Just this afternoon I reported on the topic of Sync Box and external inputs, now there is more than interesting news from Philips Hue. At the CES in Las Vegas they announced that the Philips Hue Sync TV App will be released on Samsung Smart TVs. Owners of Samsung QLED TVs built in 2022 (from model Q60) can thus do without the Hue Sync Box.
It’s a topic I’ve stumbled across again and again in the past. Be it on social media or in emails to me: again and again people ask after a new purchase of the Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box and a Gradient Light Strip why the apps on their TV are not compatible.
Shame on me: Last year I actually didn’t ask you how many Hue lights you are currently using. The start of 2023 should be reason enough for us to take a look. The last time I asked you how many Hue lamps you currently use was in February 2021. At that time, 26 percent of readers had five or fewer Hue lamps in use, but over 30 percent had more than 30 lamps.
2022 is history. A year with numerous exciting Hue innovations lies behind us. Among my favourites, but I’m sure you already know that, are the Perifo track system and the Festavia string lights. Now it’s time to wish you a happy new year. 2023 is ahead of us – hopefully with better news and developments than in the past year.
Today I briefly considered trying out the Lightbar for the Perifo track system, but we’ll postpone that until later. Today we will first deal with a question from the community that Michel sent me. He asks: I want a certain lamp to come on at sunset, but only when I’m at home.
Only a few days after the major update to version 4.14, developer Stefan Göhler delivers the next update for his app iConnectHue. Version 4.15 is released shortly before Christmas, and not without reason: It contains animations for the new Philips Hue Festavia. The string light is probably already hanging on the Christmas tree of one or the other of you.
More than a year after the original announcement, Philips Hue unlocked the new Natural Light feature yesterday. A 24-hour scene that provides the optimal white light throughout the different times of the day. Cool, activating white tones in the morning and relaxed warm white in the evening. The first big problem: Natural Light can so far only be activated manually in the app.
Last year, Philips Hue already announced the new “Natural Light” feature. After a bit of a false start in the summer, the new feature is finally available with the release of version 4.32 of the Philips Hue app. I would like to briefly introduce you to what you can expect. This is how Philips Hue explains its new feature Natural light uses different shades of warm-to-cool white light that are designed to help you stay productive and feel supported in your overall wellbeing.
Just before Christmas, Philips Hue probably didn’t dare to release the big new feature “Natural Light”. Nevertheless, there is an update – and there are actually some useful functions. If you have a Gradient Lightstrip or another Gradient light source, such as the Signe, in use, you can now also use the mirrored mode known from the Festavia light chain.
To control my Hue lights, I prefer to use the official app from Philips Hue. To configure accessories, I have so far resorted to iConnectHue (App Store link). With the latest update to version 4.14, Stefan Göhler’s app offers numerous new functions around the topic of colours – and thus also becomes really interesting for controlling lamps.
Fabian