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The best holiday smart lights

Twinkly smart lights set up around Christmas tree.
Twinkly
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Buying holiday lights for your home is an investment, so don’t go with lights that only offer one color choice. The best smart holiday lights can be changed to a wide array of colors and blinking patterns and can also be synced to music. You can control them using an app or voice commands using Alexa, Google Assistant, or IFTTT devices, and you can even put these types of lights on a schedule.

Love the idea of keeping your tree up year-round? With smart lights, you can change the light colors to fit the upcoming holiday or season. After the holidays, you could change your lights to pink and red for Valentine’s Day; pastel colors for Easter; red, white, and blue for Independence Day; orange and purple for Halloween … you get the idea.

Here are our picks for the best holiday smart lights on the market.

Twinkly Smart String LEDs
Twinkly Smart Decorations Custom LED String Lights
Best pick
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ILC LED Smart Floodlights
ILC LED Smart Floodlights
Quick installation
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Philips - Hue White and Color Ambiance Lightstrip Plus 2m Base Kit with Bluetooth
Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance Outdoor Lightstrip
Best year-round
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Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights
Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights
Best outdoor lights
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Matter Smart Holiday String Lights
Nanoleaf Matter Smart Holiday String Lights
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Twinkly smart lights set up around Christmas tree.
Twinkly

Twinkly Smart Decorations Custom LED String Lights

Pros
  • Loads of effects
  • Usable indoors and outdoors
  • Linkable with up to 10 devices
Cons
  • Some connectivity challenges

Twinkly’s lights are on their second generation and have a lot of great features. The lights have an almost endless combination of effects, animations, and color ranges to give you a fully customizable experience. Twinkly smart lights also have a built-in microphone, so they can sense music and sync with the beat.

Since the Twinkly Smart Decorations Custom LED String Lights are rated for indoor and outdoor use, you can do one of those snazzy musical light show extravaganzas that’s popular on YouTube. Setup is easy, too. They connect using Bluetooth, and from there, you can control the lights with the app or any Alexa-enabled device. Through Alexa, you can turn the lights on or off, set the brightness, or change colors. If you want a super easy setup, you can also get Christmas trees pre-lit with Twinkly lights.

Twinkly Smart String LEDs
Twinkly Smart Decorations Custom LED String Lights
Best pick
ILC flood lights casting purple on the front of a home.
ILC

ILC LED Smart Floodlights

Pros
  • Creates mesh Bluetooth network
  • Bright
  • Easy setup
Cons
  • Lack long-term durability

If you want to set the mood outside but you don’t want to string hundreds of lights, there is a fast alternative. Festive floodlights make it look like you went through some effort but with just a few minutes of work.

One of the best options are the ILC Floodlights. Put them on the ground, plug them in, and then project festive colored lights on the outside of your home. You can control the lights using an app, and they feature music-syncing abilities and a wide range of colors.

ILC LED Smart Floodlights
ILC LED Smart Floodlights
Quick installation
Philips Hue Outdoor Lightstrip in front of plants.
Philips. / Philips

Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance Outdoor Lightstrip

Pros
  • 16 million colors with adjustable output to 900 lumens
  • Weatherproof operation in all conditions
  • Freestanding or screw-clip mounting options
  • Simple installation with extension kit available for longer runs
  • Support for Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant
Cons
  • Strips can’t be cut to size
  • Drab silicone cladding

While the Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance Outdoor Lightstrip isn’t specifically for the holidays, this list wouldn’t be complete without it. The Hue Lightstrip is the perfect choice if you want lights that can take you from Christmas, to spring parties, summer cookouts, and roasting marshmallows on the deck in the fall.

Durable and meant for year-round outdoor use, these Philips lights feature 16 million colors and “all shades” of white light. Plus, they are compatible with Alexa devices, Google Assistant, and HomeKit. You can also use the Philips Hue app to control them if you connect the lights with the .

Philips - Hue White and Color Ambiance Lightstrip Plus 2m Base Kit with Bluetooth
Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance Outdoor Lightstrip
Best year-round

Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights

Pros
  • Music sync
  • Compatible with voice assistants
  • High saturation
Cons
  • Tough installation

For the truly festive, Govee has a new batch of lights that you install directly into the exterior of your house. With a little bit of elbow grease, you can have seasonal colors washing over your home with minimal profile on the fixtures themselves. These lights are perfect for those who want to go all-in with exterior smart lighting. Weatherproofing ensures these can last for the long haul, rain or shine. Govee rates these lights at up to 50,000 hours of runtime in temperatures from -4°F to 140°F.

Govee has a strong reputation in smart lighting for high brightness and saturation, a robust app for programming color schemes, and all the important connections to voice assistants. Music sync helps tie in with whatever festive tunes you have playing outside for a full multimedia experience.

Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights
Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights
Best outdoor lights
Nanoleaf's Matter-enabled holiday lights on a staircase.
Nanoleaf

Nanoleaf Matter Smart Holiday String Lights

Pros
  • Access to more than 16 million colors
  • 250 addressable LED lights
  • Holiday-themed Scenes
Cons
  • Expensive

Featuring 250 addressable LEDs and clocking in at 20 meters in length, these Nanoleaf lights are great for trees, bannisters, or anywhere else inside (or outside) your home. They also boast Matter support – making it easy to sync them with the rest of your smart gadgets.

Using the Nanoleaf smartphone app, you'll have access to more than 16 million colors, holiday-themed Scenes, and the option to get your lights dancing to the beat of nearby music. They can also be controlled via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, making them ideal for all sorts of setups.

The Nanoleaf Matter Smart Holiday String Lights are a bit expensive at $120, but there's no doubt they bring a festive flair to every room. And since they're IP44 rated, they can withstand inclement weather and can be installed outdoors if preferred. If you're looking for a versatile set of string lights, the latest product from Nanoleaf is a solid option.

Matter Smart Holiday String Lights
Nanoleaf Matter Smart Holiday String Lights
Tyler Lacoma

If it can be streamed, voice-activated, made better with an app, or beaten by mashing buttons, Tyler's into it. When he's not making the Internet a better place with the latest tech news, Tyler is working in the eco and investment world, writing fiction, or waiting for hiking weather.

Simon Sage

Simon Sage is a green tech contributor at Digital Trends. He looks at all sorts of devices that can help reduce emissions through electrification, like power stations, solar panels, smart thermostats, and LED lighting. He's also keen on exploring right to repair and sustainable transportation.

Simon started journalism 17 years ago in the mobile tech space, covering the meteoric rise and fall of BlackBerry. Since then he's dipped his toe in mobile gaming, app reviews, and sponsored content. He's been to his fair share of trade shows, such as Mobile World Congress, the Consumer Electronics Show, E3 (RIP), the Game Developer Conference, and a smattering of smaller shows. He's done multiple TV interviews, the most surreal of which was explaining how Pokémon Go works on a morning show. Simon's also hosted over 100 podcast episodes.

Previous publications include BlackBerry Cool, IntoMobile, and Mobile Nations sites like Android Central, iMore, CrackBerry, and Windows Central.

Simon's based in Ottawa, Ontario, where he is constantly clawing against the gravitational pull of becoming a government drone. He studied English at Carleton University there, including a stint at Lancaster University in the UK. He has since levelled up his education in sustainability through the Climatebase platform. Simon spends way too much of his free time playing games, especially Magic: The Gathering.

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The Bella Pro touchscreen air fryer on a white background.

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The Echo Show 15 on a wall.

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Many notable products support Matter as of today, and dozens more are expected to add support in the future. For now, here are the 13 best smart home products that support Matter. For a full list, head over to the official Matter website. We've seen massive adoption of the technology over the past few years, so there's a good chance your favorite devices now support Matter.

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Guaranteed to Wow: Best Valentine’s Day tech gifts for everyone
Best Valentine's Gift for Everyone You Love
Valentine's Day Gifts

Valentine’s Day is all about celebrating the people who matter most in your life, and what better way to show your love than with a thoughtful, cutting-edge gift? Whether you’re shopping for your spouse, partner, family member, or close friend, finding the perfect present can feel daunting. That’s where we come in. This Valentine’s Day gift guide is packed with innovative and practical items that are sure to impress. From the Oura Ring, which blends style and health tracking, to state-of-the-art Bluetooth headphones for immersive audio experiences, and practical gadgets like smart car chargers, there’s something here for everyone.
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Oura Ring 4

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