With CES 2019 wrapping up in Las Vegas, there have been a ton of cool new tech announced this week. But one of our favorite categories is smart lighting, because connected bulbs light up our homes with light and color, and make it easier than ever before to control. While smart lights weren't the biggest focus at CES, we've rounded up some of the coolest ones from the show floor this week for you here. We're eagerly awaiting the launches of these products, so hopefully, they aren't too far off.
Nanoleaf Hexagons
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We're big fans of Nanoleaf's lighting art products. In fact, iMore managing editor, Lory Gil, recommends the Nanoleaf Canvas in her review, and who wouldn't want some awesome light art on their walls?
Nanoleaf has made triangles and squares so far, but at CES they've announced their next shape: hexagons. These six-sided light panels have a touch-enabled configuration, and you can have up to 500 panels when you assign them in groups of 25 across multiple power supplies.
The company also announced the new commercial Mounting Grid for the existing Canvas panels. These are a more permanent solution than what comes in the box. They're more secure, but that also means you can't change your layout whenever you want to anymore.
Nanoleaf's Mounting Grid is coming sometime around mid to late 2019, while the Canvas Hexagons are coming late 2019. There is no pricing information available, but it may be around the same price as the Nanoleaf Canvas square starter kit, which is about $250.
Nanoleaf is shaping things up in 2019 - with hexagons!
LeMetric Sky
Competing directly with Nanoleaf is LeMetric's Sky. This one features a mosaic design that mounts on your wall to brighten it up and give it that cool pixelated look. However, it does so much more than light up the wall.
LeMetric Sky will also display details and metrics from the Internet, such as your YouTube subscriber count or Twitch stream viewers.
The Sky starter pack will provide you with eight panels, but it can support up to 16 in total. The panels are triangular, so it'll allow for some flexibility when it comes to the shapes and designs you can create with them.
The product is still in the early development stages, so we probably won't see them until at least 2020.
LeMetric Sky is smart lighting wall art to compete with Nanoleaf
Eve Light Strip and Energy Strip
Eve is competing directly with Philips Hue with their new Light Strips.
These light strips will light up an entire room with the intense brightness of 1800 lumens. They'll offer the full range of lighting options, from white light to millions of different colors across the spectrum. The strips themselves are about 6.6 feet, and you can cut them into 1-foot pieces or extend multiple strips to a cap of 32.8 feet.
The Eve Light Strip also attaches via adhesive, and requires a direct connection to a power source, while eliminating the need for a central gateway.
Eve's Energy Strip was also announced, and it's essentially a smart power strip. You'll be able to control, automate, and safeguard anything that is plugged in. There are three power outlets in the Energy Strip, which you can access and control through the Eve app or with Apple HomeKit.
Users of the Eve Energy Strip will be able to create custom HomeKit scenes, set up timers, rules, and schedules of when to turn on or off. The Eve app also lets you know how much energy was consumed by the things you've plugged in, and the projected cost.
Eve Light Strips will be available in February for $80, with 6.6 feet extension packs at $50. The Energy Strip comes in March for $119.
Eve announces HomeKit-friendly Energy Strip and Light Strip
WeMo Light Switches
If you don't want smart lighting solutions for your home, how about smart switches instead? WeMo is releasing HomeKit-compatible light switches sometime in 2019.
These new light switches have an updated design and will come in single-pole or three-way for $39.99 and $49.99, respectively. WeMo's light switches let you control your home lighting directly, and you can do it from your phone or by talking to Siri.
The Smart Plugs and Dimmers that were offered from WeMo previously will also receive HomeKit support through software updates.
Belkin's CES 2019 lineup includes new Wemo light switches, Linksys routers, and more
Lifx Tile, Bulbs, Light Strips
Lifx announced a few new smart lighting options this year.
First is the Lifx Tile, which is similar to the Nanoleaf and LeMetric Sky. They're light up panels that you can customize with IFTTT integrations. However, there will be touch support coming in a software update, so if you already have Lifx Tile, then rejoice!
Another product they showed off is the new multicolor candelabra bulbs, which are competing with Philips Hue. These candelabra bulbs have multiple color effects that you can use to set the scene.
Finally, Lifx will have new smart light strips that are designed to run all around the back of your television. They'll have their own connectors too. This one is a concept, but hopefully, it comes to fruition.
What were your favorite smart lights at this year's CES?
Did you see any cool smart lights and other smart home tech at CES this year? What are you looking forward to? Let us know in the comments!
