IKEA just released a super cheap Philips Hue Play Light Bar lookalike, but there's one big drawback

• The IKEA Skaftsärv is an LED gradient light costing $6.99 / £4 (about AU$8)
• It looks similar to the Philips Hue Play Gradient Light Bar, but can't mirror colors from a TV screen
• The WiZ Gradient Light Bar is an affordable alternative that can sync to a TV

IKEA has just launched a new lamp that looks strikingly similar to a popular Philips Hue light, but at a tiny fraction of the price. The IKEA Skaftsärv is available in the UK for just $6.99 / £4 (about AU$8), and each one has three lighting zones that can cast a colorful glow onto your walls or shine into the room.

As our colleagues at T3 note, it bears an uncanny resemblance to the Philips Hue Play Light Bar, and if you like the idea of making your home cinema system more immersive but have been put off by the price tag, you might be tempted to snag a pair of Skaftsärvs instead — but there's something you should know first.

Although the Skaftsärv can shift colors in response to music, and is dimmable, there's no way to connect it to your TV or PC monitor to extend the colors from the screen. It's impressive considering how little it costs, but it's only a decorative lamp, not a smart light.

By contrast, the Philips Hue Play Light Bar can be used to add ambience to a room, or to create an Amblight-style effect around and behind your TV when connected to a Philips Hue HDMI Sync Box. Up to three Light Bars can be connected to the same power supply.

You can control your Light Bars via the Philips Hue app, and like all Philips Hue devices, they are compatible with all the major smart home ecosystems so you can operate them with voice commands, connect them to your other smart devices, and use them in automations. Take a look at our Philips Hue Play Light Bar review to find out more.

Lighting for less

If the Philips Hue light is outside your budget, but you want something that will provide a similar experience, take a look at the WiZ Gradient Light Bars, which cost just $59.99 / £54.99, and work in a very similar way when linked to a WiZ HDMI Sync Box.

Although they use different technologies, both Philips Hue and WiZ smart lights are made by the same company (Signify), so you can be confident that you're getting good quality. In fact, our reviewer Abigail Shannon gave the WiZ Gradient Light Bars a near-perfect four and a half stars out of five thanks to their ease of use, versatility, and smooth color gradient. Check out our full WiZ Gradient Light Bars review for more details.

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