So at night time the Gradient Signe really pops. Imagine a lightsaber being lit up in a dark cave. And that's great for adding mood to rooms in the twilight hours or, excitedly for anyone who also invests in a Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box, incredible extra synchronized mood lighting for movies, TV shows, or playing video games. And Hue Entertainment also benefits from the new Gradient technology, because even in interaction with the Hue Sync Box or the Hue Sync Desktop App, the new version of the floor lamp displays not just one, but several colours. The placement is done as usual via the room view of the desired entertainment area. This is how bright the Philips Hue Gradient Signe can shine I then created a Zone containing all my regular office lights and the Signe Floor Lamp and used my Hue Tap Dial Switch to control all of the lights and scenes. Through the app, you can also set a routine: Wake Up, Go to Sleep and Timers. I set up a Wake Up routine, with the lamp turning on at 06.30, gradually getting brighter until 06:50 when I'd get out of bed. Personally, I wasn't a huge fan of this – with a toddler that frequently wakes through the night, I need all the sleep I can get; but I can see how others would like it. Focussing exclusively on tall, smart floor lamps, there aren’t many competing devices to choose from when it comes to the Hue Signe Floor lamp. The most notable rival is the Govee RGBIC Floor Lamp. This is also an LED floor lamp that comes with RGB options and a design very similar to the Signe. Govee has emulated many of Philips’ Hue products at notably lower prices. I use Govee’s lamp, TV strip, and lighting bars, and I like them all. Indeed, they’re not the same quality in terms of build and materials, but they do at least offer much of the same functionality, including a decent app to control multiple lights.

Setting the lamp the colour you want is far easier with this system than the one used by the Govee Lyra. It's time for a little cheering up. Even though the new Philips Hue Gradient Signe so far only allows the selection of three segments instead of the promised five segments in Ambiance mode, the colour gradients just look fantastic. Of course, this is a matter of personal taste, but I really like the new possibilities. I much preferred my Go to Sleep routine, which would turn on at 22:00. I loved walking across my landing to see a gentle glow of colored lightcoming from the bedroom. And even though you can only freely set three segments so far, the automatically generated colour gradients display significantly more colours. In my test, I was able to count ten individual colours that can be displayed by the Hue Gradient Signe floor lamp.

What a piece of kit!

As you’d expect, the Signe Floor lamp works with all of the Hue scenes, either in the app or the ones that you create. And it will also work with dynamic scenes, too. Being in the UK, I was sent the UK and EU version of the lamp (a US version is also available), which meant I had a UK and EU plug to switch between. The lamp arrived with the EU plug attached, but switching this to the UK plug was simply a matter of sliding the EU plug upwards to release, and replacing with the UK version. On first seeing the Philips Hue Gradient Signe online, it looked incredibly slender and minimalist, and believed it would bring a subtle modern touch to my home. Opening the box once it arrived, I was presented with an LED-type rod that secures to a circular base. Viewing the various scenes in the Hue Scene Gallery on the app, I settled on either Starlight or Blood Moon. These are a beautiful mix of soft blues, purples and pinks. I was able to brighten or dim the lights whenever I wanted, but I preferred to have the Gradient Signe set to a dim level – because the brightest setting really is very bright.

My review unit was the Philips Hue Signe table lamp in oak. During the testing period I set routines, explored the beautiful Hue scene gallery, and controlled the intensity of the light. My main quibble was that you can only control the lamp using the app, or by switching it off at the mains; there's no on / off on the unit itself. Read on to discover how I got on elsewhere. Philips Hue Gradient Signe table lamp review: Price and availability The Philips Hue Gradient Signe Floor Lamp is similar to the Govee Lyra Floor Lamp, in that both are floor-standing lamps with gradient light strips in them. While the Govee options needed some assembling, and the finish wasn’t great, the Philips Hue Gradient Signe Floor Lamp comes pre-assembled in its box. The app is where the Philips Hue Gradient Signe comes to life – and it's via the app that you can set up the lamp to your requirements. Control via the app is super-easy, but in those instances I haven't been bothered to access the app, I have been able to use Alexa. However, I have missed not having a power button somewhere on the light base itself. Having to find my phone to jump through a few hoops to toggle it off while I'm half asleep, or shout down to Alexa (which doesn't always register my command), isn't ideal. It's a minor flaw, but worth noting. Once plugged in the Philips Hue Gradient Signe Floor Lamp can be connected to your Hue app using Bluetooth or Zigbee. Hue really comes into its own when used with a Bridge and Zigbee, so that’s the version that I went for.The main difference between the two Philips Hue Signe lights is their size. The floor lamp is notably larger, and therefore delivers a higher lumen output , with a larger LED bulb included. Philips Hue Gradient Signe table lamp review: Design