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Philips Hue Play Wall Washer: two-minute assessment
After I first set eyes on the Philips Hue Play Wall Washer, I noticed it as a extra superior different to the Philips Hue Play Light Bars, that are designed to take a seat on both facet of your TV and add atmosphere to your property leisure setup. The Wall Washer can definitely do this – and with extra atmospheric outcomes due to its wider projection space – however it might do much more, too.
Just like the Mild Bar, the Wall Washer is a discreet-looking gadget that is designed to be positioned with its mild supply shining towards a wall, relatively than into the room, producing a diffuse glow that (because the identify suggests) washes your room with shade. Nonetheless, not like the Play Mild Bar, which might solely present one shade at a time, every Wall Washer accommodates three lights, stacked vertically, which overlap to kind a {smooth} gradient.
Because the video beneath exhibits, the three lights can even dim and brighten independently to create shimmering results, which is a pleasant function in the event you select to make use of a single Wall Washer as a desk lamp to set the temper as half of a bigger Philips Hue lighting setup.
You should use the Wall Washer by way of Bluetooth, however to unlock all its options (and to justify its value), you will additionally want a Philips Hue Bridge. This small hub gadget plugs into your router and makes use of the Zigbee wi-fi protocol to create a mesh community that connects all your Hue lights, switches, and cameras to at least one one other, and to the web.
Supplied you may have that, establishing your Wall Washer is easy. Simply choose the “Add” possibility throughout the Hue cell app, scan the QR code on the bottom of your Wall Washer when prompted after which select a room or zone for it (you will be prompted to create an space if none exist already). When you have a couple of Wall Washer, you will want so as to add each individually, however that takes just a few seconds.
As soon as that is accomplished, you’ll be able to change the colour of every Wall Washer by selecting a shade from the app’s shade wheel. You can even apply a preset shade scheme (generally known as a “scene”) from the Hue library; create your personal scene by choosing colours or importing an image; or apply an animated dynamic scene such because the shimmering purple impact above.
You possibly can customise your Wall Washer by itself, or apply a scene to all of the lights in a room or zone.
Regardless of its small measurement, the Wall Washer initiatives mild a good distance, and when it was positioned on a desk, I discovered the colour reached all the way in which to the ceiling. When you like the thought of a Philips Hue Signe Flooring Lamp, however do not have the house, the Wall Washer can be different for across the identical value. Though there are solely three lights in every Wall Washer, the colour gradient is completely seamless, as you’ll be able to see within the picture on the high of this assessment.
As talked about earlier, the Philips Hue Play Wall Washer can even sync along with your TV, extending the colours from the display in the identical approach as a Philips Ambilight TV to create a extra immersive viewing expertise by successfully blurring the perimeters of the image.
To do that, you will want at the least one Wall Washer, plus both a Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Field, or a wise TV that is appropriate with the Philips Hue Play Sync app. The app was initially solely out there for chosen Samsung TVs, however in February 2025, Signify (Philips Hue’s guardian firm) launched a model for LG units as nicely.
The benefit of utilizing the app is that there is much less to setup, and you should utilize it to sync your Hue lights with content material out of your TV’s native apps. When you use a Sync Field, you’ll be able to solely sync with content material from HDMI sources.
Picture 1 of 3
As you’ll be able to see within the video and pictures above, there’s little or no latency when utilizing the Wall Washer lights with a Philips Hue HDMI Sync Field related to a set-top field, and colours look pure relatively than distracting. The lighting is efficient, even in daylight, and the gradient means the Wall Washers create a extra seamless look than the Philips Hue Play Mild Bars, which might solely common out the colour on either side of your display.
The primary drawback of the Wall Washer in comparison with the Philips Hue Play Mild Bar is that it solely stands upright, and it is not designed to be mounted horizontally. As such, it is not nicely fitted to use beneath your TV. You may in all probability need at the least two for a house leisure setup (and probably one other for elsewhere within the room), which might be significantly dearer.
When you have only one Wall Washer, it additionally works nicely as a wake-up mild in your nightstand. The Hue app accommodates automations which can be designed to wake you with a simulated dawn, with the lamp progressively turning into brighter and the sunshine turning into cooler, reaching full brightness by a set time. I am very delicate to mild at evening, and the Wall Washer is the primary lamp I’ve discovered that does not shock me awake by rising brightness abruptly. It is extra like waking progressively because the solar comes by way of your tent on a tenting journey.
On the finish of the day, you’ll be able to wind down with a sundown automation, which runs the identical sequence in reverse. The video above exhibits the final 20 seconds of a five-minute sleep automation, throughout which the sunshine shade shifts from heat white to orange to pink, whereas progressively lowering in brightness.
General, it is essentially the most versatile good mild I’ve examined so far, and though it definitely is not low cost, there isn’t any denying its efficiency, whichever room you are utilizing it in.
Philips Hue Play Wall Washer: value and availability
- Prices $219.99 / £169.99 for one, or $384.99 / £299.99 for 2
- Not but out there in Australia
- Works greatest with Philips Hue Bridge
On the time of writing, the Philips Hue Play Wall Washer is accessible direct from the Philips Hue web site within the US and UK, and from Amazon within the US. It is not but on sale in Australia, however FAQ pages on the Australian Philips Hue website point out that its launch there may be imminent.
A single Philips Hue Play Wall Washer has an inventory value of $219.99 / £169.99 (about AU$340), and in the event you’re planning to make use of the lights on both facet of your TV (as proven in a few of the images right here), you’ll be able to decide up a two-pack for $384.99 / £299.99 (about AU$600).
That makes it one of the crucial costly Philips Hue lights round, nevertheless it’s additionally essentially the most versatile, serving as a filler mild so as to add atmosphere, a backlight on your residence leisure system, and a wake-up mild. Most Hue lights solely fill one area of interest, so the Wall Washer’s adaptability makes its price ticket extra palatable.
For comparability, the Philips Hue Play Mild Bar has an inventory value of $89.99 / £64.99 / AU$129.95 every. When you’re contemplating the Wall Washer as a wake-up lamp, the Philips Hue Twilight (which additionally has a front-facing LED for studying) prices $279 / £249 (about AU$430).
If you wish to use the Wall Washers along with your TV, you will additionally want a Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box and Philips Hue Bridge, so issue these into your finances calculations in the event you do not already personal them.
Philips Hue Play Wall Washer: specs
|
Wattage |
60W |
|
Most brightness |
1,035 lumens |
|
Colours |
2,000-6,500K Hue White Color Ambiance |
|
Management choices |
Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit, Google Assistant (by way of Philips Hue app) |
|
Max lights per energy provide |
3 |
|
Connectivity |
Zigbee/Bluetooth |
|
Dimension (H x W) |
6.2 x 3.6 inches / 15.7 x 9.1cm |
Philips Hue Play Wall Washer: design
Every Philips Hue Play Wall Washer is almost cylindrical, and measures 6.2 inches / 15.7cm tall and three.6 inches / 9.1cm in diameter. That is significantly shorter than the Philips Hue Play Mild Bars, which stand at 11.5 inches / 29.2cm excessive; however the design of the Wall Washer and its improved LEDs implies that it might throw mild over a bigger space.
The Wall Washer has an aluminum case (relatively than plastic for the Play Mild Bars), and has a smart-looking matte end. It is out there in black (proven right here) or white, so you’ll be able to decide an possibility that can mix nicely along with your décor.
The again of the Wall Washer has a flat floor, and accommodates three Philips Hue White & Shade Ambiance lights organized vertically. That may not sound like a lot, however the lights overlap in such a approach that they shine a super-smooth gradient onto your wall, with no banding by any means.
This expertise, known as ColorCast, is identical utilized by the Philips Hue Twilight wake-up lamp – and just like the Twilight, the Wall Washer could be dimmed to a particularly low stage to be used at evening.
You possibly can join as much as three Philips Hue Play Wall Washer lights to a single energy provide, though they’re solely offered in packs of 1 or two.
Must you purchase the Philips Hue Play Wall Washer
|
Attribute |
Notes |
Rating |
|---|---|---|
|
Worth |
Some of the costly Philips Hue lights round, but in addition one of the crucial versatile. |
4/5 |
|
Design |
Small and discreet, with cleverly positioned overlapping LEDs that produce a super-smooth shade gradient. |
5/5 |
|
Efficiency |
Simple to make use of, and works brilliantly whether or not including atmosphere to your property cinema, serving as a fill mild, or waking you up with a pure dawn impact. |
5/5 |
Purchase it if
Do not buy it if
Philips Hue Play Wall Washer: additionally take into account
When you’re undecided whether or not the Philips Hue Play Wall Washer is best for you, listed below are two different choices to think about.
How I examined the Philips Hue Play Wall Washer:
I related the Philips Hue Play Wall Washer to my Philips Hue Bridge, and used it in numerous rooms in my home (alone, and as a pair). First I related it to a Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Field, which was linked to a digital set-top field, and experimented with viewing totally different movies and TV exhibits to evaluate color-matching and latency. The screengrabs above present content material from TechRadar‘s YouTube channel for copyright causes, however I examined the lights with all kinds of media.
I additionally used a single Wall Washer as a fill mild along with a pair of Philips Hue White & Shade Ambiance bulbs in ceiling fixtures. I experimented with making use of totally different scenes to all of the lights within the room, and creating new ones.
Lastly, I examined a single Wall Washer on my nightstand, utilizing the Wake Up and Sleep automations to evaluate how easily the colour and brightness of the sunshine can change, and the way dim it might turn into earlier than switching off. I in contrast its efficiency to a purpose-made wake-up mild.
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First reviewed July 2025.