Summary
- Smart security lights offer functionality beyond traditional security lights, including notifications and video monitoring.
- Outdoor smart lights can improve both safety and security by lighting up paths and deterring intruders.
- Smart outdoor lighting adds style and value to your home, making outdoor spaces more enjoyable and practical for entertaining.
Outdoor smart lights are a great investment for any home with a garden, driveway, or other outdoor space. They can make your home environment safer and more secure, while also making it more stylish and a more enjoyable place to spend time in the evening.
Level-Up Your Security Lighting
When we talk about outdoor lighting, the first thought that comes to mind for most of us is security lights. These motion-activated floodlights switch on automatically when someone approaches the home, and are designed to deter thieves.
“Dumb” versions of these lights have existed for decades, and there’s nothing wrong with them, but smart versions can add a lot of useful functionality without having to break the bank.
There are combined flood lights and security cameras, which not only activate lighting to scare away intruders but also start video recording. With or without cameras, smart lights can send a notification to your smartphone, smartwatch, or smart speakers to alert you. Camera versions can also send you live footage so that you can see what’s going on even when you aren’t home.
Smart security lights also allow you to create scenes, so that motion detection on your driveway, for example, will also switch on all the other external lights around your home. This can significantly improve the deterrent effect.
Finally, while dumb security lights tend to be blinding white flood lights, smart lights can double as safety or welcome lights, as we’ll see.
Improve Safety for Your Family and Visitors
An intruder may be deterred by any sign of response to their presence—not just traditional floodlights. Porch and driveway lights switching on can make them think they’ve been spotted, so you can use outdoor smart lights to provide both security and safety.
Porch lights can be triggered as you approach the path, lighting the way for your family and visitors alike, and reducing trip hazards. If you have a longer path or driveway, then there are plenty of options to light the way in a range of styles to suit different homes, like the pedestal lights seen here.
There’s a real potential for smart lights to perform multiple functions: security, safety, and adding style to your home.
Make Your Home More Stylish and Get More After-Hours Use
Smart outdoor lighting can do a lot to create a stylish-looking home. Instead of looking out into a pitch-black garden or yard at night, you can turn it into a feature that can be enjoyed at any time.
Wall, pedestal, and step lighting can turn a night-time garden into an appealing and inviting element of your home. It can even add value when it comes to resale, creating a wow factor when people view the property.
We don’t all have pools, but even a modest outdoor space can be transformed by some carefully considered smart lighting, making it not only more visually appealing, but also making it practical to enjoy the space after sunset.
This doesn’t necessarily require smart lights; ordinary lights can achieve the same goal. But smart lighting does give you more options when it comes to creating an outdoor ambiance that actively encourages you to make the most of your space.
Fun Outdoor Lighting Is Also Great for Entertaining
Finally, some fun outdoor lighting can create a great atmosphere for entertaining on warm evenings. Fairy lights are a particularly flexible and affordable option. You can wrap them around posts, drape them across a patio ceiling, string them between trees, hang them along fencing, or even use them on the ground as lawn edging or path lighting.
I’ve used Philips Hue lights for both security and entertaining, as the company offers a wide range of well-respected products, but Govee is another brand worth considering.
If you have a large property, there’s plenty of scope to use a wide range of smart outdoor lights to serve different functions. On a smaller property, it’s entirely possible that a single set of lights could provide all of the benefits we’ve mentioned: security, safety, style and ambience.