One of the many products from the Philips Hue smart lighting ecosystem the Play Lightbar is an amazing accessory to have. It is an upgrade from a lighting strip and is great for entertainment as well as desk-top set-ups.
But the price tag is one reason you should look for an alternative for the Philips hue Play Lightbar. While you would not have the authenticity and reliability, the Hue products provide, some brands offer similar features of the Hue for a fraction of the cost.
Philips Hue Play Light Bars Alternative includes:
- Sengled Smart LED Light Bars.
- Onforu Ambiance Light Bar.
- Corsair iCUE LT100 Smart Lighting Tower Starter Kit.
Thus, this post will feature the three best alternatives for the Play Lightbar for my readers who can’t afford the Philips brand. But before I start, here is a glimpse of the Hue Lightbar.
The Philips Hue Play Lightbar Features and Look
The Hue light features a slim but functional bar that offers responsive lighting for your PC, home theatre system or gaming set-up. Like many lights from the Hue line-up, it requires the Hub and can integrate with home kits like Alexa, Google Home and Apple Home kit.
The cost of the Hue Lightbars plus the bridge are more expensive than other brands however, the overall experience is worth the money. Setting-up is super simple as plugging in the bars, connecting to the hub, finding the bars in the Hue app and create “Rooms” to place your lights.
The features include additional ambient lighting, color changes, adjust brightness, etc. The Philips Hue light bar is an excellent luxury product for synchronized lighting effects.
That said, here are some great alternatives.
Sengled Smart LED Light Bars
The Sengled smart lighting system is a popular alternative to Philip Hue because of its low price. You can buy their products and use them with or without a hub. The Sengled light bar features a similar design and appearance to the Hue and is perfect for ambient lighting.
With the Sengled light bar, you can create beautiful multi-colored backlights for your PC, television and gaming set-up. Similarly, it also features multi-mode support with music, movies and game modes. Like the Philips Hue, you have a variety of features from scene creations, brightness adjustment and color changes.
More importantly, this light bar offers you Google Home and Alexa set-up for additional control.
Learn More about this product.
Onforu Ambiance Light Bar
The Onforu is another perfect Philips Hue light bar alternatives at another affordable price. It may not look as high quality as the Hue, but offers good ambient lighting and enhances every gaming experience. It works with your router and requires 2GHz Wi-Fi for set-up and functionality.
The Onforu is a solid product: the colors are amazing, user friendly and offers most of the features of the Hue. Yes, you can connect to Google and Alexa Home, as well as provide a bright backlight for your television set-up. This light bar can struggle with some color changes and doesn’t offer music and beats synchronizing.
If I had to choose between the Sengled and the Onforu light bar, the Sengled will be my top choice because it is the closest to the Philips Hue version. Plus, it is cheaper than the Onforu.
See the Price and learn more about the features.
Corsair iCUE LT100 Smart Lighting Tower Starter Kit
Corsair is again trying to cover all your lighting needs for your gaming set-up. It is one of the best choices for RBG lighting, and their IQ software makes syncing all of their products incredibly easy. If you are a huge gamer, then this is a must-have for your room, forget the Philps Hue light bar get Corsair.
The price is over a hundred dollars, but you are getting everything you need to ensure these lights are up and running, compared to the Hue which requires a Hub. The Corsair comprises two 422mm towers and between them, there are 92 LED lights. The light bar itself is very durable, and it takes gaming to a new height with its diffusing colors, brightness adjustment and color changes.
Smart Lighting Buyers Guide
What Does Smart Light Bar Do? Smart light bars offer additional ambient lighting and are commonly used for entertainment. They are placed in the front or back of your monitor, for extra illumination and some offers music, movie and gaming mode. To me, a light bar reminds me of strip led lights as they provide beautiful light shows.
Hub or Wi-Fi?
A home automation center like Philips Hue Bridge needs a hub to work while others connect directly to your phone or tablet via Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. While using Wi-Fi sounds is a cheaper route, it comes with some disadvantages since you’ll need strong Wi-Fi signals.
How Much Does lighting Bars Cost?
We know the Philips Hue lighting bar is expensive and if you don’t have a Hub; it is another product you’ll have to buy. But you are paying for high-quality products. Other bars can retail from $60-$120, and you are getting similar features to the Hue.
Let’s recap if you have the money to splurge on entertainment lighting bars then opt for the Philips Hue Play. If not, the Sengled is cheaper and the closest to the Hue.
Check out these Philips Hue Alterntives:
