ‘standard’ for lower expense, and ‘premium’ for greater outlay.

That's not the point.

> The premium I paid for with Philips is not justified. I have a few lamps that have lost one or more colors turning them useless or basically just dumb lamps. They only lasted 2 years, just days after the warranty expired.
> Controllers that you still need for normal visiting keep getting disconnected until you smash them a hundred times to recharge them.
> Automation gets broken as soon as there's an update. Either it's in Apple's Home app that suddenly wants me to buy a new Apple TV, syncing issues that break the settings, Shortcuts that changed the way they work, and don't even get me started with other hubs like Alexa creating a bazillion duplicates and not recognizing the right one.

Meanwhile, a cheap knockoff brand does the exact same with a fifth of the price. It doesn't work better, nor does it look more stylish. But at least you feel less frustrated when it breaks since it didn't cost that much to begin with.

The whole goal of home automation is to make everything work together, and in the simplest of ways since the competition is the dumb switch we've had for decades if not more. If you want to beat the convenience of just pressing a button it HAS to work simply and reliably.

The TV remote won because it allowed you to operate your TV in the same way as before, but from the couch. A net advantage. Smart home still makes you work way more than it should, and at a premium that is not worth it unless you're a gadget freak or an influencer paid to have them in the background.

 

[petitpiton]

PSA: The new wall lights are "Dymera", not "Dymara" as stated in the piece.

 

[McWetty]

The irony of people complaining about expensive lighting products on a forum focused on expensive computing products is palpable…

I love Hue, and can afford them, but even I wait for them to go on sale (just like I do my Apple products).

 

[CarAnalogy]

Why after maaaaany years this stuff is still expensive and kind of unjustified to what they do?

Because the market supports this price.

Go try every single cheaper option and compare them. Hue is better than all of them.

I’m assuming you typed that on an Apple device. Ironic, no?

 

[Dredd67]

The irony of people complaining about expensive lighting products on a forum focused on expensive computing products is palpable…

I love Hue, and can afford them, but even I wait for them to go on sale (just like I do my Apple products).

It's not that it's just expensive. It's expensive for the result you get.

Apple's products are expensive for sure, and we all know that we pay a premium that is not entirely justified by the engineering and materials that go into these products. That being said, they provide helpful solutions, and they're not worse than the competition, often better in some ways, or just have a different take that might suit a certain audience better.

This is not the case with these lights. The only added value is color (when it doesn't break after a year or two) and the fact you can operate them with your phone tied to a hub or your voice via... your phone tied to a hub. How does this work in general? At best, it's flaky and inconsistent, at worst it's just not working at all (talk about getting waked up in the middle of the night because some device decided to update and restart with full lights on...).

I gave them years of time to improve usability and reliability, and it's not there yet. Hence the bad reviews, especially from an audience that is picky enough to be Apple customers...

 

[Fuzzball84]

They may be overpriced but I don’t think there is anything as high a quality on the market. I’ve been using Philips Hue since 2018 and never had a single problem… all the lights I have are still working great… even the ones with internal batteries (Hue Go) are essentially running as long as they were when new. So 6 years and still going strong.

I think if you have these devices for ~10 to 20 years (the bulbs without batteries could last upwards of 20 years) and they make a big difference to your environment (color scenes and dimming etc…) that the initial outlay is worth it.

 

[mtrm]

I may be missing something, but I’ve had that exact Hue Being light in the master bedroom in white for 1~2 years now. Maybe it’s the US availability of the black and white versions that is new (I’m in Europe)?

 

[Fuzzball84]

It's not that it's just expensive. It's expensive for the result you get.

Apple's products are expensive for sure, and we all know that we pay a premium that is not entirely justified by the engineering and materials that go into these products. That being said, they provide helpful solutions, and they're not worse than the competition, often better in some ways, or just have a different take that might suit a certain audience better.

This is not the case with these lights. The only added value is color (when it doesn't break after a year or two) and the fact you can operate them with your phone tied to a hub or your voice via... your phone tied to a hub. How does this work in general? At best, it's flaky and inconsistent, at worst it's just not working at all (talk about getting waked up in the middle of the night because some device decided to update and restart with full lights on...).

I gave them years of time to improve usability and reliability, and it's not there yet. Hence the bad reviews, especially from an audience that is picky enough to be Apple customers...

Did you contact Phillips support about this? I’ve never had an issue with my setup… updates were never an issue and I’ve not had a single device fail etc in 6 years of using them. I use the hub and have also used Bluetooth connectivity.

 

[ForkHandles]

I have invested in quite a few of these lights back in the day when there wasn't many options.

With the current state of home automation still a mess switching from one standard to another and unable to reach a working consensus, I simply refuse to invest one more dime in this kind of stuff, however attractive they might look.

I feel like this is a missed opportunity and instead of having a thriving market, all these home stuff makers tried to squeeze all the money they could in the most consumer hostile way possible, making everything they could to screw any kind of initiative to simplify the usage and make reliable and interoperable.

Ensh*ttification doesn't simply apply to the web platforms, but to every "modern" company it seems.

Like these ridiculously overpriced and silly triangle tiles you see on the walls of every youtuber, these are now just gimmicky accessories and not real and useful home appliances.

Sorry to hear of all the difficulties you have experienced. I have had no such bad luck. I have about 30 lamps and they all work reliably.

Admittedly there are sometimes issues between the hue App and the Home App. This isn’t Phillips fault I don’t think. Their so just doesn’t work as well with Siri.

 

[Fuzzball84]

The irony of people complaining about expensive lighting products on a forum focused on expensive computing products is palpable…

I love Hue, and can afford them, but even I wait for them to go on sale (just like I do my Apple products).

Yeah, I’ve always looked out for offers and used vouchers etc. Sensible people look for a deal whenever possible. I’ve also mostly bought them from one of my favorite department stores (John Lewis), or Amazon (sold and fulfilled by Amazon) and Argos.

 

[Antoniosmalakia]

I think we've bought 49 lights since 2016, two of which are indoor strips, one, an outdoor strip and another three are the "Lily" garden spike lights. And then we have "fairy" lights on Hue smart plugs*, under our pergola and in our conservatories.

They're not cheap, but the effect we've created with them throughout our home and garden looks fantastic.

It's not that it's just expensive. It's expensive for the result you get.

Apple's products are expensive for sure, and we all know that we pay a premium that is not entirely justified by the engineering and materials that go into these products. That being said, they provide helpful solutions, and they're not worse than the competition, often better in some ways, or just have a different take that might suit a certain audience better.

This is not the case with these lights. The only added value is color (when it doesn't break after a year or two) and the fact you can operate them with your phone tied to a hub or your voice via... your phone tied to a hub. How does this work in general? At best, it's flaky and inconsistent, at worst it's just not working at all (talk about getting waked up in the middle of the night because some device decided to update and restart with full lights on...).

I gave them years of time to improve usability and reliability, and it's not there yet. Hence the bad reviews, especially from an audience that is picky enough to be Apple customers...

You can set each individual light to stay in the state in which you left them, so for instance, if you have a power cut or an update, and they're all off, they won't turn on when power is restored or a reset is complete, only when you request them to.

I believe that it isn't the default setting, so you know the bulb is working when you initially turn it on at the switch.

Two of our earliest bulbs failed last year, but like all lights, they do have a limited shelf life (or "on" time). Hue lights are rated for 25,000 hours, so if they failed before that, contact Phillips.

 

[CharlesShaw]

I love the dozen Hue A19 style bulbs I’ve been using since 2016. I suppose the expensive fixtures with integrated bulbs are necessary for Philips Hue to keep up with the industry trend away from user replaceable bulbs that I find concerning as a renter. I enjoy being able to choose my own bulbs (smart or not) for the fixtures where I live, but I‘m noticing that units in my building that are being renovated are getting new fixtures where the LED’s are built in, so there’s no option for choice of color temperature or smart features for the tenant.

 

[bodhisattva]

Gotta love the toxicity around here

For people who do like Hue and don't mind the premium tag, this is great news, having more lighting options is a good thing in my book.

I have an embarrassingly large number of Hue lights. I started with three (still have those three), and now have the entire how filled with them. The range of what you can do, how seamless it is, is really amazing. I agree with you that it comes with a premium tag, but so does anything else well made. I love how folks are complaining about cost, while posting to a Mac board! If anything, an Apple user should know that quality, and all the hidden things you cannot see cost a little bit more. Just watch one of the teardown/xray videos comparing nice USB-C cables and it may open eyes on what you are plugging in. Or in this case, what is lighting your home, connecting to your network. I've had a few of the knock off brands that I used in my work office in an attempt to "save money". All have failed within a few months, and the quality pales in comparison in terms of lighting. Get what you pay for.

 

[bodhisattva]

The irony of people complaining about expensive lighting products on a forum focused on expensive computing products is palpable…

I love Hue, and can afford them, but even I wait for them to go on sale (just like I do my Apple products).

I should have read further before leaving my comment. Agree 100% about the complaining about expensive lights, when most likely typing on the most expensive laptop out there...

I bought a shameful amount of Hue lights, but often just wait a few months until all software updates are out, and everything in the ecosystem is stable... kinda like my Apple products also

 

[tothemoonsands]

I will not buy any more Hue products until they release a new Sync Box with 4K/120 and other various fixes!

 

[MrRom92]

I have no problem with Hue whatsoever. It’s the HomePod/Siri that’s the weak link!

 

[PsykX]

I'm surprised the Hue line is still one of the best in 2024, and they keep on improving.
There's not that much competition in smart lights.

The only thing I hate about these is the hub. I wish I could get rid of mine and just use my Apple TV or HomePod or iPad Pro as the hub.

 

[Dredd67]

Did you contact Phillips support about this? I’ve never had an issue with my setup… updates were never an issue and I’ve not had a single device fail etc in 6 years of using them. I use the hub and have also used Bluetooth connectivity.

It's a mix of many things, the hub, the apple integration, the hardware failing, maybe products of different generations recognized as the same (I had two lamps for behind the TV, one died, and when I replaced it it didn't act the same as the previous one, so I bought a second and move the last original one in another room as a solo lamp. Yet they're all the same model, but the colors are not the same. Go figure).

Anyways, trying to get an answer on their support page will only get you generic answers ("check if the cable is plugged..." come on).

Maybe it's different elsewhere, but in Europe it's close to nonexistent.