Color-changing smart lights kicked it up a notch at CES 2018

We always see lots of color-changing smart lights at CES, but this year, the big names all brought their A-game. Click through to see the new products and announcements that wowed us.

Let's start with the biggest name in the category, Philips Hue. The Hue team teased new "Hue Entertainment" integrations with movies, video games and music this past August, and at CES, we finally got to see it in action during one of the most impressive lighting demonstrations we've seen in recent years.

Hue Entertainment's first partner is the gaming accessory brand Razer. Enable it, and you Razer Chroma-supported things like keyboards and mice will change colors in sync with your Hue devices. From there, all of it will sync up with supported games like Overwatch and DOTA2.

Philips is also gearing up to release a completely revamped Hue app. It'll offer an improved user experience and cool new features like an algorithm that creates color palettes using your favorite photos.

But wait, there's more! New outdoor Hue bulbs and fixtures are coming this summer.

Meanwhile, smart lighting insurgent Nanoleaf revealed an ambitious plan to blanket your walls in second-gen, touch-sensitive light panels that work with Siri, Alexa and the Google Assistant. 

Nanoleaf also announced that its long-awaited 12-sided remote will launch this spring for $50. You assign lighting scenes and Apple HomeKit scenes to each side, then trigger each one by rotating its side to the top.

Nanoleaf isn't the only name betting big on square light panels -- Lifx Tile, announced last November, will be available soon, too. Each panel has 64 customizable zones of light, offering lots of room for creativity.

Like other Lifx lights, you'll program everything in the Lifx app.

Each Tile comes with four 3M Velcro tabs for easy hanging. You get five Tiles per in the starter kit, which will be available in February for $250.

In addition, Lifx is just about ready to release Lifx Beam, a color-changing fixed light strip kit. You'll be able to get six segments and a corner piece for $200 when it arrives at the end of January.