The Essentials Lightstrip is feature-packed and affordable, but needs an Apple HomePod mini to unlock its full potential
UPDATE: The Nanoleaf Essentials Lightstrip had a few missing features at launch, namely music and screen syncing. Those have now been rolled out and we’ve updated our original review below to reflect that change. Stepping away from its light panels, Nanoleaf has gone back to basics with its Essentials A19 smart bulb and Essentials Lightstrip. What makes them both exciting offerings in the smart lighting market is their affordability without compromising on features. Like its bulb brother, the Nanoleaf Essentials Lightstrip is also compatible with Apple’s HomeKit and Google Assistant, it’s remarkably easy to set up and has its own little controller that can be wall-mounted to be used like a regular switchboard. It can definitely give Philips Hue’s Lightstrip Plus a run for its money, especially now (almost a year since its original launch in late 2020) that there’s features like monitor syncing which was missing until the last round of firmware updates. Like the Essentials smart bulb though, the light strip’s full potential can only be unlocked by using a Thread-enabled device like the Apple HomePod mini or the latest Apple TV 4K. But we found its Bluetooth connectivity to more than sufficient for anyone without either of the aforementioned Apple devices. All in all, the Essentials Lightstrip is an attractive option for anyone looking to brighten up their home decor with some smart lights. At just $49.95 / £44.99 / AU$99.99 for the two-meter strip, the Nanoleaf Essentials Lightstrip is arguably the most affordable smart light strip you can get today. In comparison, the 2m Philips Hue equivalent (V4 White and Color Ambiance) costs about $80 / £70 / AU$149. That makes the Essentials a far more attractive option, with a similar feature set and Thread connectivity built in. The Nanoleaf Essentials Lightstrip isn’t remarkably different from most others available on the market today. The starter pack is a 2m (80 inches) strip that’s a touch over half-inch wide, housing 21 LEDs per meter in groups of five. Meter-long (40-inch) expansions are available, and up to eight can be connected to the Lightstrip for a total of 10m (400 inches). Anything more and the brightness will be affected. Like the Nanoleaf light panels, the Essentials Lightstrip has a peel-and-stick adhesive layer on the back, and comes with a power cable connected to a small controller (also with its own adhesive pads) at one end and a rather chunky AC adaptor at the other. Another small cable connects the strip itself to the controller via tiny pins. The controller can handle all the basic functions – power on/off, cycle through single colors and dim/brighten the light.
