In the niche market for combining smart home lighting with music, Signify has teamed with popular music streaming service Spotify to enable Philips Hue bulbs to respond to the changing feel of a tune.
Signify has added a feature called Philips Hue + Spotify to the Hue app. Using an algorithm, the app “analyzes the metadata of each song in real time to make the lights flash, dim, brighten, and change color right along with the beat, mood, genre, and tempo of any music on Spotify,” Signify said.
“As the integration is embedded in the Philips Hue app, it does not require a microphone to react to the music,” a spokesperson explained. “This ensures that the lights can react to the music without any interfering background noise and provides you full flexibility in using your phone for other purposes at the same time.”
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The Hue app’s new feature includes instructions for linking Hue and Spotify. Once a Hue user does this, the integration kicks in when they play a song from any device logged into their Spotify account. The device can be a speaker, a phone, a computer, or others.
“At Spotify, we’re always working to create the best listening experience for every moment, via any device, throughout your day,” said Sten Garmark, Spotify’s vice president of consumer experience. “We’re looking forward to introducing our innovative integration with Philips Hue, where smart lighting will add another dimension to enhancing your next listening session.
Related: Signify answers users' call with new version of Hue app
Users need to have a Hue Bridge and any color-capable Hue bulbs or strips. The company today also announced a number of new products in the Hue bulb and strip line, including a color-capable, filament-style white bulb that can be tuned between warm white and cool white. The new products also include brighter Hue bulbs going up to 1600 lm; a tube format; a ceiling panel designed to sit flush in both a square and rectangular shape; and spots designed for bathroom use.
The new Spotify feature is available for free download starting today on an early access basis, which can take about a week to set up. It will become a permanent part of the Hue app “after October,” Signify said.
MARK HALPER is a contributing editor for LEDs Magazine, and an energy, technology, and business journalist ([email protected]).
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