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Just screw this bulb in, turn it on, and sync with Siri for voice-activated color changes. Worth $45?
The Sylvania Smart Plus Multicolor LED is a connected, color-changing light bulb that you can sync up with Siri for voice-activated color changes. Unlike Philips Hue bulbs, the Sylvania bulb doesn't need you to plug an extra hub device into your router -- just screw the bulb in, turn it on, and connect with Apple HomeKit on your iOS device.
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Getting started with Sylvania's bulb is easy, Just turn it on, open up Apple's Home app on your iOS device, and tap the little plus-sign icon. The app will detect the bulb and ask you to point your phone's camera at an eight-digit code in its manual. Once you've scanned it in, you'll be all set.
You can control the bulb right from the Home app, with basic controls for brightness, color and color temperature.
You can also control the bulb using spoken Siri commands, too.
The Sylvania bulb's colors are vivid and accurate, but they aren't quite as bright as you'll get with the competing Lifx LED. It isn't as easy to dial into a specific shade, either.
The bulb puts out 755 lumens of brightness at its default, soft white setting. That's plenty bright for something like a table lamp.
Here's the Sylvania bulb on the left compared to a Lifx bulb on the right. The Lifx bulb is noticeably brighter.
Each Sylvania Smart Plus LED costs $45, which is a little less than what you'll spend on bulbs from Lifx or Philips Hue. It makes a good addition to Siri-centric HomeKit setups, but read our full review before buying in.