I’ve tested a lot of wake-up lights over the years, and most of them have the same problem: even their lowest illumination level is fairly bright, and they jar me awake the instant they start their sunrise cycle. Some have terrible canned bird noises as well, but mostly it’s the sudden change in brightness that has me burying my groggy face in my pillow.
The Philips Hue Play Wall Washer is different, though, and after a week, I can say that it’s changed my morning routine for good.
The Wall Washer is a new smart lamp, released earlier this year, and as the name suggests, it’s designed to shine colored light onto a wall rather than into your room, creating a diffused, atmospheric effect. It’s not advertised as a wake-up light, and as part of the Play series, it’s made more with entertainment in mind. Similar to a Philips Hue Play Gradient Strip, it can be paired with an HDMI Box or the Philips Hue Play app to extend the colors from your TV screen, creating a more immersive experience.
It uses a technology called ColorCast, which is essentially a stack of three colored LEDs that overlap in such a way that they create a smooth gradient of color. The image at the top of this article is unedited – it really is that seamless.
It’s the same system you’ll find in the back of the Philips Hue Twilight, which is designed to sit beside your bed and has a front-facing light for reading, but if choosing between the two, I’d opt for the Wall Washer thanks to its versatility.
Creating a wake-up automation in the mobile app is easy. Once I’d plugged in my Wall Washer and connected it to my Philips Hue Bridge (the hub that connects your Hue Lights devices to one another), I added it to my bedroom, gave it a descriptive name, tapped the ‘Automations’ button in the app, and selected ‘Wake Up’.
There are two options here: you can choose white light that simply increases in brightness, or opt for a simulated sunrise that starts with dim red light, shifts to orange, and eventually finishes white. I wanted an effect similar to the sun shining through the canvas on a camping trip, so I chose the latter, set it to finish its cycle at 7am, and named it ‘Rise and Shine’.
Creating this automation is no harder than setting an alarm on your phone, and after a week, I can say that it’s a much gentler way to wake. Now I come round gradually, with no shock of noise-induced adrenaline.
I still keep a backup alarm set with some nature noises in case I manage to sleep through the light, but so far that’s not happened (touch wood).
The Wall Washer doesn’t just wake you gently either; it can also help you drift off at night by playing its sunrise effect in reverse, with warm light that gently fades to darkness over a duration of your choice.
Again, this is done via an automation in the Philips Hue app. This time, though, I didn’t want to set a timer. Although experts recommend keeping a set bedtime every night (even on the weekends), sometimes life gets in the way. There could be a deadline, I might be having drinks with friends, or I might need to spend half an hour on Duolingo to avoid being demoted. You know, important things.
Luckily, I happened to have a Philips Hue Dimmer Switch on hand, which is perfect for the job. It has programmable buttons, so I could set one to trigger the simulated sunset, and its self-adhesive mount was perfect for sticking to the side of my nightstand. If my husband wants to use it, he can simply remove the magnetic switch from its mount and use it as a remote.
You could do exactly the same thing with a Philips Hue Smart Button, but the advantage of the Dimmer Switch is that it can also turn the light on and off, or (as the name suggests) adjust its brightness.
I added the switch to my bedroom in the app, then gave it a name, and assigned the Sleep automation to its bottom button. Now, when I’m ready to wind down, I can trigger the light sequence with a single tap.
The video below shows the final few seconds of the sleep automation, and as you can see, the change in brightness is incredibly smooth. I’d set the light to dim over the course of five minutes, which is the shortest possible period. If you choose a longer timeframe, the light will dim even more gradually.
I sometimes have trouble dropping off at night (likely a consequence of testing the best coffee makers too close to bedtime), but the sleep automation on the Wall Washer is like magic. Its dim, reddish light lulls me to sleep like nothing else, somehow helping me relax and silencing the caffeine-induced chatter.
It’s incredibly soothing, and after a week, I can’t imagine dozing off without it. If I ever did change my mind, though, it’s good to know that the Wall Washer could find a new home beside my TV, serving as an Ambilight alternative. It’s the most versatile Philips Hue lamp yet, and well worth investigating if you’re looking to expand your smart lighting setup.