Philips Hue Festavia Globe Outdoor String Lights Review

Introduction

With the launch of the 2nd-gen Festavia String Lights earlier this year, Signify aimed to bring Hue’s indoor lighting magic outside, but those were definitely more suited to a Christmas tree.

However, at IFA 2025 when Signify rolled out those lights along with the new Bridge Pro, it also expanded the Festavia lineup with a design more suited for permanent placement in gardens, patios and balconies.

The Festavia Globe Outdoor String Light has globe-style bulbs that use a glass-style shell and a mini Lightguide-like inner tube to give every bulb a decorative presence even when they’re switched off.

These aren’t budget garden lights. You could fill your entire fence line with cheaper options from other brands for the cost of one Hue set.

But as ever with Hue device, the question isn’t “Are they cheap?”, it’s “Are they worth the cost if I want everything running through Hue?”

For a lot of homeowners, that answer is still a firm yes.

I’ve had the 21m, 30-bulb set hanging from the apple tree in my garden for a couple of weeks. Here’s how they held up.

Design and installation

• Works outdoors
• Comes in three lengths

The Festavia Globe sets come in three lengths – 7m, 14m and 21m – and I’ve been using the longest kit for testing for this review.

Thirty bulbs stretched across 21 metres makes it far more substantial than your typical string of fairy lights.

Unboxing takes a moment because every bulb is individually wrapped, though everything is recyclable and nicely organised.

Once freed from the packaging, the design becomes the headline: these look more like decor pieces than outdoor lights. They share some of the DNA from Hue’s Lightguide range, just in a smaller outdoor-friendly format.

The cable layout is well thought out: you get roughly two metres from the plug to the controller, then another metre-and-a-half before the first bulb.

After the final bulb there’s a short run with a loop for hanging, which is handy if you’re wrapping around beams, trees or fences.

Just note that the string can’t be extended end-to-end. If you want wider coverage, you’ll need multiple sets connected through Hue’s T-connector, which lets you power two strings from the same adapter without turning them into one long chain.

Setup is the usual Hue routine, so I’d recommend pairing everything before you start climbing ladders.

Bluetooth setup gets you up and running quickly, but pairing to a Hue Bridge unlocks the full catalogue of scenes, zones, automations and outdoor groupings.

Some Echo devices can act as Zigbee hubs, and platforms like Home Assistant can pick them up as well, but realistically, if you’re dropping this kind of money on decorative lights, there’s a good chance you already have a Bridge in play.

Once added to my Bridge Pro, they slotted neatly into an existing garden zone. I first tested them along a fence using leftover screws from previous reviews, though I ultimately preferred the hanging-through-the-apple-tree approach, which was messy to install, but much nicer to look at.

Features

• Dynamic scenes
• Wide range of colours and modes

Hue gives these outdoor globes the same software treatment as its more capable smart lighting.

The colour range is huge, running from warm white all the way to extremely cool tones, and you still get the full RGB palette for more expressive scenes.

Chromasync tech helps keep the shades consistent along the entire length, which matters with a long string like the 21m set.

From there, you can choose between linear gradients, mirrored patterns, or a scattered mode that spreads colours organically across the bulbs.

Diffuse mode allows gentle blends of multiple colours at once; it’s one of the easiest ways to get a soft, atmospheric look with zero effort.

Hue’s scene gallery works brilliantly here too, the coloured fireplace and glisten effects look particularly good outdoors, and you can always create new ones with the colours you like if Hue’s default ones aren’t doing it for you.

The IP65 housing means you can leave the lights out all year. Rain, frost and heat aren’t going to trouble them, and the globes are shatterproof and replaceable if any mishaps occur.

Performance

• Bright lighting
• Consistent colours

Individually, each bulb outputs just 50 lumens. On paper that feels tiny, especially when compared to the 800-plus lumens you’d get from a normal Hue bulb. But this is one of those cases where the sum outperforms the parts.

Spread across 30 bulbs, the combined light easily lifts an outdoor space. It’s not designed to replace a porch floodlight, but it creates a bright, inviting backdrop that you simply don’t get from a single lamp tucked in a corner.

But the real magic is in the colour. Gradients flow smoothly, saturation remains consistent and the transitions between shades feel intentional rather than patchy.

White light isn’t the star here, but these are decorative bulbs first and foremost. Their real job is to add ambience, and they nail that brief effortlessly.

Should you buy it?

FAQs