Philips Hue Play Wall Washer

Introduction

Signify officially unveiled the Philips Hue Play Wall Washer back in June; a compact smart lamp aimed at creating eye-catching lighting effects without taking up much space.

The Wall Washer is available in black or white, priced at $219.99 for a single unit or $384.99 for a two-pack in the US, or £169.99 / £299.99 in the UK. While this places it at the premium end of the Hue range, it comes with the ColorCast projection optics first seen on last year’s Twilight bedside lamp.

The wide-beam ColorCast system can either project gradients you set manually in the Hue app, or react in real time to whatever you’re watching or playing on a TV when paired with a Hue Play Sync Box or the Hue Sync app.

Design and build

• Three light sources
• Available in black or white

The Play Wall Washer is meant to be seen, not hidden. Its matte aluminum body, frosted projection window, and sculptural profile make it feel more like modern décor than a tech gadget.

The white version (tested here for this review) fits neatly into minimalist spaces, while the black variant should blend easily with darker AV setups.

Turn that slick design around and inside the frosted window are three LED modules, each angled slightly differently. These work together to create the wide, blended gradient effect that defines the fixture.

The light-facing side is elegant, but the rear is more utilitarian and not something you want on display, or even close to eye level for long periods.

Measuring 15.7cm tall and 9.1cm wide, and weighing 0.85 kg, it’s compact enough for most AV or gaming setups without taking over. Build quality is solid, though the lack of braided cables that we’ve seen on the likes of the Hue Iris is a shame. Instead it’s the regular rubberised cables, which is a bit of a disappointment, and you’ll want to hide them from view.

Power comes from the same chunky three-port adapter used with the Hue HDMI Sync Box. It can power up to three wall washers at once, which is convenient, but means multiple units need to be within reach of the same block. UK and EU adapters are included in the retail box.

Features and performance

• Bluetooth or Bridge support
• Compatible with Hue HDMI Sync Box

Setting up the Wall Washer follows Hue’s familiar routine. You can pair it directly via Bluetooth for a quick start, which gives access to most of the app’s color and brightness controls.

However, for the full Hue experience – including scenes, automations, and Hue Sync features – pairing with a Hue Bridge is necessary. The good news is that setup is straightforward; simply scan the QR code, connect to your Bridge, assign a room or zone, give it a name, and you’re ready in a few minutes.

Hue bulbs can also connect via Zigbee through compatible Amazon smart speakers, including the likes of the 3rd-gen Echo Show 8, Echo Hub, and Echo Show 21. This allows Alexa integration without needing the Hue skill.

Once paired, you have two main ways to use the Wall Washer – as a regular ambient smart lamp or as part of a Hue Sync Entertainment area.

In the former, the Wall Washer behaves like a standard Hue White and Color Ambiance light. You get full control over 2000–6500K white temperature, plus an expansive colour palette.

Each of the three LED modules can display different colors, allowing for instant gradient effects that look fantastic beamed onto a wall.

Brightness can be adjusted per LED or for the entire unit, or you can also use Hue’s built-in scenes and effects, making the Wall Washer a strong mood light even without media syncing.

But in order to fully maximise the Wall Washer experience you’ll want to get them setup with your Hue Sync Entertainment zone.

You can create a new Entertainment area or add it to an existing one. It will sync in real time with your content via the Hue Play HDMI Sync Box or the Hue Sync app on compatible LG and Samsung TVs (or gaming PCs).

Placement is easy with the Hue app’s 3D drag-and-drop tool, allowing you to set height, orientation, and distance from the wall.

If you pull the fixture back, you cover a wider area or move it closer for a more focused beam. Each of the three LED modules reacts individually to on-screen content, producing smooth, cinematic color transitions that are far superior to the single-zone Hue Light Bar.

It’s a fantastic effect and perhaps the best option I’ve tested so far with regards to Hue Sync-ing.

Brightness, as a regular smart lamp is superb, at 1,035 lumens in cool white at 4,000K, which is roughly double the Light Bar’s output.

With Hue Sync active, the ColorCast optics create vivid wall gradients that track games, movies, and music in real time.

The transitions are smooth, cinematic, and immersive, rather than segmented or harsh, delivering a more refined experience than cheaper competitors.

Outside of Sync, it still performs brilliantly as a standard Hue lamp, with the full 2000–6500 K range, high color accuracy (CRI ≥ 80), and access to all the usual Hue scenes and effects.

It’s also very cool how you can create your own effects, splitting the Wall Washer into three different segments and creating amazing effects on a wall. You can even edit Hue’s preset effects to have movement, ripples, flickers and the like too.

A single Wall Washer can also double as a nifty sunrise wake-up light on your nightstand. You can use the Hue app’s built-in automations to have the lamp gradually brighten and cool its colour temperature, mimicking a sunrise to gently wake you up by a specific time.