I'll be blunt: These are bright, very bright. More vibrant than advertised. And the color selection is not simply a set of common colors. We are talking over 16,500,000 colors here (If you want to get technical... 255 levels of each red, blue and green. 255x255x255 = 16 million). This includes brightness as well. So if you want a dim, dark ocean blue, or a ridiculously light sky blue, or a vibrant royal blue... go for it. See my pictures to show the difference between pink, and ridiculously bright pink. Brightness and color is independent on each triangle and since you can have up to 30 triangles in a set, each with 16 million colors each... well, the expression "the possibilities are endless" virtually applies here.
There are three issues, however. First, they are expensive. Are they worth it? If you live in a smaller place and only need one set, yes. If you live in a bigger place, you'll probably enjoy these lights so much, that you'll want more. I'd like to apologize to your bank account, in advance. Second, the "links" that link the triangles together (the little chips that provide electricity from one triangle to another) are very flimsy. If you should happen to bend them, they will break, and the connection is severed. This does not mean you need to buy more lights if this happens, but it does mean you'll need to buy more links. (see picture for a picture of a link) Just make sure you link the triangles when they are already on your wall. Do **not link the triangles *then* attempt to hang them. Doing this is a great way to break them. Thankfully you can buy the kind that bend (so you can even have the lights go up a wall and onto a ceiling, for instance), but those are sold separately, which is a shame. Third, as of now, the smartphone app is a bit clunky and can be unresponsive. However, that's not affecting the score of my review. But I thought it was worth mentioning.
I'm usually skeptical of colored lights like this, because I always feel let down. But, these exceeded my expectations. They are a bit expensive, but they are very vibrant and look as good as (or even better than) advertised.
I used Nanoleaf's 90 degree flexible corner connectors to wrap around the corner of my wall, and I hid the transformer inside the radiator vent (snaking an AC power cable down inside the wall cavity from a bathroom counter outlet on the reverse side of the wall). Installations look best when you can hide the transformer or at least neatly coil the cord and display the DC power brick in a stylish or discreet way.
I highly recommended Nanoleaf's Rhythm add-on module which enables sound-reactive animated scenes. These new sound-activated scenes are STUNNING and react to both beat (bass) as well as frequency/volume; in other words, their input measurements are sophisticated and result in nuanced visualizations depending on the type of music you're playing. Additionally, you owe it to yourself to buy Light DJ Pro, a 3rd party phone-based app for iOS and Android that uses the Aurora's open API to create sophisticated visualizations the default Nanoleaf app doesn't do.
I've attached a couple photos plus a video demonstrating a couple of the Aurora's Rhythm sound-activated scenes. The Rhythm and Light DJ Pro are absolutely essential side upgrades / investments for this expensive lighting kit, and they really help your investment shine and show off what it can do. Siri HomeKit functionality has worked flawlessly for the several months I've had this kit in place.
Pro Tip: I would also suggest mounting the panels using three small daubs of Quake Hold earthquake putty (or similar sticky/removable putty) instead of the "removable" adhesive stickers which can still damage wall finish and are extremely difficult to remove. Earthquake putty is ideal for these panels; I wish the manufacturer had suggested people use that as it will hold for YEARS with no damage to the underlying surface.
Installation was fairly easy using the included Command strips and a level. After some initial issues, I am finally able to connect to the device on my network thanks to Nanoleaf's excellent support (thanks, Chris). Advanced user tip: As of the time of my review, it appears that the app has a hard time connecting to the Aurora on my network when my router assigned a high IP address to it. When I changed the IP address from 192.168.2.252 to 192.168.2.14, the app picks up the Aurora much more quickly. Hopefully this will be fixed in the future if it is a true problem and not just a fluke. This may not happen to you, but I thought I'd pass it along anyway.
IFTTT integration is great. It works very well. You can change themes when the weather changes, or when you receive new e-mail, for example. Any IFTTT trigger can change the theme, on/off status, and brightness of the Aurora. Currently, I have the Aurora plugged into a z-wave outlet switch through SmartThings so I can turn it on and off using Alexa and Google Home by voice. When it turns off, it remembers the last used theme when it comes back on. The Alexa skill is now available so you can trigger scenes and dim/brighten the Aurora using the Echo and it works well.
The app allows for full customization of the colors and movement on your Aurora. It automatically detects the shape of your Aurora and replicates it in the app. You can also set up schedules to show certain themes at certain times of the day.
You cannot bend the panels over corners like from wall-to-wall or wall-to-ceiling like is seen in some product photos YET because there are no 90-degree connectors in the box. Only rigid, straight connectors are included. Bendable connectors are coming in the future.
There is a small controller that connects the power supply to your first triangle, and there is a power button and a theme selector button on it, so you can change themes without using your phone which is a great touch. The manual comes with some example patterns to try on the wall or ceiling depending on how many panels you purchased.
Also coming soon is an audio visualization module that will turn your music into a visual feast on your Aurora. Also, a remote with multiple sides is in the works. Check the company's website for more info.
Overall, I am digging this thing. I just wish it wasn't so expensive. I'd love to have them in every room!
NOTE: The panels in my video are made up of two of these starter kits (9 panels each) and one expansion kit (3 panels). Also, at the time of my review, some people are price gouging on here. Don't pay more than $200 for the starter kit, which can be found for less when on sale elsewhere. Hopefully, it will be sold directly by Amazon soon and not just third-party resellers.
I have a wonderful home that has a lot of windows everywhere but my kitchen. I was talking about going through the cost of putting in a new frosted window in my brand new home in the kitchen where no window exists. I wanted to more light balance between the living room, kitchen, and dining room. It was mentioned that the nanoleaf might achieve this for me.
I bought 18 panels and put them up in a straight line where I would have put the window. It did an amazing job, the panels can take on so many colors and scenes. I used a few pre-made scenes that gives me color combinations like a clear sky, or rolling clouds, or rain.
My biggest fear was that it would have some phase to the light (sometimes led's can have a phase that kill my astigmatism), but there was 0 phase even at low power.
I must say I used both the iphone and android app, and the iphone app was much better than the android, especially when previewing scenes.
Then I configured my Alex to interface with the nanoleaf, and it's AWESOME! I can turn it off/on, change brightness, or change the scene.
The amount of light it generates with clear sky or all white at full power fills the room with similar light that would have come through a much more expensive window.
This is incredible!!! It is easy to put together and arrange on a wall and it looks fantastic. The lights and colors are not annoyingly bright but instead quite soothing as they change colors.
Feature Product
- Color-changing light -choose from 16.7 million colors, Tunable 1200k-6500k white light ranging from a soft warm Sunset to bright white daylight
- Double-sided mounting pads for no-holes, no-hassle installation of the light panels
- Customize with the free Nanoleaf smarter series app, works with Amazon echo, Google home, Google assistant, Siri, home kit, IFTTT
- Supports up to 30 light panels in a single system
- Easily mounted onto any flat surface using mounting tape
Description
Nanoleaf Light Panels Smarter Kit works with both iOS and Android devices. It beautifully blends lighting design and technology and gives you easy control from the app, voice control, or the physical controller. Wake up to the sunrise, improve your mood with the movement of light and colors, beautify your living space and seamlessly automate your lighting to fit your life -all at the touch of a button or with Siri/Amazon Alexa voice control, Google assistant and Google home. Whether setting the mood for a party, a date, or enabling your little ones to run freely with their imaginations, the possibilities are endless. Light Panels helps you paint the canvas of your life. You can create even more interesting light shapes by adding Light Panels expansion packs to your Light Panels smarter kit.
I bought these to hang in my office at work. They are stunning. The controls via the app are great. Over half of my coworkers have complimented them and mentioned that they were also interested in buying a set. Unfortunately the price is cost prohibitive for most people. Hopefully the cost/price can come down a bit over time to allow more people to own these amazing lights.
I love these lights for setting the mood. I like to do things like play under water sounds on our speaker while setting the lights to alter through shades of blue. So peaceful. So may options. The firmware and app could still use some improvement as I regularly experience connectivity issues. A minor inconvenience when you really take it all into consideration.
love it! Keep buying more!
Other than a few app issues during setup, and a few connectivity issues during firmware updates, I'm really loving these lights. They are just too cool. The Google Assistant integration was such a nice surprise.
Great product. Easy to setup and works great with the app. Only issue you may run into is it doesn't work with the app when connected to a 5ghz network.
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