Today WiZ, a smart home lighting brand made by the same people who create Philips Hue, is announcing a new mobile experience alongside some new lighting products set to launch over the next month. One of the biggest features announced today has to be the all-new SpaceSense motion detection for WiZ’s home lighting. Unlike typical motion detection sensors that use infrared beams to detect motion, WiZ’s new SpaceSense uses Wi-Fi sensing technology to detect Wi-Fi signaling disturbances that come with movement. Keep reading below the fold to learn more about this new feature and more.
This all-new SpaceSense feature will be coming with the launch of the revamped WiZ app, which hasn’t happened since 2016 and will bring some other new features along with it. Let’s start with the brand new SpaceSense feature, which will use Wi-Fi sensing technology to detect changes to Wi-Fi signal strength caused by people moving through space. This is all done without needing additional sensors or batteries since the processing happens onboard the smart lighting itself. All you need for the setup to work is two lights per room connected via the WiZ app V2. Those who are privacy-focused can feel confident as the feature does not detect exact locations and cannot see anything visibly. All the processing is done locally and does not leave your home. SpaceSense is set to arrive this month and will work with most products introduced after September 2021 and all Connected by WiZ products, including Philips Smart LED.
In addition to this new motion sensing feature, the refreshed WiZ app brings a new user interface for “increased control and simplicity” with fewer taps required to achieve your intended actions. You can view all your rooms to see which lights are on, what brightness they’re at, and which mode is selected. Quick Actions will also allow you to control multiple lights with a single button press so you can spend more time relaxing before bed while reading a good book. The new Light Scene Management feature will allow you to manage custom scenes to save light settings, brightness, colors, and more so you can instantly change the atmosphere. The new WiZ app will be available this month and will bring all of these features to your home.
New WiZ Smart Lights
Now onto new lighting products to expand the WiZ portfolio. We’ll start with the first outdoor entry from the brand. WiZ’s String Lights will come with 12 LED bulbs capable of displaying more than 16 million colors. The waterproof and weatherproof design will make sure these LED bulbs keep your patio or porch illuminated for those cool fall evenings. String Lights will be available this October for the MSRP of $119.99.
The slim WiZ Bar Linear Light Dual Pack, which is set to launch this month for the MSRP of $89.99, will light up your shelves, your desktop, or anything else with its slim design. They can also be tilted onto their sides to adjust the angle. WiZ Bar Linear Lights can be operated independently or together to further enhance any mood you want, whether it be spooky for Halloween or calm for relaxing after a hard day’s work.
You will also be able to take the WiZ Mobile Portable Lamp around the house with its Dynamic Light Modes and dual-zone design allowing you to choose between two different colors. You retain the app and voice control available with the other lights above while also having pre-set modes and dimming features with the touch control panel. WiZ is also launching its Pole Floor Light, which will illuminate your wall with a wide-angle wall-wash effect, perfect for your office corner or as an accent piece. You can even remove the base and lay it horizontally behind your couch to add some backlighting. Both of these lights are set to launch this month with the Mobile Lamp costing $89.99 and the Pole Floor Light costing $119.99.
Rounding out these new lights is the latest WiZ accessory, the Smart Button. Bypassing any need to communicate with your home router, this button will allow you to turn the lights on or off with a simple button press with direct communication. You can stick it to your wall with the included wall plate or to any metal surface with its embedded magnet. It too will launch this month for $24.99.
Electronicsforward’ Take
The new SpaceSense motion detection feature is a great way to add additional functionality to a product lineup without needing any new hardware. We have yet to see how accurate it is, but if it works as described, it could be a game changer for smart home households.
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