LED panels Archives - Homekit News and Reviews https://homekitnews.com/category/lights/led-panels/ all things HomeKit, Matter, and connected tech in one site. Thu, 27 Jul 2023 03:22:23 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.6.2 https://homekitnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/cropped-HKN-icon-32x32.png LED panels Archives - Homekit News and Reviews https://homekitnews.com/category/lights/led-panels/ 32 32 144755973 Yeelight Cube Smart Lamps w/ Matter (review) https://homekitnews.com/2023/04/01/yeelight-cube-smart-lamps-review/ Sat, 01 Apr 2023 09:45:45 +0000 https://homekitnews.com/?p=34599 When it comes to lighting products, I’ve had a long and generally good experience with Yeelight’s bulbs, light strips, and

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When it comes to lighting products, I’ve had a long and generally good experience with Yeelight’s bulbs, light strips, and other smart lights – even when they’ve been rebadged for Xiaomi under the Mi/Mijia smart home brand. Not all of their products have been so great, but in the case of today’s review, I would argue that Yeelight has gone the extra mile – not only with a refreshing new angle on lighting but also for their dedication to the new smart home standard, Matter. Today’s product review is for the Yeelight Cube Smart Lamp, although as you’ll see, it’s not a lamp in any traditional sense, and ‘it’ should actually be ‘they’. Read on…

PACKAGING | CONTENTS

The Yeelight Cube Smart Lamp exists as three separate models; the ‘Panel’, the ‘Spot’, and the ‘Matrix’. Each of these is the same in terms of size and shape, but each offers something distinct. They can all work together, however. More on the differences in a bit.



To slightly complicate things, each cube can be bought as part of what you might call a basic starter pack, which includes one cube and a base, which both power the Cube(s) and connects to your network, or as an ‘extension’, meaning you get the cube by itself, without the base to power it. In the case of the above, you can see this is the pack that includes the base and one ‘Panel’ cube.



The box for the ‘starter’ pack is larger due to the included power supply and aforementioned base unit.



Starting with the base, which is actually the part that both connects to your smart home and your network. To connect to your home network, it uses standard 2.4GHz WiFi. It would’ve been nice to have seen Thread used here, but Yeelight doesn’t seem to have gone down that route, instead sticking with WiFi and Bluetooth Mesh for some of its other products. The base matches the cubes in terms of two of its three dimensions (square, essentially), with a touch-sensitive indent acting as a multi-function button on the front. The back of the cube is home to a coaxial port for the power supply, and the upper face houses a recessed circle containing four metallic rings. This is what transmits power and data from the base to cubes connected to it in series. The relevant information is etched on this surface as well, which includes not only basic electrical specs but also the Matter QR code. Yes, if you weren’t already aware, whilst this can work with HomeKit, it does so via Matter, so there’s no HomeKit code as such. As regards the aforementioned rings, each cube also has one of these sets of rings, along with an ‘opposing’ connection to pass on the power/data to successive cubes, which I’ll show you in a bit. The underside, which you’ll only see if the base is stood on its side, houses a stylised version of the Yeelight logo.



Onto one of the three cubes now, and as already mentioned, there’s an instance of the four recessed metallic rings on one end. The opposite end features a raised circle that’s home to four retractable pins. These, in case it isn’t obvious by now, correspond to the four rings. The back of the device is blank, and the front with the LED display has nothing of note unless it’s powered up, which we’ll see later.



Finally, the power supply is of a design used by Yeelight many times. I’ve got the North American (Type A) version here, but the power supply has a removable plug, which can be switched out to one of three versions, depending on where you purchase this or where it’s shipping to, so you’ll get either a European adaptor (Type C) or a UK adaptor (Type G).

THE THREE CUBE VARIANTS

I’ve got all three variants here, starting with the…

  • PANEL: you can see it’s one large colour…panel, although underneath the diffuser it still has 25 individual LEDs like the Matrix. The diffuser merely blends the lights so that they create a uniform look. As it has 25 LEDs, it can display multiple colours at once.
  • MATRIX: This comes with the name for obvious reasons, and with this display, you get 25 dots each capable of producing different colours. As there’s no diffuser as is found with the Panel, you can create graphics and other images very clearly.
  • SPOT: This option is only capable of one colour at a time, as it’s one large and powerful LED, with a built-in reflector to maximise brightness. What it does offer is the ability to act as a light to shed colour onto a wall or a ceiling, but it can also be angled to a certain degree.
PUTTING THEM TOGETHER

As you can see from the promotional image above, these can connect using the rings and pins I showed earlier, with a maximum of six cubes of any type connected to one base at any time. If you want more than six cubes, then you just set up another base unit, and add cubes to that base. Each Cube has magnets to help keep them stuck together.

The base unit, as previously stated, is what connects the Cubes to your smart home platform of choice with the included Matter code. In my case, I added the base unit to the Yeelight Station app, which is a new and separate application from the standard Yeelight app. This is specifically for the Cube at this time, but I’m sure it’ll be home to future smart home lighting products of this type at some point later.

YEELIGHT STATION APP

In the app, the main screen will show each base unit you have in a separate block, so in the example above there’s only one base unit. From there you can turn the base (and by extension any Cubes connected to it) on or off, or select one of thirteen preset ‘modes’ as they’re labelled, although I’d tend to refer to these as preset themes. Tapping anywhere else on the main device panel opens up more options, so the same 13 modes are available as floating ‘bubbles’ (spread over two screens) that give you a better idea of what each mode might look like, along with the descriptive name. Each mode also comes with an edit button to allow customisation of each mode. Depending on the mode’s theme, you can edit overall or individual colours, the speed of the animation, and change the direction of the animation, where available.



As the Yeelight Cubes are modular, allowing for a mix of types and amounts, you do need to let the app know the layout of the set of Cubes. Within the Device Settings menu, the Module Splicing option does just this, with a visual UI to allow you to add or remove different Cube types, rearrange the order, and select the orientation of the base unit. As previously stated, the maximum amount of Cubes you can add to a base unit is six. I assume this is due to power constraints, although if you set these to be upright, like a tower block, then any more than six cubes is likely an accident waiting to happen, which at worst, could injure a toddler if one of these cubes landed on their head (they’re not light and the corners are reasonably sharp) or at the least could leave you with a damaged, non-functional Cube.

The touch-sensitive button on the base unit serves three main functions;

  • a single tap turns the unit and the Cubes on if they’re off.
  • a 2-second press turns the unit/cubes off
  • a 5-second press factory resets the base unit
  • a single tap when the unit is on, cycles through up to eight different modes

By default, six of the modes are already assigned, but you can assign any of the modes as well as your own designs if you wish. This is achieved via the ‘Custom Button Switching’ option.



For a few other settings, the Device Settings panel allows for firmware updates, LAN control, and Pairing Mode for Matter. Even though the base units come with a Matter code, once that code has been used for one smart home platform (in this case Yeelight’s own system), it can’t be reused to add the device to additional platforms, so in my case when the base unit was added to the Yeelight Station app, in order to get it into HomeKit, I needed to generate a new code, that I could then paste into the Home app when adding it to HomeKit. This code changes each time the Pairing mode has been activated.

If you were to add the base unit to HomeKit first, you’d use the provided Matter QR code, then enable Pairing mode in the Home app for other platforms. This appears to be pretty much the same arrangement with Google Home and Amazon Alexa, although, at the time of writing, you can’t add Matter devices to these two platforms unless you do so via an Android phone.



Even though the Cubes come with some nice preset modes, you can create your own, so in the case of both the Panel and Matrix, you can draw your designs on a 25-dot artboard, with each dot representing a colour LED in both of these Cubes. The UI allows you to colour each ‘dot’ individually, which you can see easily reflected on the display for the Matrix, although less so on the Panel, as it has a diffuser, so the dots are far less obvious. The Spot is a different story, as it can only do one colour at a time, so it’s really just a case of selecting a colour. There’s also a ‘Dynamic Effects’ option that can be applied to both preset modes and your own creations. These are;

  • None (off basically)
  • Translation – scrolling from the top, bottom, left, or right
  • Breath – the brightness of the Cubes pulsates slowly
  • Flashing – the cubes turn on and off
  • Accumulation – the design is gradually built up with the relevant LEDs turning on bit by bit


In addition to the option to create your own visuals, you get a large selection of presets that are grouped into different areas;

  • Graphics – these consist of icons of all types, like arrows, patterns, hearts, and even those ghost creatures found in Pacman
  • Alphabet – this is simply the 26 letters of the English alphabet
  • Numbers – zero to nine basically.

These all come with preset colours, although the colours can be changed simply by selecting the ‘edit’ button at the bottom.



And finally, you get some presets designed to work best with certain dynamic effects;

  • Transition
  • Horizontal combination
  • Vertical combination

These allow you to set up a set of Cubes (using only Matrix Cubes for the best effect) and have them move in sequence to create a sort of animated effect, as the designs roll either vertically or horizontally across all of the Cubes.

CLOCK FUNCTION

Many people asked me on social media if the clock feature would actually work once these were released, and I’m happy to say it works as hoped.



There’s nothing you need to do other than to turn the feature on in the Yeelight Station app, although to be clear, this feature cannot be activated unless you have at least four Matrix cubes available and set up in the app. Once that’s sorted, you can then just turn the option on and the current time will immediately take over from whatever was there previously. Tapping on the clock theme opens up a second screen that offers a choice of 8 preset colour options, ranging from multi-coloured, tinted, or regular colours. These cannot be altered, other than for brightness, so if you don’t particularly like the choice of yellow in the particular preset, that’s too bad.



You also have the option to choose from just the time, the date, or both date and time. The latter option switches between time and date every few seconds. If you add other Matrix or Panel Cubes to the lineup whilst the clock is active, they won’t do anything and will be inactive. The Spot is the exception to this and will beam a solid colour in the same hue as the clock, and at the same brightness.

IN THE HOME APP

If you’ve ever owned any multicolour devices before (like the Onvis K1 Kameleon light strip for example), you’ll know that HomeKit is confined to one colour at a time, so if you choose a colour in the Home app UI, all the cubes will change to this colour. Any special designs will also be replaced by a solid colour, whether it’s the Panel, Matrix, or Spot. You can adjust the brightness as normal, and in fact, if the Cubes are set to a specific Yeelight Station ‘Mode’, turning the cubes on within Home will retain that design, and even allow you to adjust the overall brightness of that design, but the moment you choose a colour, the design is gone. Companies like the aforementioned Onvis get around this by allowing you to create multicolour designs in their own app and save them as ‘Scenes’ which also show up as scenes in the Home app, thereby allowing you to recall these multicolour creations within automations etc. Yeelight’s app is not currently capable of such a feat, at least not right now, which is a shame.

This points to the larger limitations of the Yeelight Station app, as you don’t even have options to trigger the cubes to turn on or off via schedules. Even if the app was only capable of turning a design on or off at specific times or days, it would be something, but it can’t do anything like that, which means a lot of these changes have to be performed manually, via the app or the button on the base unit.

Hopefully, based on my conversations with Yeelight so far, this will change with future updates to the app, that’ll add more functionality, and likely even more ‘Themes’, so we’ll have to wait and see. It’s also entirely possible that even more types of Cube will be released down the line, although what form these would take I’m not sure.

MATTER

When it comes to Matter, things worked fine when it came to adding the base unit to HomeKit, and it was pretty much like adding any natively HomeKit-compatible device. That said, when it came to adding it to other platforms, it was – as you’ve probably seen is the case with some other reviewers – a bit of a mixed bag. I currently have devices from Google, Amazon, and Samsung* that will all allow Matter over WiFi devices, although in the case of the former two, you can currently only add a Matter device via their respective Android apps. This was a success when it came to Alexa, and I am now able to control the Cube lights via Alexa or the app – even on iOS now that it has been added to my account. Sadly it wasn’t the case when it came to Google, for whatever reason, but I’m not going to dwell on it for now.

*I have yet to set up the Samsung SmartThing Station…lazy

IN USE

I’ve had a fair bit of fun exploring the options available, and generally speaking, I think Yeelight has scored a large win with this set of lights. The obvious comparison to the recently released Twinkly Squares can’t be ignored, although they are in many ways quite different products – the Twinkly offering is designed for being wall mounted, whilst these Cubes are meant for a desktop or shelf. The Twinkly Squares do offer a higher ‘resolution’ if you can call it that, as they offer an 8 x 8 matrix, which gives you a total of 64 individually controllable LEDs compared to Yeelight’s 5 x 5 matrix (25 LEDs), but importantly, Yeelight offers three different models, not just a matrix-type tile. Both use WiFi, but if you were ever concerned about futureproofing, then Yeelight, with its Matter support offers local control for all compatible platforms. Both offer Razer connectivity, and even though I don’t have a PC, for any gamer out there, these would undoubtedly be a welcome addition – not just for gaming, but music and video too.

The build quality is in all honesty, second to none. The cubes are really well manufactured, and just by holding one in your hand, it just feels really premium. Likewise, the colours are richly saturated and bright to the extent they need to be, and as it uses WiFi, you generally get fast response times, although I’d really have liked to have seen Thread in use here.

My only frustration is the lack of any form of automation or scheduling options within the Yeelight app, so I do hope they come up with something in this respect, even if it’s basic, as without this, it can be tiresome to go into the app or get up to turn the Cubes on or off.

Some have said they don’t see the point of these, and whilst I get the argument, I think as I’ve already said, these work best when paired with a PC, but I think there’s a lot of mileage still to be had with these. Sure, it’s a bit of a novelty in many ways, but then I’m not Amish, so I think I can afford to experience some colourful smart lights once in a while without the need to question its role in society!

If you’re looking for functional lighting, these are almost definitely not for you, but if you have kids, like to entertain, or play games on your PC, these are some of the better products on the market right now.

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34599
Nanoleaf Elements Lighting Tiles https://homekitnews.com/2021/06/05/nanoleaf-elements-lighting-tiles/ Sat, 05 Jun 2021 10:37:52 +0000 https://homekitnews.com/?p=28732 The Nanoleaf Elements Wood-look panels are designed to add an elegant and organic feel to your home. Choose from a

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The Nanoleaf Elements Wood-look panels are designed to add an elegant and organic feel to your home. Choose from a range of warm to cool lighting options to illuminate your space with a natural glow. Made to look beautiful on or off.

Create a truly personalized lighting experience. Explore your own unique lighting designs by arranging the modular panels into any configuration you want for complete creative freedom. Nanoleaf Elements offer truly bespoke lighting without the traditional markups, all without sacrificing elegance or style. The best part is you can easily redesign at any time!

The perfect harmony of art and technology, Nanoleaf Elements are both beautiful wall art and customizable ambient lighting made to look beautiful on or off. Create geometric artwork with the nature-inspired organic Hexagon shapes or turn them on to set the ideal ambience. Control using the touch buttons and find additional smart customizations through the Nanoleaf App.

From recreating the cosy feeling of a glowing Ember to the sense of escape and relaxation of a Calming Waterfall, Nanoleaf Elements comes with 11 curated Scenes. Gently fill your space with a dynamic glowing illumination to set the ideal ambience for unwinding or finding inspiration. You can also customize your own to fit your lifestyle. Or turn on Rhythm Music Sync to pair perfectly with your favourite jazz or coffeehouse playlist.

  • Luminous Flux Per Panel – 22 lumens
  • Lifetime – 25,000 hours
  • Communication Protocol – WiFi (2.4 GHz b/g/n) NOTE: 5GHz networks are not compatible with Nanoleaf products.
  • Dimmability – Yes (via Nanoleaf App, Voice, Touch)
  • Veneer Material – Laminate with a wood grain finish (PVC)
  • Mounting Type – Via included double-sided tape or screw mounts (screws and anchors not included)

Key Features

  • Connect+, Touch, Music Sync, Dynamic Glowing Effect.
  • Nanoleaf App
  • Control via the Nanoleaf App (Android & iOS) for mobile/tablet or the Nanoleaf Desktop App (Windows & Mac).
Compatibility
  • Apple HomeKit, Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, IFTTT, SmartThings

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28732
LifeSmart Cololight Plus https://homekitnews.com/2020/04/10/lifesmart-cololight-plus/ https://homekitnews.com/2020/04/10/lifesmart-cololight-plus/#comments Fri, 10 Apr 2020 10:34:22 +0000 https://homekitnews.com/?p=23867 Cololight PLUS is an upgrade to Cololight and Cololight PRO. It is an ambient light supporting split joint and colour

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Cololight PLUS is an upgrade to Cololight and Cololight PRO. It is an ambient light supporting split joint and colour changing. Cololight PLUS works with Apple HomeKit. It can be placed on the table or installed as a background wall, or on a suspended ceiling. Its unique functions, like changing colour with music, or voice control, bring an intelligent play to a lighting system, providing many scenes with various experiences.

Features

  • Split and joint, infinite expansion
  • 16,000,000 colors
  • Colour changing along with music
  • Selected colour, customized colour
  • Voice control

Specs

  • Size: Main body 86×74.5×30.5mm
  • Weight: Main body 52.5g
  • Colour: Ivory
  • Communication protocol: WiFi
  • Working voltage: 5V

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Nanoleaf Aurora ‘Rhythm Edition’ (review) https://homekitnews.com/2019/03/03/nanoleaf-aurora-rhythm-edition-review/ Sun, 03 Mar 2019 04:36:53 +0000 https://homekitnews.com/?p=12505 I recently decided to redo my living room, as it was a cluttered mess of old paint, old shelves, and

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I recently decided to redo my living room, as it was a cluttered mess of old paint, old shelves, and just general poor taste. As I was doing this I thought “what better way to bring in the new than with a product designed strictly to be a new idea in almost every way?”. The Nanoleaf Aurora light panels.  

My first impressions upon seeing the box were a little odd. This is a company that thrives on design, and they decided to use a high gloss exterior box sleeve with a brown box inside it. What? Having said that, the packaging was pretty intelligently laid out on the inside, and I’m sure it could be shipped about 7 times before anything got damaged.

The colour part of the packaging was decent looking; maybe I’m being a bit rough on them. I originally purchased one ‘smarter” kit’ and one ‘expansion pack’, with the ‘smarter kit’ containing nine panels and the ‘expansion’ being three. I had to rob a bank and sell a kidney, so I hoped it was worth it. For some reason, I did think the panels would be thinner, and at first, I thought they might be a little off-putting on the wall.  

Anyway, it comes with:

  • The power cords 
  • The power module 
  • The rhythm module 
  • The panels
  • The prep sheets (tissue paper for layout)
  • The diode transfer pieces (visually similar to SIM cards)
  • Stickies to attach to the wall (3M)
  • A Sticker for branding and fun

Installation:
So, after you get the panels out of the box, you need to get creative on your wall. You can make a shape or any design you want using the ‘prep sheets’, or as we later learned, using a function in the app to plan the wall layout as well. The prep sheets are just tissue paper. We had to do it twice because we aren’t great thinkers, and here’s where I stop to say “There is no shame in that”.” If you really want a nice looking ‘artsy final project that looks clean’ I recommend being willing to spend up to a few hours. Once you have the prep sheets how you want them to take the power module, you then test each panel, as it says in the instructions. We’ve had experience with 3m stickies, which you basically use to make sure each side of each triangle panel sticks, by getting a majority of the sticky inside and leaving a little out. You might consider shaping of the stickies externally for neighbouring tiles too (so that external stickies don’t create a stack and make the tiles sit unevenly). Like I said, patience. Once you have your first one up, you have started the process. The electric chip (diode transfer) should be slid in first, so you want to keep panels at an angle and sorta slide in each new panel (to the diode first) and ease it ‘stickies side down’ then press down. You will want to check each and every tile as you go since each panel transfers to the ones connected. This will help to avoid mistakes in the long run. When you are done, depending on your setup, you may not love the cords and/or want to hide them somehow. I will touch on this later.

The app:
The App is segmented into several pieces (read destinations) with some of them available from 3 different menus. The main functions of the app are as follows: 

  1. Help you design the wall setup if you don’t want to use the paper.  
  2. Help you create and sync scenes both in the app and HomeKit. 
  3. Help you add hardware, if not already added, prior to buying the panels (think controllers and other lights)
  4. Help you buy more Nanoleaf products. 
  5. Help you discover other peoples scenes they created and acquire them.

Of these, the main functions I used were adding and editing scenes, along with syncing them, mostly. The reason being that once the relationship with HomeKit is established it’s sort of in my wheelhouse since that’s the platform I use. I am cutting this somewhat short here because the layout of the app is enough to frustrate some non-technical users. I’m not going to go into every user interface choice I don’t love, as it could be an issue for some users.  

The main dashboard has five main tabs that most users will use.  

  • Basic: choose a basic colour/gradient for all panels scene. 
  • Color Static: choose a multi-mix static non-gradient colour which can be different for all panels scene.
  • Color Dynamic: choose a multi-mix of dynamic animated colours that change based on time intervals.
  • Rhythm: choose a multi-mix static non-gradient colour which can be different for all panels with animation scene and changes based on parameters by sound with the invocation of scene or module by hand. 
  • Group: Look at scenes from HomeKit to try and group Nanoleaf scenes.

Once chosen, you can use the pencil tool to edit any scene (located in the top right corner). Depending on the capabilities of the type of scene, there is also the palette tool. This is an artsy device guys, and I almost feel like I’m reviewing a piece of Adobe software here, so I’m gonna stop there. You can edit animation colours etc with some limitations, so you could spend quite some time doing your own or even fooling with the several built-in scenes under any scene type.

Day-to-day use:
Using this product on a day-to-day level will be different for all users. With its Homekit support and sync function in the app, you will be able to trigger animated, basic, and colour scenes that are entwined with your other HomeKit scenes. You can do this by fighting with Homekit or fighting with the nano leaf app, to pair the scenes in sort of a manual fashion. IT IS NOT STREAMLINED. With HomeKit you can also control all panels by voice. You can physically control it by touching the buttons on the power module. The buttons are basically on/off and set a scene. Likewise, with the rhythm module, you can press that and anyone can clap or yell etc. and it will ‘dance’, based on the rhythm scene set using either the app or HomeKit. 

Intelligence aside, I think, as my wife put it in our wedding vows, “(s)he/it is nice to look at”. It should be noted that if you have the Nanoleaf Remote you can easily attach scenes to it in HomeKit or the Nanoleaf app. Furthermore, even on non-Rhythm colour scenes, it uses the Rhythm module to reduce the brightness when turning the remote counter-clockwise and brighter while turning right. So we set the remote to control eleven HomeKit scenes and number twelve to turn off the panels for when we leave. We haven’t automated the device aside from attaching it to scenes, mainly being that it can be quite bright. 

I want to add a side note with concerns I have regarding the NanoLeaf Remote in combination with the Aurora; Since it can do both Nanoleaf and HomeKit scenes, you can have some issues if you decide to populate HomeKit then turn off sync. There are reasons to do this, but I don’t think it is in your best interest. Having said that, If sync is on, you can mix and match as you like and its pretty cool. We leave ours sitting by the door so you can come in and flip the die (controller) and get our favourite scenes from both platforms. The people who live here know that the higher numbers are rhythm scenes.  So you just walk in, flip to 10 and tell Siri to play your favourite song.

I wanted to speak to the actual rhythm module and controller though. At its core, this product can be turned off and on, and have scenes changed via the power/main module. There is one button for each of those functions. If you have issues pulling the power, that will reset the network card inside. The rhythm module can be invoked at any time by pressing the triangle section on the switch, which now makes the panels responsive to sound. There have been complaints about a delay from several other users, but if you aren’t a pro DJ or didn’t spend thousands of dollars putting these in a club it won’t matter much as that feature is sort of a novelty for most end users. It’s supposed to be fun.  

HomeKit:
I’ve spoken a little about HomeKit here but connecting it is pretty simple; You scan the code and there it is.  I also spoke a little bit about the remote. The remote sort of auto-syncs rhythm or colour scenes to empty HomeKit scenes on it (or at least it did for me). This is great for people with the remote that want that and don’t have HomeKit. As far as the actual panels go, the controller module is what is connected to HomeKit.  So it looks like one light. It works flawlessly in my opinion under those terms. If you are okay with learning a light design platform that connects to HomeKit, that is what this is. It’s not as hard as ‘Mario Paint’ but it is a platform.

As for how it behaves in HomeKit… It behaves, as previously said, like a single light with no editable properties in the Home app. Voice can turn the panels on a single colour or percentage in the way you would expect of a normal colour light bulb, with the exception that it doesn’t take commands by calling it “light panels”. You must say “turn the”; for example “turn the light panels blue” works, but not “Light panels blue”. It will take light panels and a per cent though. For example “Hey Siri light panels 15 per cent”.  Of course, the tile is adjustable just like any single light as that’s what it thinks it is in HomeKit.  

I do have a HomeKit warning, however, that you must have the ‘sync’ function on when you want to add a Nanoleaf scene from the app to a HomeKit scene or even as a stand-alone scene in HomeKit. This sync function isn’t granular. It will sync every single scene from the Nanoleaf app you have downloaded, or created, to HomeKit – and you have a limit of 100 scenes within HomeKit. This is problematic in several ways especially if you didn’t know it would do that. To alleviate this, I chose to only have 10 scenes or so in the Nanoleaf app at any point in time. There is no other way around this as every time you load the app every scene will populate to Homekit, which even by default, is several.  This is a huge misstep.

When you have a scene you want to publish in conjunction with a HomeKit scene it requires: 

  • saving the scene to Nanoleaf (after creating it or editing it, or downloading etc)
  • clicking groups in the app from the dashboard
  • finding the HomeKit scene you want to publish the Nanoleaf scene to
  • swiping that scene left 
  • pressing the Pencil tool
  • finding the light panels by scrolling
  • clicking them and adding the scene by name

This is a dumpster fire for most users. None of this is documented in any real way. At least not to my knowledge. I mitigated this by diagraming how the platforms talked and making sure I didn’t have lots of scenes in the Nanoleaf app as previously said. 

Other Notes:
This is an art driven platform modular device with tech on the back end. I said I would get back to the problems with the setup in terms of power cables etc. Because of the power required, unless you have a good ‘hide’ technique (aesthetically) the plugs/cables will be off-putting seeing as they’ll in most cases be dangling down to the nearest outlet. So consider this before buying. Ultimately I bought a seat that doubled as storage and a 6-inch flat plug extender. Your methods may vary.

Final thoughts:
I love it, but it wasn’t the easiest thing to implement. Also, consider your budget. Obviously, this isn’t aimed at the lightbulb replacement crowd. I was accidentally double-shipped and got quite a discount so I went a little crazy. In closing, I think it’s a cool product aimed at people wanting to paint with light. When you think about the fact that the famous French impressionist Monet had to sit for hours and wait for enough light so he could paint, what’s a little tech bullcrap to literally paint with light?

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Nanoleaf Canvas Touch Controlled LEDs https://homekitnews.com/2018/11/27/nanoleaf-canvas-touch-controlled-leds/ Tue, 27 Nov 2018 13:23:55 +0000 https://homekitnews.com/?p=9917 The Nanoleaf Canvas was designed to add a dash of playful, ambient light to any room. The Light Squares react

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The Nanoleaf Canvas was designed to add a dash of playful, ambient light to any room.

  • The Light Squares react to your touch—personalize touch commands in the Nanoleaf App.
  • Connect Light Squares together along any edge to create your design.
  • Activate Rhythm Mode and watch your Light Squares react to sound.
  • Works out of the box, but personalize your experience with the optional Nanoleaf App.
  • Automate your Light Squares by programming schedules using the Nanoleaf App.
  • Works with Apple Siri, Google Assistant, and Amazon Alexa.

https://youtu.be/svHRF5dVC7Q

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Philips Hue Aurelle White Ambiance LED Panel Light (square – 30 x 30cm) https://homekitnews.com/2018/09/12/philips-hue-aurelle-white-ambiance-led-panel-light-square-30-x-30cm/ Wed, 12 Sep 2018 11:02:06 +0000 https://homekitnews.com/?p=7181 Light with Dimmer Switch – Hue Aurelle panel lamp with integrated, energy-saving LED module can of the included hue dimmer switch or

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  • Light with Dimmer Switch – Hue Aurelle panel lamp with integrated, energy-saving LED module can of the included hue dimmer switch or hue app with hue bridge lead available seperately.
  • To ensure a smooth function to generate use cannot guarantee that this will be in English Philips Hue dimmer switch (included. This Philips Hue is not compatible with pre-installed dimmers
  • Colour temperature: Up to 6 500 Kelvin. Choose the hue app can be adjusted to any length from candlelight to relax and read to the Kühlerem, brighter light for focus and energy refuelling
  • Is very thin, design is Aurelle panel is ideal for lowest ceilings.
  • Works with Amazon Alexa for voice recognition (echo echo dot and necessary hue bridge sold separately). The smart home experience for your home.

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Philips Hue Aurelle White Ambiance LED Panel Light (square – 60 x 60cm) https://homekitnews.com/2018/09/12/philips-hue-aurelle-white-ambiance-led-panel-light-square-60-x-60cm/ Wed, 12 Sep 2018 10:55:20 +0000 https://homekitnews.com/?p=7177 Light with Dimmer Switch – Hue Aurelle panel lamp with integrated, energy-saving LED module can of the included hue dimmer switch or

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  • Light with Dimmer Switch – Hue Aurelle panel lamp with integrated, energy-saving LED module can of the included hue dimmer switch or hue app with hue bridge lead available seperately.
  • To ensure a smooth function to generate use cannot guarantee that this will be in English Philips Hue dimmer switch (included. This Philips Hue is not compatible with pre-installed dimmers
  • Colour temperature: Up to 6 500 Kelvin. Choose the hue app can be adjusted to any length from candlelight to relax and read to the Kühlerem, brighter light for focus and energy refuelling
  • Is very thin, design is Aurelle panel is ideal for lowest ceilings.
  • Works with Amazon Alexa for voice recognition (echo echo dot and necessary hue bridge sold separately). The smart home experience for your home.

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Philips Hue Aurelle White Ambiance LED Panel Light (rectangle) https://homekitnews.com/2018/09/12/philips-hue-aurelle-white-ambiance-led-panel-light-rectangle/ Wed, 12 Sep 2018 10:47:58 +0000 https://homekitnews.com/?p=7169 Connect the Aurelle Philips Hue White Ambiance ceiling light to your Philips Hue system and enjoy a natural white light

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Connect the Aurelle Philips Hue White Ambiance ceiling light to your Philips Hue system and enjoy a natural white light that will help you wake up, recharge your batteries, concentrate, read and relax. Designed to make you feel even more at home.

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Philips Hue Aurelle White Ambiance LED Panel Light (round) https://homekitnews.com/2018/09/12/philips-hue-aurelle-white-ambiance-led-panel-light-round/ Wed, 12 Sep 2018 07:08:20 +0000 https://homekitnews.com/?p=7164 Light with Dimmer Switch – Hue Aurelle panel lamp with integrated, energy-saving LED module can of the included hue dimmer switch or

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  • Light with Dimmer Switch – Hue Aurelle panel lamp with integrated, energy-saving LED module can of the included hue dimmer switch or hue app with hue bridge lead available seperately.
  • To ensure a smooth function to generate use cannot guarantee that this will be in English Philips Hue dimmer switch (included. This Philips Hue is not compatible with pre-installed dimmers
  • Colour temperature: Up to 6 500 Kelvin. Choose the hue app can be adjusted to any length from candlelight to relax and read to the Kühlerem, brighter light for focus and energy refuelling
  • Is very thin, design is Aurelle panel is ideal for lowest ceilings.
  • Works with Amazon Alexa for voice recognition (echo echo dot and necessary hue bridge sold separately). The smart home experience for your home.

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Ikea Strömlinje LED countertop light https://homekitnews.com/2018/05/27/ikea-stromlinje-led-countertop-light/ Sun, 27 May 2018 04:05:18 +0000 https://homekitnews.com/?p=3518 You can dim your lighting wirelessly and easily adapt the lighting based on activity. Preparing food and doing kitchen work

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  • You can dim your lighting wirelessly and easily adapt the lighting based on activity.
  • Preparing food and doing kitchen work is safer, easier and more fun when you have a good, even light across your countertop.
  • The LED light source consumes up to 85% less energy and lasts 20 times longer than incandescent bulbs.
Good to know
Dimmable.
You can connect one LED countertop light to another using the 2 small connection fixtures included in the package.
Built-in LED light source.
LED life approx. 25,000 hours.
Light color: sunrise (3000 K).
To be completed with LED driver and power cord, sold separately.
Care instructions
Wipe clean with a damp cloth.
Product dimensions
Luminous flux: 280 Lumen
Length: 15 ” | 38 cm
Width: 6 ” | 15 cm
Height: 0 ” | 0.6 cm
Cord length: 11 ‘ 6 ” | 3.5 m
Power: 5.0 W

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