Design & Construction

Philips Hue has for the most part been dominating the lighting market since the start of time and the Hue Go has seen its success as being a portable smart light that isn't too expensive. Now in 2020, Philips updates the Hue Go with the latest tech and Bluetooth capability. Similar to previous models, the Hue Go is a half-sphere that emits lights mostly from the front and around the sides. At the back, you will find the single button control that turns on and off the Hue Go with a long press and changes light recipes with a short press. The Hue Go cycles through the four preset of Relax, Read, Concentrate and Energize with their default brightness level. At the bottom right, you will find the power port for recharging needs. The battery life will vary from 2.5 hours to 18 hours according to brightness level and colour ambience

Lighting Performance & Quality

Moving on to lighting performance, the Hue Go features an equivalent of a 43W  bulb and outputs 520 lumens. The projected lifespan of the bulb is around 20,000 hours and the colour ranges from 2000-6500K. Out of the box. the lamp is ready to use with just Bluetooth control using the Philips Hue BT app. However, there are limitations to using Bluetooth as you could only connect up to 10 devices. But as always, it is a great starter for anyone who has not bought a Hue Bridge. For those who want to unlock the full potential, you will need to have a Hue Bridge to connect the lamp to Wi-Fi. To set-up the lamp, you will require the Philips Hue app, which will guide you through the process and register the speaker for you. The app is available on both the App and Play Store. In the app, you may hook up your Hue Go by pressing the Hue Bridge once to enter pairing mode. You can then eventually add it to any of your room and set it up to work together with other bulbs as well as Entertainment Areas. When used with the Hue Sync app, the lightbar will flash to change colours according to the movie or video lights and elevate the watching experience. It simply works flawlessly and syncs up quickly with no lag at all. In the app, there are lighting presets that you can choose from and you can find more in the Hue Labs tabs. You can also fine-tune the brightness and colour ambience to your liking. If you are into setting up routines, you can make customs to turn on lights at specific timings or when you arrive home. There is also the option to do software updates and link it to a Hue Dimmer Switch. After set-up, you can link your Hue account and add the Hue Go to your preferred smart home app of Apple Homekit, Google Home or Amazon Alexa

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Connectivity & Portability

In terms of connectivity, both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth control is available, however, I found that you could only use either Wi-Fi or Bluetooth control at any one time. There is a power brick included in the package for you to power up the lamp. In term of portability, the Hue Go fits nicely when you cradle it in your palms and is quite lightweight too, though I highly doubt that the acrylic body could take a drop without cracking.

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PROS​

• Modern & Minimalistic Design

• Multiple Light Recipes

• Physical Button Controls

• Bluetooth Control

• Stable Software Updates

• Dimmer Switch Compatibility

• Customisable Brightness & Colour Change

• Google Home, Amazon Alexa & Apple Homekit Compatible

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CONS​​

• Not Dust or Water-Resistant

 

The Bottom Line

Overall, the Philips Hue Go is a great way to test out the Philips Hue system. The Hue Go lamp works well with the rest of the Hue ecosystem, making it a great portable lamp for those who prefer to change up their light sources and take it anywhere.