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Tuya Ambient Mild Bar assessment: Practical however not safe
MSRP $50.00
“For such a reasonable mild, the Tuya Ambient Mild Bar gives loads of capabilities. A scarcity of name recognition drags down confidence in safety, nonetheless.”
Professionals
Nice worth
Even, diffuse mild
Function-rich, responsive app
Works with Google Dwelling and Alexa
Cons
Safety issues
No Apple HomeKit assist
Seemingly fragile building
The sensible lighting panorama tends to be dominated by the large gamers like Hue and Nanoleaf, however the perform they ship typically doesn’t justify the premium they demand. Whereas there’s a wealth of low-cost alternate options on the market, full with app assist, it’s laborious to go all-in with a model that hasn’t been well-established within the public eye. In that spirit, a pair of Tuya Ambient Mild Bars landed on my doorstep not way back. The field set off the same old pink flags with regards to shopping for gadgets from unknown origins, like unusual capitalization decisions and minimal graphic design. Let’s see if the truth strains up with the expectations.
Setup
In adition to the 2 roughly foot-long mild bars, there have been a pair of screws within the field, alongside an Allen key and mounts that might be hooked up both on the finish or in the course of every unit. Adhesives have been included to slap the sunshine bars on the again of your TV, and cable managment loops have been there for the linked USB DC energy provide. There was additionally slightly infrared distant included so that you wouldn’t need to go digging by the app. Construct high quality on the distant was fairly questionable, however hopefully the app covers all of the bases.
App
I used to be slightly nervous about downloading software program from new sources, particularly given the sketchy first impression. The 4.7-star ranking out of 10 million downloads on the Google Play Retailer impressed a bit extra confidence, although I nonetheless used an alternate e-mail deal with to register simply in case it bought roped into some shady spam mailing lists. That hasn’t occurred but, fortunately.
As soon as the app was put in, initiating the Bluetooth pairing was easy utilizing the toggle button constructed immediately into the facility cable. After punching in my Wi-Fi login data (one other nail-biter given my earlier trepidation), I used to be greeted with an sudden wealth of capabilities.
Simon Sage / Digital Traits
First off, I hadn’t realized what number of different gadgets leveraged this Sensible Life app. Sensible plugs, sensible cameras, industrial irrigation controllers, fridges, washing machines, and all the pieces in-between have been all on the “add gadget” display. This constructed confidence within the app, but in addition launched some bloat. A complete part devoted to power saving and climate wasn’t going to be helpful to me. As for the capabilities particular to the Tuya Ambient Mild Bars, among the presets have been somewhat goofy, however customers have full granular management over lighting recipes.
The music sync characteristic took a short while to determine, however finally I discovered that the lights used a microphone constructed into the cable somewhat than audio out of your cellphone. Although efficiency wasn’t good, this helped with responsiveness in comparison with the software-based music sync I’ve seen elsewhere. It additionally launched extra safety issues. I’ve already handed my Wi-Fi password over to a Chinese language cellular app I’m not super-comfortable with, and now it has entry to a sizzling mic with an web connection in my home. Of us might be able to take that plunge for established sensible speaker manufacturers, however I had bother shaking my privateness issues. The recurring pop-up reminder that the app was working within the background of my cellphone each time I switched out from it didn’t assist.
Mild high quality
Simon Sage / Digital Traits
All of that apart, I used to be truly fairly happy with the sunshine high quality of the Ambient Mild Bars. Transitions have been clean, the sunshine was even and diffuse, and the app was responsive, with a great deal of management. It’s attainable to construct mild recipes with a spread of animation kinds, however there aren’t any house display widgets, sadly. The lights use RGBIC, in order that they have effective unbiased management of 15 sections in every unit. A tie-in with Google Dwelling meant skipping the Sensible Life app altogether if I solely wanted easy capabilities. Timers and schedules have been all there. Given the shape issue, they might simply tuck behind home equipment or furnishings to generate oblique lighting.
Our take
Whereas digging round to seek out extra data on the lights, it turned clear that they’re being offered to a number of manufacturers. The mannequin I obtained was from Up Tech, whereas I discovered the very same one on Amazon bearing the Juylux model and a few snazzier packaging. It’s laborious to get a bead on safety or reliability when a product is getting this kind of white label therapy.
In the long run, this actually set the tone for my general impressions. With no clear thought of the place these lights are coming from, it unattainable to know who’s accountable for issues like my Wi-Fi password or house audio information, In case of {hardware} points, would the retailer truly assist, or would I be bounced between them and Tuya? Established manufacturers can reply questions like these far more totally.
Is there a greater different?
The Philips Hue Play bars are about thrice the worth, however are designed to assist show sync, and have added model confidence. Govee Sensible Mild Bars even have characteristic parity, are solely $15 extra, and instill a good bit extra confidence.
How lengthy will it final?
The Juylux model of the Ambient Mild Bars features a three-year guarantee. They appear somewhat fragile. There’s truly a warning on the again to not tilt the lights backwards and forwards within the base as soon as they’re screwed in. As long as they’re tucked away and never coping with a lot bodily contact, you ought to be effective for awhile — however don’t anticipate them to outlive for years on finish.
Must you purchase it?
In the event you’re strapped for money and want just a bit bit of additional direct lighting, that is definitely an choice. I’d be extra susceptible to spending slightly more money on extra established manufacturers that I’m conversant in. I don’t want a mic in my lights that badly.
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