Jordan O'BrienWhen it comes to smart lighting systems, none are as easy to install as the Philips Hue line-up of products. That’s why they’re leading the market, but with new competition cropping up all the time, Philips is hoping that by making its system even simpler yet smarter, it can win over the newcomers.
The new app update is rolling out now to iOS and Android-based devices, and offers a whole variety of new features that are designed to make controlling the Hue system easier. This includes the launch of new shortcuts.
“We’ve made our smart home lighting even smarter. Our new app update is easier to use than ever. New features include shortcuts, which make setting up rooms a breeze, new colour pickers, as well as 30 new scenes that allow instant scene setting to match your mood or that special moment,” says Jasper Vervoort, head of marketing and product management, Home Systems & Luminaires at Philips Lighting.
“In designing the upgrade, we took advice from lighting designers, user experience specialists and, most importantly, from our customers. The result is an app befitting the world’s most loved smart lighting system for the home.”
In addition to the new features, the Philips Hue app has received an overhauled look, with users now able to adjust the smart lighting in just a few taps. For example, with a single press and hold on the room setup or individual lights, users can change the colour or set your four last used scenes.
A new colour picker feature allows users to group and ungroup lights in a room, and easily choose the exact shade of white or coloured light from the palette. Make it easy to get the mood just right.
The app also comes with 30 new scenes, handpicked from Philips’ lighting designers. With a simple tap, users can enjoy a sunset in Honolulu or a night out in London’s Soho district, and match the lighting to their mood. The app update also gives more scenes to choose from and lets users easily create their own personal scenes. The app extracts the relevant colours from a consumer’s favourite pictures and intelligently applies them to the lights.