Josh Hendrickson
Signify, the company behind Philps Hue products has a few new smart lights for you to consider. That includes the new Philips Hue White A21 bulb, capable of 1600 Lumes—the equivalent of a 100-watt bulb. Perfect when you need the power of the sun, but with voice controls.
But before you go out and buy the new White A21 Bulb, you’ll want to keep a few things in mind. As the name suggests, it doesn’t do color. You’ll get whites only, which should work well enough for a garage or kitchen. And, as the A21 denotes, the bulb is larger than the standard A19 bulb. If your lamp barely houses a standard bulb now, it may not fit the A21. Signify says the Philips HUe White A21 retails at $19.99 and will arrive later this month.
Signify wasn’t content to announce a new brighter bulb, though. The company also announced a new take on its excellent light strip. The Philips Hue Lightstrip Plus might seem identical to the existing Lightstrip, but now it comes with Bluetooth. That’s a recent addition Signify has been adding to its Hue line so you can skip the Hue Hub.
Naturally, that does mean you’ll lose remote access when you leave home. But it’s less to buy (at least upfront), which lowers the overall cost to get into Philips Hue.
The Lightstrip Plus also has a second special trick up its sleeve. You can cut the strip, and then later reconnect cutoff pieces with included connectors. Most other LED strips require a soldering iron to achieve that same feat.
The base strip goes for $79.99, and each one-meter extension costs $24.99, and both will arrive later this month.
Finally, Signify just updated its Philips Bloom light. Like the Lightstrip Plus, the new Bloom picks up Bluetooth controls to skip the hub (though you can always add it later). Additionally, Signify says it’s brighter and more colorful than ever. The new Bloom goes for $69.99 and will arrive in July.
