Philips Hue’s new security cameras can fend off intruders with your smart lights
Philips Hue is expanding beyond making some of the best smart bulbs in the industry: Signify’s brand announced its first smart home security cameras at IFA 2023, and as you’d expect, they work nicely alongside the current Philips Hue range. Products.
As previously stated, two cameras have been revealed in one blog post from Philips Hue. First up is the Hue Secure camera, which is available both wired and battery-powered, and in black or white. It can be used both indoors and outdoors and costs $199.99 / £174.99 / €199.99 (wired) or $249.99 / £219.99 / €249.99 (battery).
From what we can tell, the features look pretty standard, with live video feeds, motion alerts, night vision, and a built-in siren. A paid subscription from $3.99 / £3.99 / €3.99 per year gives you extras like the ability to set individual motion zones and a longer activity history to browse.
If you want to add accessories, you can: the camera can be complemented with a $39.99 / £34.99 / €39.99 mount with ground spike, a $29.99 / £26 outdoor charging cable, 99 / €29.99 and a charging cable of $14.99 / £12.99 / €14.99 anti-drop cable. The desktop stand costs $49.99 / €49.99 – we don’t have a standalone UK price for that, but the wired camera with stand costs £199.99.
Add a floodlight and sensors
The Hue Secure camera can be used indoors or outdoors, but the second camera is online for outdoor use: it’s the Hue Secure floodlight camera (above) and as the name suggests it comes with a floodlight – otherwise it’s pretty much the same as the first camera. This one will cost you $349.99 / £299.99 / €349.99.
You can also add sensors to your setup, which can send separate alerts to your phone via the Philips Hue app. They sit on the cracks between doors and windows, so you get a notification when something is opened. A two-piece sensor kit costs $69.99 / £59.99 / €69.99.
Signify has been working hard to integrate all this with its existing smart lighting range. When the cameras or sensors detect something, you can adjust the response of your lights. For example, let them immediately become brighter or flash red. This is all handled through the new Security Center section in the companion app.
The Hue Secure camera, sensors and accessories will arrive in the US, UK and Europe in the fall (or fall), but the flood camera won’t be available until early 2024. We will of course do our best to have them tested and assessed as soon as possible.