Adding to its ever-expanding line of Web-connected color-changing lights, Philips has just announced a new addition to the Hue family, the BR30 downlight.
The original Hue bulbs are designed to mimic the omnidirectional glow of standard A-series bulbs. This makes them ideal for things like lamps, but not so great for recessed ceiling fixtures since most of their light is wasted. But Philips hopes to to solve that problem with the new BR30s.
Just like the original LED Hue bulbs, BR30s can pump out 630 lumens and produce colors contained in the full 2000-6500K temperature range, meaning you can set the bulbs to everything from white to a whole slew of different shades. And the bulbs can be fully controlled via the accompanying Philips Hue app for iPhone or Android. But these new bulbs have one key difference to the previous version: their shape. As you probably guessed from the name, the new bulbs are BR lamps, which means they give off a directional shine that’s better suited for recessed light fixtures in ceilings or walls.
You can get your hands on the BR30 starter set (which includes the Hue network bridge) for $200 from the Apple Store. Individual bulbs will set you back $60 apiece, if you just want to add them on to your existing Hue system, which can handle up to 50 bulbs on a single network.
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