Home Automation Week in Review

Report Type: 
Week In Review
Overview

Cync Launches New Lighting 

Cync by GE Lighting recently launched the Dynamic Effects Smart Hexagon Panels, the company’s latest addition to the Dynamic Effects product line.  The panels are compatible with Alexa and Google Home and offer a highly programmable lighting solution for home theaters, game rooms, and other areas of the home in need of a dose of light and/or color. The panels come in a pack of 10 for $190 and feature 16 million color combinations and 16 controllable zones in each hexagon.  The panels come with on-device music syncing skills as well as the option to select pre-built lighting shows. 

The Circana Take: 

  • Though sales of smart lighting panels have been challenged in 2023, the panel lighting format is being embraced by young consumers for its forward design. 
  • The integration of these devices into more activities via music syncing and other control features will help continue to broaden the category’s appeal among new consumer segments.

TP Link Launches New Lighting and Power Products 

TP-Link has announced three new Matter-certified smart lighting products in its Tapo family, the in-wall Tapo Smart Wi-Fi Light Switch, the Tapo Smart Wi-Fi Dimmer, and the Tapo Mini Smart Wi-Fi Plug.  Both light switches are controlled with paddles and have reset and restart buttons. Additionally, they are single-pole switches.  The Tapo Mini Smart Wi-Fi Plug is an on/off device that’s small enough for two of them to fit in a single duplex outlet.

The Circana Take: 

  • Via its Tapo brand, TP-Link continues to invest in the Smart Home market, embracing Matter at each turn. 
  • Though Smart Lighting and Smart Power sales have had a rocky start to 2023, these products are an inexpensive and easy way to introduce connectivity into the home.  Tapo’s investment in Matter should give buyers confidence their products will be compatible with other devices installed in the household.  
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