We purchased the The 4 Best Smart Lamps so our expert reviewer could thoroughly test and assess it. Keep reading for our full products reviews.
Best Overall: Philips Hue Go
The Philips Hue Go (Check latest price on Amazon) is a great place to start if this is your first foray into the world of smart lighting. Philips has established itself as the de facto brand for smart lighting technology, but many of their products come at a premium price. The Hue Go, on the other hand, is usually priced between $75 and $100, making it one of the more affordable Philips options without sacrificing any of the smart features that make these lights so much fun. It is our top pick because of its portability, versatility, and ability to function as a standalone device.
The Hue Go is an understated but stylish addition to any room thanks to its ultra-minimal half-sphere shape. It’s also rechargeable, so you can take it with you wherever you go — even outside. Choose the exact shade of colored light you want (there are over 16 million options), or simply set it to your preferred white light temperature. You can control it with the Philips Hue app or the device’s buttons, but if you want to use smart features like voice control and smart home integration, it has to be connected to a Philips Hue Smart Hub.
Smart lamps can be pricey, so if you’re looking for a low-cost option, the Hugoai Bedside Lamp (Check latest price on Amazon) is a good choice. It doesn’t have the same brand recognition as the other devices on this list, but it does have many of the same smart features, such as remote control, dimming, and millions of color options. This lamp will easily integrate into your existing smart home setup if you have Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, SmartLife, or IFTTT.
This lamp is ideal for a bedside lamp with a little extra ambiance, as well as a child’s room or nursery. If you want a color-changing lamp to integrate with your smart home system, or just want a lamp you can control with your phone, the Hugoai lets you do both without investing in an expensive smart lighting setup. It comes in two colors: black and white.
The term “sleep hygiene” has become somewhat of a catchphrase these days, but we all know that staring at our phones or laptops before bed can disrupt our natural sleep cycles. The popular mattress company’s Casper Glow bedside light is designed to work with your body’s light response to make it easier to fall asleep and wake up in the morning. It starts out bright enough for reading at night and gradually dims to a warm sunset orange to help you fall asleep. It mimics a sunrise to gently wake you up in the morning, similar to a wake-up light alarm clock. Our favorite part is the series of intuitive gesture controls, like twisting it to change the brightness or gently shaking it to turn on a very dim light when you need to get up in the middle of the night. Plus, its minimalist design looks great on any nightstand.
The Casper Glow (Check latest price on Amazon), like the other lights on this list, is app controlled, so you can set the wake-up light or pair it with other Glow lamps using your phone. It is not compatible with other smart home systems, so you won’t be able to use it with Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant.
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Best for the Entertainment Center: Philips Bloom
The Philips Bloom lamp (Check latest price on Amazon) is for you if you want to use mood lighting as a design feature in your home. Its spotlight design is ideal for adding color splashes to your walls or, as recommended by us, around your entertainment center. To create a stunning lit backdrop for all your favorite media, place a Bloom lamp (or two, or three) behind your TV, audio, or gaming setup. It works with all major smart home systems, including Amazon Alexa, Samsung SmartThings, Google Assistant, and Apple HomeKit, so no matter how complicated your smart home setup is, the Bloom will fit right in.
The Bloom lamp, like other Philips Hue smart lighting products, lets you choose from millions of different colors. You can also use it as a spotlight for artwork or architectural features by setting it to white light. The only drawback is the device’s appearance. Because of its pedestal design and white plastic body, it looks out of place on a table, so we recommend tucking it into your entertainment center to get the full light effect without making it a focal point.
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The Final Word
If you don’t already have a smart home system, these internet-connected lamps are a great place to start. Many of the devices on this list come with an app that allows you to access features like timers, color changing controls, and lamp synchronization. You usually don’t need any other special hardware to use these. Many of these lamps, like most other smart devices, have features that can only be accessed once they’re connected to a smart hub.
A smart hub, as the name implies, is the command center for your smart home setup, allowing you to control all of your internet-connected devices — locks, speakers, thermostats, and more — from a single device. Depending on the hub you purchase, it may include a virtual voice assistant such as Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, which allows you to control your smart home devices with just your voice. (For example, if you say, “Alexa, turn off the bedroom light,” the Alexa hub will do so without you having to touch your phone or even getting out of bed.) The market for connected devices has grown rapidly in the last few years, so it’s as good a time as ever to start your own smart home setup.
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