Normal lights simply can’t compete with the element that govee lights strips bring to décor. Consider the number of home theatre configurations that have a string of lights or ambient lighting on the back of the television. hardly any. The issue is that the best light strips, such as the LIFX Z LED and Philips Hue gee Govee Lights, can be excessively pricey, costing up to $70 or more.
Installing and setting up
The Govee lights are simple to install. The power supply and the lights themselves only need to be plugged into the wall. The lights can be switched between various colour options and turned on and off using a hardware controller, and 3M tape on the back of the strip enables mounting it to the underside of a counter, along a wall, or wherever else you want the lights to be convenient.
Describe Google Home
The strip light’s installation, though, is a touch peculiar. The Govee app isn’t the best-designed programme I’ve ever used, and when I tried to connect the lights to Wi-Fi, neither did it automatically identify the network nor did it give me the opportunity to select from any of the available connections. The network’s SSID and password have to be manually entered. You must know the model number of your lights in order to locate it in the app because Govee offers a wide variety of strip lights to pick from. The way the software is organised may use some improvement.
In a loft, Govee strip lights
But, after I finished that step of the setup procedure, everything else went without a hitch. You should be aware that, unlike some RGB strips, the lights cannot be cut. Cutting the strip can result in faults on both sides of the cut because RGBIC lights are controlled by a single IC chip, especially if you don’t cut it in the proper spot. Moreover, the chopped section cannot be reconnected to a different power source.
The heat these LEDs produce is another thing to be careful of. The Govee Strip Lights, on the other hand, can grow uncomfortable warm if left folded up while the majority of LED strip lights hardly ever get warm. Even if you don’t use the entire length, make sure to unroll the strip before using it. The lights become quite hot when left rolled.
Characteristics and effectiveness
The Govee RGBIC Strip Lights stand out in the features list. Using its brilliant 5050 LEDs, the lights are able to display up to 16 million different colours. These LEDs have an outstanding luminosity; they are much brighter than other LEDs in the same price range.
A physical controller that gives users access to a large selection of solid colours as well as numerous color-changing effects can be used to control the lights. Yet, the app’s best features are found there. It gives customers access to all of the best features for using the Govee strip light, such as the Timer function, the capacity to adjust the brightness, or the ability to switch between the four modes.
These LEDs have an outstanding brightness
The lights flash and alter in sync with the music when the Music Mode is on. It uses the phone’s microphone to listen to music, but you can change the sensitivity if it’s picking up too many background noises. You can decide whether Music Mode will automatically change the colour or give you the option to do it manually. Your selections are Party, Dynamic, and Tranquil. Party Mode is the option that transitions colours the fastest and is the most frantic, while Calm Mode offers the slowest changeover. Other alternatives include Shiny, Sprouting, Day and Night, among others, some of which don’t make much sense based on their names.
It goes without saying that Color Mode allows you to alter the light’s colour. Yet there are more options than just plain hues. You have the option to change the colour and brightness of the strip’s various segments. Custom colour schemes can also be saved. You can alter the appearance of your light strip by selecting from a range of styles, settings, and color-matching techniques using the “suggested colour schemes” tool. A quick calculation reveals that there are millions of distinct colour sets and combinations for only solid colours, let alone the alternatives for flashing lights.
Segmenting the Govee App
More than 64 pre-set situations are available in the Scene Mode for almost every situation. The Sceneries are split into four categories: Nature, Festival, Emotion, and Life. I suggest either the Lightning or the Deep Sea sceneries because they both effectively utilise the lighting and accurately mimic their namesake species.
DIY is the app’s last available mode. In this mode, you can fully customise the light strip effects to build your own. But, there aren’t many instructions available, so you have to explore a lot and learn through mistakes. Although I still don’t fully understand how it functions, I was incredibly impressed by my ability to create my own scenes and flickers.
Another feature that’s interesting to look into is The Effects Lab. It is separated into a Harmony Lab, an Effects Lab, a Game Lab, and a Color Gallery. The Harmony Lab, the last one, really sticks out. Any of the options has a scene that matches the sound that is played through your phone. Some of these effects, such as Rain Drops or Stream, induce feelings that are nearly meditative. Far more than I would have anticipated from a set of strip lights, the results are calming. You can always disable the sound while maintaining the flickering effect.
The lights are best used as ambient lighting because, at maximum brightness, they are almost too bright to look directly at. The brightness may be changed from 1 to 100, with the lower setting offering more than enough light without making you blind.
This light strip only functions with Bluetooth, according the specifications. But, I discovered that using simply Wi-Fi, I was still able to manage it even with Bluetooth turned off.
Integration of a smart assistant
Both Google Assistant and Alexa are compatible with the Govee Strip Lights. If you know the names of certain scenes, Alexa can easily activate them, change the colour of the lights, or create routines for them. Nevertheless, the assistant is unable to adjust any of the effects from the Effects Lab, including lighting.
You can alter the colour, create sceneries, and implement particular routines inside the Alexa app. Additionally, you can programme the lights to come on and go off at specific times. The lights were positioned in my loft as part of a game room layout, and they blend in beautifully with the room’s other furnishings. Sadly, they are ineffective as ambient lighting. I was unable to match the background hue of the scene on the television with them.
Our opinion about Govee Lights Controller at Night
The Govee Lights didn’t leave a good first impression with me. I was annoyed and perplexed during the setup due to the absence of functionality that seemed to come standard, but after that I came to appreciate these lights. I am impressed by the variety of functions and colour choices, and I value the physical controller. The LIFX Z LED is one of the lights I’ve used in the past that lacks tactile controls. Although it takes up more space on the cable, having a physical button to press is helpful if the phone is out of reach or the lights aren’t connected to a smart assistant. Overall, especially at this price, the advantages clearly outweigh the disadvantages.
Exists a preferable substitute?
Although there are alternatives, there aren’t many with better value. Both Philips Hue and LIFX have light strips with a tonne of functions and excellent build quality, however both are significantly more expensive than Govee lights.
The Twinkly Line costs $67 but has numerous features and settings. A 16.4-foot strip of ultra-cheap lights that don’t have any smart functions but cost only $8 is another option. The govee lights is your best option at this price point if you’re looking for a lot of smart features and interaction with smart assistants.
How much time will it take?
Although the plastic on the controller isn’t of the best quality, it doesn’t seem particularly brittle either. These lights ought to survive for many years if properly maintained. Just remember that the adhesive is only intended for one usage. If you remove the lights after installation, they will require assistance to stay attached elsewhere. Even if you install it incorrectly by accident and have to remove the lights to reattach them, you’ll notice that area sags and disengages.
Do you want to buy it?
Yes. It would be difficult to find any lights with this degree of quality at this pricing point.
