Add Some Flair to Your Festivities with Smart Holiday String Lights
Top-rated smart holiday string lights for a magical holiday season
Ultimate smart holiday string lights
If you think your standard LED string lights are enough to bring holiday cheer, think again! Smart holiday string lights will take your festivities to a whole new level. These colorful and dazzling lights offer an array of options that will make your old lights seem like a dull shade of gray. Sure, they may come at a higher price, but let me give you some ammunition to convince your other half (or yourself) that it’s worth investing in these high-tech lights.
Smart Lights to the Rescue: Saving You Money and Adding Versatility
Let’s do some math, shall we? Every year, we buy new boxes of string lights because the ones from the previous year stop working. And if we add up all the money we’ll spend over the next two years, buying new lights each time, it easily covers the extra expense of smart lights today. So, in the long run, we’re actually saving money. Plus, these lights offer way more than your standard options. With millions of color combinations and dazzling effects, you can use them for multiple holidays throughout the year. Spooky oranges for Halloween, festive fall colors for Thanksgiving, pinks for Valentine’s Day, and red, white, and blue for the Fourth of July. It’s like getting a whole set of lights for each occasion. So, why settle for ordinary when you can have extraordinary?
The Essential Choice: Smart Holiday String Lights
There are plenty of smart lighting options available, from curtain lights to light strips, but let’s focus on the one that’s both essential and versatile: string lights. These lights are perfect for decorating your Christmas tree (if you celebrate) and can be used both indoors and outdoors. Imagine the possibilities of transforming your porch, landscaping, and house into a festive wonderland with these magical lights.
What makes these smart lights worth the extra expense? Well, first off, you can schedule them through an app and integrate them into your smart home routines. Just imagine the joy of saying something like “Alexa, turn on Christmas!” to illuminate your home with holiday cheer. And let’s not forget the wide range of colors these lights offer. You can use them year-round to create dynamic lighting scenes that will sizzle up any season. Plus, in many neighborhoods, holiday lighting has become a competition to impress the neighbors, and with these lights, you’ll definitely stay ahead of the curve.
What I’m Looking For: Beaming with Color, Ease of Use, Smart Home Compatibility, Fun Designs, and Solid Connectivity
In my quest to find the best smart holiday string lights, I focused on several key factors. Here’s what I considered:
1. Color and brightness
I looked for vibrant and rich colors, as well as true whites. Tunable white lights were a big bonus, making the string lights more versatile for year-round use. Addressable LEDs were also important, allowing for multiple colors to be displayed at once.
2. Ease of use
During the busy holiday season, the last thing you want is to deal with complicated setup or unreliable apps. I prioritized lights with an easy setup experience and a simple, reliable app.
3. Good smart home support
Compatibility with multiple smart home platforms, or even all of them through Matter, was a crucial factor. This way, you can seamlessly integrate the lights into your existing smart home system, setting up automations, and controlling them with voice commands through Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, or Apple’s Siri.
4. Fun scenes and designs
Preset lighting designs that can be activated from the app or with your voice are a boon. I searched for lights with the best preset designs, focusing on quality rather than quantity.
5. Solid connectivity
Reliable connectivity is essential, especially for outdoor use. While Wi-Fi lights provide better reach, lights with Thread or Zigbee mesh network connectivity offer greater range. Local control options are also important for improved speed and reliability. After all, no one wants their holiday lights to flicker or go out at the wrong moment.
The Champions of Festivity: The Best Smart Holiday String Lights
Philips Hue Festavia String Lights
Price: $220
If you want lights that tick all the boxes, Philips Hue Festavia string lights are the ultimate choice. These lights offer beautiful colors, a wide range of festive scenes, and an easy-to-use app. They work reliably with a Hue Bridge or over Bluetooth, making them a versatile option. With compatibility across all major smart home platforms and Matter, these lights are a perfect fit for any smart home setup.
- Connectivity: Zigbee (with Hue Bridge), BLE, Matter
- Works with: Matter, Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit, Google Home, Samsung SmartThings
- Tunable white: Yes, 2,200 to 6,500 Kelvins
- Outdoor rated: IP54 string and power adapter
- Sizes: 65.6ft (250 LEDs) and 131.2ft (500 LEDs)
- Cord color: Black
- Music sync: Yes (through Spotify and other options)
The Festavia lights are designed to impress, with rich colors and a sophisticated feel. They are perfect for enhancing your Christmas tree or outdoor lighting setup. While the price may be a bit higher compared to other options, the quality and reliability of these lights make them well worth the investment. Just be aware that you might need a Hue Bridge for some features, and additional lengths of Festavia lights come at an extra cost.
Govee Christmas String Lights
Price: $60
For those on a budget, Govee Christmas string lights offer a wallet-friendly option without compromising on quality. These individually addressable LEDs create bright and bold colors, perfect for creating the ultimate dazzling display. With built-in music sync and compatibility with other Govee lights, you can synchronize your entire holiday lighting setup for a synchronized light show.
- Connectivity: 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi, built-in Wi-Fi
- Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home
- Tunable white: No
- Outdoor rated: String IP65, power adapter IP44
- Sizes: 33ft (100 LEDs) and 65.6 ft (200 LEDs)
- Cord color: White
- Music sync: Yes, built into the controller
Despite their affordable price, Govee’s lights offer countless preset lighting effects and the ability to create mesmerizing displays. The 66-foot model is conveniently designed as a single cord, making setup a breeze. However, be prepared for a slightly complicated app interface when creating your own custom scenes. But hey, you’ll be saving some money and still be the envy of your neighborhood.
Twinkly Strings (Multicolor and White Edition)
Original Price: $140 Discounted Price: $97
If you’re in search of lights that will leave everyone in awe, Twinkly Strings are your best bet. With a wide range of sizes and options, Twinkly offers holiday string lights that combine sophistication with dazzling effects. These lights feature individually addressable LEDs and an app that allows you to create customized animations and effects that will leave your guests speechless.
- Connectivity: 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi, BLE
- Works with: Apple HomeKit, Amazon Alexa, Google Home
- Tunable white: Yes
- Outdoor rated: IP44
- Sizes: 26.2ft (100 LEDs), 65.6ft (250 LEDs), 105ft (400 LEDs), and 157.5ft (600 LEDs)
- Cord color: Black, green, or clear (variable based on length)
- Music sync: Yes, with smartphone or additional hardware
Twinkly’s lights offer a wide variety of impressive effects, thanks to a unique mapping feature that adapts the animations to the layout of your lights. With the option to create your own designs and even upload GIFs, the possibilities are endless. However, be prepared for some connectivity issues and a slightly fiddly app interface. If you’re willing to put up with those minor setbacks, Twinkly will guarantee a dazzling holiday experience.
Nanoleaf Essentials Matter Smart Holiday String Lights
Price: $90
Looking for Matter-compatible lights? Nanoleaf has you covered with their Essentials Matter Smart Holiday String Lights. These lights offer rich colors, crisp whites, and individual LED addressability for added fun. With Matter compatibility out of the box, you can easily integrate them into your smart home platform of choice. While Nanoleaf’s outdoor lighting options are limited, they have a wide array of indoor lighting options that can be synchronized with the string lights.
- Connectivity: Matter (Wi-Fi), 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi, BLE
- Works with: Matter (Apple Home, Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Samsung SmartThings, and more)
- Tunable white: Yes, 2,700 to 6,500 Kelvins
- Outdoor rated: IP44
- Sizes: 65.6ft (250 LEDs)
- Cord color: Black
- Music sync: Yes, built into the controller
Nanoleaf’s lights are easy to set up and offer a range of colors and effects. Being Matter-compatible, they seamlessly integrate with your existing smart home system. While these lights work wonders for indoor decorations, they might not be your best option for a large outdoor lighting display. But if you’re looking to elevate your indoor holiday decor to the next level, Nanoleaf Essentials are a great choice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which are the best smart holiday string lights that work with Amazon Alexa? All of the string lights we tested are compatible with Amazon Alexa for easy voice control. They also work seamlessly with Google Assistant through Google Home. Moreover, the Hue Festavia, Twinkly, and Nanoleaf lights can be controlled by Apple’s Siri.
Can you connect multiple smart holiday string lights? Most smart string lights cannot be physically connected to each other like standard lights. However, you can sync them through their respective apps to display the same colors, scenes, and lighting effects. Keep in mind that multiple strings may result in multiple power cords, making it trickier to decorate your whole tree. But don’t worry, even if you have to work with multiple cords, the end result will be worth it!
How do you control smart holiday string lights? Each string light comes with a physical controller on its power cord for manual on/off control. You can also manage the lights through the manufacturer’s app, allowing you to set timers or schedules and adjust colors and scenes. To take it further, integrate the lights into your smart home platform to add them to automations and routines, control them with voice commands, or use smart buttons, switches, or motion sensors to manage them.
So, whether you choose the rich colors of Philips Hue, the budget-friendly option of Govee, the impressive effects of Twinkly, or the Matter compatibility of Nanoleaf, upgrading your holiday lights to a smart option is sure to bring some serious flair to your festivities. Get ready to dazzle your guests and become the envy of the neighborhood!
Original content written by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy for The ENBLE.
