18-06-2025
Philips Hue Play Wall Washer Will Light Up Your TV Viewing
The new Philips Hue Play Wall Washer in action
After leaking on Amazon UK earlier this month, Signify has officially taken the covers off of the Philips Hue Play wall washer.
The new Play wall washer is available now in black or white, priced at $219.99 for one or $384.99 for a two-pack Stateside, £169.99 / £299.99 in the UK.
That's still on the premium end of the spectrum - especially when you consider the Hue Light Bar comes in at $89.99 - but you are getting a more powerful and dramatically styled bit of kit, which packs the ColorCast projection optics system that debuted with the Twilight bedside lamp late last year.
It uses a wide-beam ColorCast setup to drench your walls with gradient lighting that reacts in real time to whatever you're watching or playing on your TV… if you've got a Hue Play HDMI Sync box that is (or, indeed, a compatible LG or Samsung TV with the Hue Sync app.)
The new Philips Hue Play Wall Washer ColorCast tech
Design-wise, it's pretty leftfield with a matte aluminum housing, transparent front, and sculptural shape that's clearly meant to be seen, not hidden behind a TV.
Aside from the Hue Sync action, all of the usual Hue ecosystem features are baked in; so you can just use it as a regular Hue lamp, with nice effects available through the app.
You also get granular control in the app, including a slick 3D drag-and-drop tool for adjusting the beam's exact position, plus tweaks for brightness, speed, and intensity.
Signify tells us that you can move it closer to the wall for a tighter focus, or pull it back to flood the room.
Aside from the new Play wall washer, the smart light specialist has also announced that the new Hue AI assistant is officially live, at least if you're in the Netherlands, Belgium, or Luxembourg. It's coming to the UK in July, and should hit globally by the end of August.
The assistant lives inside the Hue app and lets you type or say requests like 'Set the mood for a summer party' or 'Create something cozy for movie night,' and then it will suggest scenes that match the prompt based on existing ones, or by creating a new one.
You can also adjust lights with natural language, and Hue says more features - like smart automations and chatbot support - will roll out later this year.
We've seen similar functionality from the likes of Govee in recent months too, so it's clearly the 'thing' for smart light brands at the moment.
