Philips

Philips introduces budget-friendly Hue bulbs as part of major lineup overhaul

The standard Hue bulbs are also getting an upgrade. The new models can dim to as low as 0.2 percent (compared to 2 percent for the Essential bulbs), and Philips claims they can produce the full range of visible color temperatures (from 1,000 to 20,000 K, compared to the 2,200 to 6,500 K range of the Essential bulbs).

The next-most-important addition to the ecosystem is probably the new Hue Bridge Pro, the Hue ecosystem’s first new bridge accessory in a decade. In addition to being faster, the new $99 bridge supports “150+ lights” and “50+ accessories,” at least triple the number supported by the previous Bridge (which is still sticking around at $66 as a lower-cost accessory for smaller setups). Users with multiple Hue bridges will eventually be able to replace them all with a single Bridge Pro, but Hueblog reports that this capability won’t be available until “later this year.”

Other new Hue products include indoor and outdoor strip lights, including cheaper models under the new Essential brand umbrella; Festavia-branded outdoor string lights; and a $170 Hue Secure video doorbell. The new hub and most of the new bulbs are being launched in North America starting today, but the doorbell won’t launch until October, and many of the strip and string lights will be released in November or December. Signify’s press release has specific pricing and availability information for all the accessories.

Philips Hue bulbs will be even more expensive in July. And it may not end there.

Philips, philips hue, signify, Smart Home, Tech / 9u50fv / June 25, 2025

Philips is upping the prices of its popular and already-expensive Hue series of smart lighting products starting July 1. The company is blaming tariffs for the changes and has suggested that prices could go up even higher after the initial bump in July.

Philips started informing its customers via an email marketing message earlier this month that prices would go up and urged people to buy Hue lighting sooner rather than later.

In a statement to the Hueblog website, Philips’ parent company, Signify, explained why people in the US will pay more for Hue products soon:

Signify will increase prices on our Philips Hue portfolio in the US, effective July 1, 2025, as a direct result of tariffs. We remain committed to providing consumers with high-quality products and features that make smart lighting extraordinary.

Signify didn’t confirm how much Hue products would cost after June but noted that more changes could follow.

“Signify reserves the right to modify prices based on new or additional tariffs becoming effective in the future,” the company told Hueblog.

As noted by Hueblog, some Hue products are already more expensive in the US than in other geographies. The Hue Smart Button, which came out this month, costs $33, compared to 22 euros in Europe and $25 for its predecessor. The Hue Play wall washer is $220 in the US, compared to 200 euros in Europe. Typically, Hue’s products have “converted euro prices almost 1-to-1,” Hueblog reported.

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