lighting
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The first Made-for-Google lightbulbs don't require a hub
To date, using Google Assistant to control your lighting away from your phone has typically meant shopping for both a smart speaker and bulbs with a hub serving as a go-between, such as Philips' Hue line. You won't have to spend quite so much cash going forward, because GE has unveiled the first Made-for-Google lightbulbs, and they don't require a hub at all. It's updating its C by GE lineup to automatically pair with any Google Home speaker through Bluetooth and show up in the Home app, making Assistant control almost as simple as screwing in the lights.
The latest Philips Hue lighting kits bring color to your walls
Signify's Philips Hue lights can certainly be used to illuminate your walls, but they're not usually meant for it. Even LightStrips are intended more as accents than room-defining centerpieces. That's where the company's latest kits might come to the rescue. The Hue Play (below) and Hue Signe (above) are expressly designed to bounce colored light off your walls and provide floor-to-ceiling ambiance. The Play is a compact, upward-facing bar that can give your TV viewing sessions a glow without the glare of a bulb souring the experience, while the Signe is a vertical fixture that's built to blend in with your furnishings without taking up a massive footprint.
Philips' Hue app is actually good now
At this year's CES Philips announced a forthcoming update for its Hue smart lights app. The company kept details to a minimum, but now we know exactly what the promised improvements look like, as v3.0 rolls out on the Play Store today. Alongside a raft of feature additions, it's had a complete makeover.
Wi-Fiber’s streetlights are an easy way to make cities smart
The difference between the technology in our pockets and that lining our streets is growing ever more pronounced, and that's a problem. It's one of the reasons that smart city technology is going to become an increasingly visible part of the world over the next few years. Communities need to catch up, and companies such as Wi-Fiber are hoping that offering a way to retrofit new equipment into existing infrastructure is the solution.
Philips Hue lights will sync with music and games on your PC
Philips' team-up with Razer is just the start of Hue-to-PC syncing. The lighting behemoth is preparing to launch a Hue Sync app that will let you sync games, movies and music on any Windows 10 PC or High Sierra-equipped Mac. While the exact functionality is under wraps, it's easy to imagine turning the room blood red when you play death metal, or dimming the lights when you settle in for a Netflix marathon.
Razer gaming devices now sync with your Hue lights
If you own enough Razer gear, you're probably used to a light show. But wouldn't it be nice if that show extended to your entire room? It will very shortly. Razer and Philips have formed a partnership that will let you sync any Chroma-equipped Razer device (including laptops and peripherals) with Hue lights. If a game supports it, you can change the lighting color of your whole environment in tune with gameplay. Your room may turn blood red during a battle scene, or go an appropriately Razer-themed green when you're in a forest.
GE hub connects its smart lights to Alexa and Google
When GE introduced its latest C-series smart light bulbs, the focus was on affordability -- as they talked directly to your phone through Bluetooth, you didn't need a bridge device. That kept them out of touch of voice assistants, however, which meant replacing the whole lot if you wanted hands-free control. Well, you won't have to rethink your investment from now on: GE has introduced a hub, the C-Reach, that puts its bulbs on WiFi to enable support for Amazon's Alexa and (by the end of 2017) Google Assistant. As with most smart lighting kits, you can steer lights individually or in groups just by talking to your phone or a smart speaker.
Biolite's SolarHome 620 provides power for everyday essentials
BioLite has been leading a dual existence. While the Brooklyn-based company's been delivering off-the-grid accessories to your average camper, hiker and explorer, it's also been serving emerging markets where power may be scarce and clean cooking tools are life-saving essentials. Now, for the first time, the company is releasing a product for both markets at once following on-the-ground research in India and Sub-Saharan Africa. The BioLite SolarHome 620 provides power for lights, device charging, radio and music by harnessing the sun's rays. For some regions, this may be a game changer, but it's not without its uses in developed areas, either as an energy-saving alternative or a backup plan in case of power failures. The $150 product is being released today in limited quantities for the holidays, with a proper rollout planned for Spring/Summer 2018.
IKEA’s smart lighting officially supports HomeKit
After what seems like an eternity (for IKEA and HomeKit fans, at least), the Swedish furniture maker has added support for Apple's smart home platform. As 9to5Mac notes, so long as you have the company's Tradfri hub installed at your house, you'll be able to start controlling the lighting via your iOS device. It's worth noting that, this will only work with smart lightbulbs at this time; dimmer switches aren't online just yet. More than that, the hub integrates with Amazon's Alexa so if you aren't all-in on HomeKit, you can still use voice commands to turn your lights on and off. Google Assistant support isn't included in this update, however.
The best USB-C adapters, cables, and hubs
By Nick Guy This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter, reviews for the real world. When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, they may earn affiliate commissions that support their work. Read the full article here. After 10 hours of preliminary research, we tested more than 25 USB-C accessories to put together this guide to the best ways to connect peripherals and devices to a USB-C–equipped computer. It's by no means exhaustive. USB-C can, in theory, replace every other port, and there are a seemingly infinite number of port combinations you might encounter. We focused on the most important tasks you'll likely face, such as connecting older peripherals like hard drives and hooking up an external display.
Nanoleaf delivers music syncing for its Aurora smart lights
Nanoleaf's WiFi-connected Aurora smart lights are notable for their modular, customizable design plus the ability to program colorful displays via an app or control them with Apple HomeKit, Android and Amazon Alexa. Now, it's nearly ready to ship a couple of add-ons that should make the panels even more impressive for your guests. The Aurora Rhythm module plugs into the light and picks up on sounds in the room to automatically create matching light shows. You can also create animated "scenes" to play along with certain types of music, and share them with others through its app.
Philips' Hue lights will soon sync with movies, games and music
In the five years since Philips introduced its Hue range, it's been joined by many other companies offering their own version of its smart lighting. To stay ahead of the competition, the electronics giant has focused on adding platform partners, while introducing new bulbs that appeal to every kind of homeowner. To celebrate its fifth birthday, Philips confirmed today that it will further extend the compatibility of its kit and allow owners to synchronize their lights with movies, video games and music.
Lunar 'sandbox' helps robots see in harsh moon lighting
Everything is more extreme on the moon. On top of temperatures that range from -300 F to +224 F, future astronauts and probes must deal with lighting conditions generously described as "harsh." To help, researchers at Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley created a lunar testbed, complete with craters, fluffy dust and solar simulator lights. The goal is to develop sensors that can "see" in such conditions to help probes and, eventually, humans navigate the surface safely.
Digitize yourself with the 3D Copypod
Copying yourself digitally is not easy. Ideally, you want multiple photos taken from every angle at the same moment with all-around, soft illumination. A company called People's Industrial Design Office in Beijing, China has created something called the 3D Copypod that can do all that for you in one neat package. It's based on the "Hoberman sphere," a type of geodesic dome that can fold down to a much smaller size thanks to its scissor-like joints.
IKEA's affordable smart lights will dim with your voice
Last month, IKEA launched its own line of low-cost smart lighting, called TRÅDFRI, and up until now, users have had to rely on a remote control or a proprietary app to use the product. But no longer. Today, the Swedish retailer announced that their IKEA Home Smart products will respond to voice commands from Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant starting this summer. Additionally, the product line will integrate with Apple's HomeKit. "With IKEA Home Smart we challenge everything that is complicated and expensive with the connected home. Making our products work with others on the market takes us one step closer to meet people's needs, making it easier to interact with your smart home products," said IKEA Home Smart's business leader Björn Block.
Comcast's smart home app controls your Philips Hue lights
Comcast's Xfinity Home app can steer many of the devices in your household, but there's been a conspicuous omission: Philips' Hue lights. Why spring for Comcast's hybrid automation/security service when it can't handle commonplace smart bulbs? That changes today. Comcast and Philips have formed a partnership that brings Hue support to the Xfinity Home app. On top of direct control, you can create automated rules that link your bulbs to your security system and any other smart home devices. Your lights can switch on when you disarm your security after work, for instance.
Google conquers more of your smart home with Logitech and Wink
A number of connected home devices already work with Google's smart speaker and today a few more are being added to the fold. Logitech's Harmony line and Wink's lighting gear and thermostats can now be controlled with voice commands from Google Home. "Ok Google, ask Harmony to..." can control your connected speakers, fire up a specific app on Roku, skip forward/backward on content and more for devices that work with Logitech's smart home platform.
Sylvania smart light bulb talks to Siri without a hub
If you've set up smart light bulbs like Philips' Hue, you've probably had to link your bulbs to a central hub -- and if you didn't, you may be making-do with only basic control. Sylvania is trying to do better. It's introducing a Smart Multicolor A19 bulb that doesn't require the hassles of setting up a hub, but can still give you advanced control through Apple's HomeKit -- and by extension, Siri voice commands. You only have to sync the Bluetooth lighting through iOS' Home app to illuminate a room.
Control this smart candle's real flame with your smartphone
Do you like the thought of smart lighting, but think that LED bulbs are a little too modern? No? Well, LuDela has a compromise regardless. It's introducing a namesake smart candle that has you controlling honest-to-goodness fire with a smartphone app -- the company is even cheeky enough to refer to the wireless pairing as "Wi-Fire" (yes, really). You can light or extinguish the flames of multiple candles at once, complete with scene modes that can get just the right look for that special dinner. There's even a safety measure that automatically extinguishes the candle if it's in danger of tipping over.
Hive adds smart lightbulbs to its connected home lineup
British Gas' connected home brand Hive expanded beyond smart thermostats to plugs and motion sensors earlier this year. As was always the plan, the product range has grown a little bigger today with the launch of Hive Active Lights. These smart bulbs are controlled via the existing Hive app for iOS, Android and Windows Phone, and since they talk directly to your router through the Hive Hub, can be fiddled with anywhere you have an internet connection. In addition to on/off and dimming commands, you can also create schedules if, say, you want your lights to come on at night while you're away on your summer hols.
