I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. Both ways are easy to use, yet I suggest you use a Wi-Fi-enabled LED strip to connect it to your smartphone. They’re a trendy toy for teens and beloved by social media influencers for their eye-popping visual effects. The strip light is separated from the power cord (similar to most of the other models we tested, except our runner-up Govee pick).

Aside from music sync features, there aren’t many special effects or scene presets, and the Wyze app doesn’t allow you to create your own. These features include several preset Scenes and Animations (having different colors cycle through the strip), as well as an Away Mode (for triggering the lights to a specific setting when you leave the house). You can customize the settings, including choosing among three speeds, brightness, and picking a single color or a multicolor light show. If you're looking for a smart, stylish table lamp that can evoke a specific vibe instantly, the Philips Hue Iris is a terrific standalone smart accent light for beginners and existing Hue users alike. It can display millions of colors as well as a range of white tones, but the standard Light Strip can shine only one at a time, whereas the Pro can output up to 16 hues at once.After setting up each strip, we tested scheduling, color changes, and special effects (when available) using an iPhone 12 and a Google Pixel 7 Pro. Since doing this i had contacted the company and asked if these can be repaired to which I was told no.

The controller is white and has another 40 inches of white cord that connects at the end of the strip. Please check the product specification to know whether or not you need to purchase a smart receiver. Still, the Wyze model delivers great colors cheaply, making it perfect for a kid’s room, a dorm room, or any other space on a budget.

The Light Strip Pro significantly undercuts the competition without compromising on functionality or features. To see just how bright a light is, you need to look at the lumens it puts out (listed in the table below): the more lumens, the brighter the light.