Smart Indoor & Outdoor Christmas Lighting: What You Need to Know

Many households are getting upgraded these days: Festive lights installed in the home, twinkling stars placed on the windows, and fairy lights installed on the inside and outside. There are many ways to do so: you can rely on sophisticated socket systems, but there are also simpler options. Whether you opt for individual smart light sources, make do with switchable sockets and/or rely on complete solutions—we'll take you by the hand with this article.

Smart Christmas Lighting with Switchable Sockets

Would you like to make your existing Christmas lighting smarter without investing plenty of money in new fairy lights? It's easy to do so with smart sockets!

Smart sockets are the modern successors to classic timers. You can use them both indoors and outdoors. Thanks to a Wi-Fi connection, you can conveniently control your Christmas lights via an app and switch them on and off as you wish. Timers or motion detector control are also possible in this scenario.

However, there is one caveat: "Smart" has its limitations in this case. What does this mean? You can switch your lights on and off with smart sockets, but you can't dim them or change their color. You will need special light sources for these functions. You should also be aware that not all smart sockets work with Alexa, Google Assistant, or Siri voice assistants. Hence, when choosing a socket, keep an eye on whether your preferred voice assistant is supported.

Sometimes a gateway is also required so that the smart sockets can communicate with other devices. This can be a smart home system from Bosch for instance, or a normal router. Oh, and also pay attention to which wireless standards are supported. The Zigbee standard is very popular.

Smart sockets are available from numerous manufacturers, ranging from inexpensive no-name products to brands such as IKEA, TP-Link, or Ledvance. Affordable models are available from around $10, so there really is something for every budget. This makes this option an inexpensive way to add more pizzazz to your home this Christmas.

Holistic Solutions for a Smart Christmas

Have you already equipped your home with a smart home solution from Philips Hue, Ikea, or another provider? If so, integrating your Christmas lights into your smart home is made so much easier, allowing you to integrate them seamlessly into the existing system. The advantages are obvious:

The product compatibility is perfectly matched that you benefit from a simple setup to stable operation. Depending on the provider, you can also set up complex scenes and define rules to take the fun to a whole new smart level. For instance, you can ensure that warm, white light is automatically turned on the moment you enter the home. Alternatively, you can set a specific light sequence or mood for your Christmas lights, which start automatically as soon as it gets dark.

This is very convenient for you, as you can control and monitor everything via an app. If you value maximum flexibility or already use various smart home products from different manufacturers, please bear in mind that open systems are the better choice. It is here you can connect devices from different providers and access to a variety of wireless standards such as Zigbee, Z-Wave, or Matter.

• Find out everything you need to know about the Matter smart home standard.

To make sure you don't end up looking down endless manuals instead of at festive Christmas lights, you should make sure that every purchase is compatible with your system. Ensure you have the right wireless standards for your network and also check that your chosen system is a future-proof one that will still be supported with software updates, new functions, and new hardware in a few years' time.

Let There Be Light via Voice Assistant

You're sitting comfortably on the couch while it's snowing outside, but do you want to turn on the festive lighting on the balcony or in the garden? How convenient for voice assistants such as Alexa or Siri save are, preventing you from having to go out in the cold.

Simply control the lighting composition by voice and you don't even need to have your smartphone to do so. The systems and even the individual components are compatible with the voice assistants.

This is How Much a Smart Christmas Will Cost

It's hard to put a general figure on this. We talked about the fact that you can begin with smart sockets for as little as a tenner each. If you want a complete smart home system, you'll usually have to pay $100 to $200 for the control panel as starters.

Then again, when making a purchase, remember the system is open for additional components. You will therefore save money with an expandable system, which is more expensive at first but can be expanded compared to a closed system.

Monthly or annual costs can also be another factor to consider. Ultimately, it all comes down to the components you need and want to install—there should be no upper price limit.

Smart Outdoor Christmas Lighting 

Of course, everything should also look festive from the outside, whether on the balcony, terrace or in the garden. This begins with an outdoor socket that is weatherproof thanks to the corresponding IP certification and can ideally be controlled from the inside.

Incidentally, many smart home systems offer the option of replacing the switch for controlling your outdoor socket with a smart home actuator. You can then continue to switch it on or off manually, but you can also let your smart home control center do this for you. The advantage for you here is how the switched-off socket has not power running through it. This means you are even safer and it also protects you against potential electricity thieves. However, there is a catch, as this requires work on the power lines, something you'd rather leave to a professional.

How to Light the Christmas Tree Smartly

With the "Festavia" light chain, Signify, the company behind the smart lights from Philips Hue, launched an offer specially meant for Christmas trees. With a total length of 20 or 40 meters, 250 or 500 smart mini LEDs create a festive atmosphere in your home. Whether you wrap the fairy lights around your tree, around the banister, or around your cat is, of course, up to you.

Logically, you control everything via the app and can access a wide range of options: Apart from simply switching them on and off, you can also select light sequences for the brand's Gradient products, and the new "Sparkle" effect adds even more Christmas cheer to your home.

As good as the Philipps Hue products are, they also come at a slightly higher price. You can get away with less if you opt for less expensive manufacturers. The Christmas lights from Govee would be an example of this compromise between festive and price-conscious options.

Smart lighting can even save you money

In an increasingly sustainable world, however, the question also arises: how much sense does it actually make to illuminate the entire house in glistening light in the best Griswold style, or more precisely: how expensive is it? Outdated Christmas lighting in particular often makes the electricity meter spin at a heart-stopping speed. That's why we advise you to replace all your Christmas lights if you haven't yet opted for LED technology.

Sure, it's really expensive the first time, but it will pay itself off in the long run, especially if you like to go the extra mile with your Christmas decorations. A conservative estimate assumes adopting such a measure can reduce your electricity costs by a tenth.