Best Alternatives to Philips Hue Light Strips in 2019

The LIFX Z smart LED strip is easily my choice for the best Philips Hue alternative. This 6.6-foot strip has eight individual zones, meaning you can alter the color of each of these zones independently. Instead of a single accent color, you can paint your wall or entertainment center with multiple colors, creating all kinds of fun looks. The LIFX Z works with Apple HomeKit, Amazon Alexa, and the Google Assistant, which means you'll be able to use your voice to control your light strip on an iPhone, an Amazon Echo, a Google Home, or any number of other smart devices. The strip is also incredibly bright and full of color — it cranks out a whopping 1400 lumens in 16 million colors and white color temperatures.

The Sylvania Smart+ Light Strip starter kit nets you three two-foot LED strips (six feet in total) that you can adhere to and mold into all kinds of shapes. With three individual strips, you can add some lighting to your favorite bookcase, create a cozy light feature for your kitchen cabinets, add some bias lighting to your television — the modular nature of this kit means you've got loads of possible arrangements. You will need a ZigBee hub to control this lighting kit, but once you've got one, you'll be able to manage your light strip with your voice using the Google Assistant and Amazon's Alexa voice assistant.

Yeelight is another Philips Hue competitor that worth taking a look at, and its light strip is compatible with both Alexa and Google Assistant, meaning you can control it with your voice. The Yeelight app is easy-to-use and will allow you to choose between 16 million colors available and can even sync up to any music that you play with your phone. Plus, you don't need a hub, just Wi-Fi and the app, and you're good to go.

Koogeek offers a smaller lighting strip that's power by USB, meaning its perfect to light up your desk or backlight your monitor if you have an open port on your computer. You don't need a hub, just the free Koogeek app, and the strip is compatible with HomeKit, Alexa, and Google Assistant, so no matter what smart home ecosystem you use, the Koogeek will fit in.

The HitLights Smart Strip comes in lengths of 16.4 feet and offers 16 million colors. There's no hub required, and it can be used with Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, so voice control is an option. It doesn't have multiple zones, so the strip can only be one color at a time.