Hue’s SpatialAware finally made me appreciate color-changing lights

I’ve been a fan of Philips Hue smart lights since the early days. It’s one of the few staples in my ever-changing smart home. However, when the Bridge Pro launched late last year , it wasn’t immediately obvious why I should upgrade. The signature feature, MotionAware — which turns your lights into motion sensors — is neat, but I already have motion sensors. While I run two of Hue’s standard bridges to accommodate all my lights and accessories, I’m not at a point where I need the Pro’s higher device capacity. I like the idea of faster response times thanks to the advanced processing power, but that wasn’t quite enough. Then in April, SpatialAware arrived . This maps the location of lights in a room to distribute the colors and tones of Hue’s lighting scenes across them more intelligently. Suddenly, my existing smart lights felt new again. While MotionAware was the headline feature when the Pro launched, it’s SpatialAware that finally sold me on upgrading. $99 The Good SpatialAware is genuinely transformative MotionAware works out of the box without additional hardware Supports more than 150 lights Faster, more capable, and more future-proof The Bad Expensive MotionAware can be slow and doesn’t work for every room layout No weekend settings for motion detection SpatialAware is only on some scenes and isn’t compatible with zones You don’t need a bridge to control a Hue light, but using one unlocks more advanced features, including dynamic lighting. …