Philips is extending the capabilities of its Hue lighting system even further with the Philips Hue White Ambiance kit, which will give fans of the smart lighting system access to every shade of white light (via SlashGear). The new bulbs are a more robust version of the Philips Hue Lux system, which is limited to dimmable white light rather than the full array of colors available with the standard Hue bulbs.

The White Ambiance bulbs are billed as a natural companion to the day/night light cycle of the sun, encouraging users to wake up in the mornings and then dimming the light temperature to a low-level of light before bed. The low light mode is similar in theory to Apple's upcoming Night Shift feature in iOS 9.3, which cuts down on the amount of blue light users interact with in the evening hours to facilitate a better night's sleep.

Hue white ambiance kit

In fact, the Ambience bulb supports anything from 6,500 K, the equivalent of cool daylight, all the way to 2,200 K, which is a warmer, almost golden light. Philips' light recipes are supported, which use different light temperatures to promote concentration, relaxation, or other moods.

To help with this, Philips is introducing a feature called "Routines" with the launch of the White Ambiance bulbs. Comparable to the alarms and timers of the current Hue app, Routines will allow users to customize instances that gradually increase white light levels ahead of a pre-set time in the morning, and dim lights as bed time draws near in the evening. It should be noted, as with the lower-cost Lux bulbs, the White Ambiance kit will not support the ability to change to any colors besides variations of white.

Philips will sell the new bulbs individually at a price not yet disclosed by the company, along with a starter kit that will come with a wall switch, two ambiance bulbs, and the new HomeKit-enabled Hue Bridge 2.0. It will launch "in the spring," with more information trickling out closer to launch day. The company also hinted that this fall it will be launching a line of lamps with the same white color spectrum capabilities as the ambiance bulbs.

Top Rated Comments

Sandstorm Avatar
92 months ago
I find it a bit hard to imagine that the hardware is capable of being variations of white, but isn't actually capable of being any arbitrary color... I'd imagine the only difference between this and the ordinary hue bulb is just firmware.
Come on, are you serious? I'm certain these lights just have cold white + warm white LEDs inside and thats it. Changing the individual intensity between them software creates all the white light variations.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zorinlynx Avatar
92 months ago
If they can get these out the door for $25 or less then this is what will push me into upgrading the rest of my home to HUE lights.

I have a few HUE lights in my bedroom, but $60 is way too much for the color bulbs, and the inexpensive $15 "white" ones are always warm white. I like being able to have different color temperatures depending on mood.

PLEASE let them charge $25 or less for this. At the MOST, $30. This is good stuff; I'm happy with the Hue bulbs I have, but want more at a reasonable price.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gman36 Avatar
92 months ago
Glad I just returned my white starter kit for the color starter kit just so I could adjust the color temperature....
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ppenn Avatar
92 months ago
Does anybody have experience with competitors and cheaper products in this space? I'd like to dive in at a reasonable price but honestly Hue seems like the the most convenient option at this point.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
2457282 Avatar
92 months ago
I was a big fan of Hue. I bought 4 bulbs and a bridge a while back. Two in the bedroom and two in the living room. I actually have one in the bedroom that turns on at 6 am and that serves as my alarm today. However, I have been holding back on any new purchases given the (previous) lack of support for homekit and the fact that the home automation space seems to be a mess right now. Before putting any more money into anything I am going to wait to see if someone comes out as a leader in the space with a full range of solutions (lighting, security, temperature, locks, fire, water, kitchen, etc.)
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Southern Dad Avatar
91 months ago
It will work with up to 63 bulbs, but Hue recommends no more than 50 or it gets flaky. From here ('http://www.developers.meethue.com/content/63-lights-limit'). I have not seen any outdoor bulbs anywhere. I guess you could use a regular Hue bulb in a housing/fixture that is enclosed.
Thanks for that information. I don't plan to exceed 50 so that is good news.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 15 Pro Buttons CAD Leak

iPhone 15 Pro Low-Energy Chip to Allow Solid-State Buttons to Work When Device is Off or Out of Battery

Wednesday March 29, 2023 1:54 am PDT by
The iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max will use a new ultra-low energy microprocessor allowing certain features like the new capacitive solid-state buttons to remain functional even when the handset is powered off or the battery has run out, according to a source that shared details on the MacRumors forums. CAD-based render of new solid-state buttons on iPhone 15 Pro models The source of this rumor is ...
maxresdefault

Apple Announces WWDC 2023 Event Taking Place June 5 to 9

Wednesday March 29, 2023 9:58 am PDT by
Apple today announced that its 34th annual Worldwide Developers Conference will take place from Monday, June 5 to Friday, June 9. Like WWDC 2020, 2021, and 2022, WWDC 2023 will be an online event for the most part, and it will be open to all developers at no cost. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Apple will provide online sessions and labs, which will allow...
iPhone 15 Pro Multi Purpose button Mute Switch Feature Green 2

iPhone 15 Pro Rumored to Feature Multi-Use Action Button Instead of Mute Switch

Wednesday March 29, 2023 7:28 am PDT by
iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max models are rumored to feature a customizable Action button like the Apple Watch Ultra, according to a MacRumors forum member who leaked accurate details about the Dynamic Island on iPhone 14 Pro models last year. The source claimed the Action button will replace the Ring/Silent switch that has been included on every iPhone model since 2007. They did not...
iOS 16

Apple Releases iOS 16.4 With New Emoji, Safari Web Push Notifications, Beta Changes, Voice Isolation for Calls and More

Monday March 27, 2023 10:03 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 16.4, the fourth major update to the iOS 16 operating system that initially came out last September. iOS 16.4 comes two months after the launch of iOS 16.3, an update that added Security Keys for Apple ID. iOS 16‌.4 and iPadOS 16.4 can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. It can take a few minutes...
Apple Music Classical

Apple Explains Why It Launched an iPhone App Dedicated to Classical Music

Monday March 27, 2023 8:54 pm PDT by
Apple today published a support document explaining why it decided to release a standalone Apple Music Classical app for classical music. In short, Apple says the app was designed to support classical music's complex metadata:Classical music is different. It has longer and more detailed titles, multiple artists for each work, and hundreds of recordings of well-known pieces. The Apple Music...
iOS 16

Apple Seeds First Betas of iOS 16.5 and iPadOS 16.5

Tuesday March 28, 2023 10:15 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the first betas of upcoming iOS 16.5 and iPadOS 16.5 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming a day after the launch of iOS 16.4 and iPadOS 16.4. Registered developers can opt in to the betas by opening up the Settings app, going to Software Update, tapping on the "Beta Updates" option and toggling on the iOS 16 Developer Beta. Note that an...
home upgrade available feature

PSA: Apple Has Made Its New Home Architecture Update Available Again

Tuesday March 28, 2023 1:50 am PDT by
Apple has made the option to upgrade to new Home architecture available again with the release of iOS 16.4, iPadOS 16.4, and macOS Ventura 13.3, after it temporarily pulled the update in December. After updating Apple devices to the latest software, users can once again opt to upgrade any homes set up in the Home app to the new Home architecture, which Apple says brings faster, more reliable ...