Nanoleaf is one of the most well-known brands of smart lighting and we are no strangers to their products as we recently reviewed the Nanoleaf Squares & Nanoleaf 4D Kit.

 

In this review, we are turning our attention towards the Nanoleaf Lines which offers artistic effects for any room in the house. Nanoleaf has even designed a number of accessories to go with the lines such as skins and connectors to bend around a wall.

 

First Impressions

 

The first impressions of these are when set up and switched on the LEDs on the rear of the panel do really stand out they really do jump out at you, especially at night. If you use them during the day it will still offer coloured lights that are vivid and you can set several colours on each bar to set the scene.

 

Setup is not difficult but does require some help from a friend or family member and Nanoleaf recommends you lay out your final design before you connect to the wall like what we have done below.

 

Having help in the set-up allows you to avoid mistakes when sticking the hexagon connectors so the light bars are not misaligned but in theory, if you took your time this could be a one-man job with ease. 

 

In order to really take these lights to the next level use the Nanoleaf app which is easy to navigate but you could also link these to your Apple HomeKit or Google Home kits and they can also be linked to Alexa. 

 

Price Nanoleaf comes at a premium with the lines coming in at the following: 

 

Lines 60 Degrees Starter Kit:

9 Lines – £134

15 Lines – £202

Lines 90 Degrees Starter Kit

4 Lines – £67.49

 

If you are not budget-conscious and want to create some art in your room then the pricetag won’t put you off. We also feel the Nanoleaf Lines are better value as they don’t look out of place when unlit and also work as a thread router to control the Nanoleaf Essentials smart bulb if you already have this set up. You can also buy expansion packs which you get 3 Lines for £37 depending on how big you want to go you might find it better just to buy a 9-line and 15-line pack and create your art. 

Setup 

The Nanoleaf Lines just like the Nanoleaf Squares we have reviewed are very easy to install. Using the app allows you to use the Layout Assistant which means its just a matter of laying everything out on a desk and then sticking it to the wall.  

(Important: Make sure the mounting connectors are placed correctly otherwise the layout becomes impossible to get right as you are restricted by the 60-degree angles for the light bars themselves.) 

My advice is to stick the design up in sections and dont rush or have two people working on it so you can put all the connectors up first then line up the lines. 

Design

The Nanoleaf Lines are available in 3 colours – White, Black and pink. The lines are very different to anything else the brand offers. They come with slim white plastic bars that when set up on your wall will look like art even when unlit. 

 

The connectors are small hexagonal blocks that stick to your wall via double-sided adhesive tape The connectors all have their own caps so when the finished design has been completed they look neat and tidy. The base of each connector can also be removed and has holes for screws ideal for connecting to a ceiling or if you move home and want to take them with you. 

 

Just like the Nanoleaf Squares one connector doubles up as the control unit with buttons for changing scenes, setting the brightness or activating music mode. (More on that later). This connector also has a cable that connects it to a separate wall adaptor.

The light bars are 10 inches in size or 11 inches if you include the connector ends. The bars are very slim coming in at only 0.8 inches in width making them just thick enough to store the LED’s which are just visible through the translucent base panel of the bars. What we did find interesting is each line has 2 zones that can display a different colour which is great considering Nanoleaf supports up to 16 million colour shades.

Nanoleaf App

The Nanoleaf leaf is linked to the app via Wi-Fi and only works on a 2.4GHz bandwidth. If you have a dual-band modem this won’t be an issue so maybe just check before your purchase. 

To access the app scan the QR code found on the power unit of the Nanoleaf Lines and follow the simple instructions. Once set up the app allows you to select a layout. 

The app also gives you a range of scenes once you have powered them on. Now this can also be done via the physical buttons on the controller. However, what the app is vital for is setting up schedules, creating new scenes or finding new ones. The app is not for everyone especially if you have other smart light brands such as Twinkly or Philips Hue they get pulled into the app automatically and arranged per room some people do not want that to happen. 

Features

The stand-out feature is the fact the lines are dual zone light sticks allowing you to set up some very colourful scenes that are displayed. You have the option of static or dynamic light combinations all available from the Nanoleaf app library.

The other main feature is the in-built microphone that picks up the music your playing and allows the Nanoleaf products to flicker along with the music. You will notice there are only a few rhythm scenes that work with the bars and they are set to default meaning you can’t make any changes. The default scenes like Beat Drop and Jalapeno Heat will still give you an element of a disco in your room.  

 

The Lines also work via a screen mirroring feature so if you have them set up near your TV it will complement what you have on the screen perfect for the gamer in the house. (Important: Nanoleaf App required to screen mirror).

 

The Nanoleaf Lines can also be linked to your existing products from Nanoleaf to create scheduled scenes which can be set up via the app. You can also link these to your existing smart home assistant to be part of scheduled scenes. 

 

The only feature if you own the squares that you will notice the lines do not have is the touch functionality so playing games or changing the lighting effects via touch is impossible. 

Performance

I was very pleased with the overall performance of the Nanoleaf Lines as each bar has a max brightness of just 20 lumens so if you have 9 lines package that is only 180 lumens compared to 1,100 lumens from the Nanoleaf Essentials kit making this ideal for a bedroom as part of your gaming set up

The Nanoleaf Lines can actually also be used during the day and the default Daylight scene offers a warm white light that in our setup was more than bright enough to be the only light you need. There is also a reading scene which was bright enough for the whole room (even at 50% brightness). Just remember the Nanoleaf Lines are more designed for ambience, not an actual light source. 

 

Last but not least is the scheduling you can set them to change scenes and set a timer to turn the lines off and this happens instantly regardless of using the app or control panel. 

Verdict

The Nanoleaf Lines offer something completely different and help you create a little bit of art in the room of your choice. We found the range of colours to be excellent, the display to be vivid and the effect on the walls to be stunning as a result.

 

I was also impressed by the smart home compatibility and the fact you can set up a thread network allowing you to futureproof this product to other compatible smart home products. 

 

It’s not all perfect moving these smart lights can be very difficult indeed as you are only given so many double-sided sticky pads or you can drill them in using screws but this will leave holes in the wall if you change your mind on the position. Last but not least is the price tag they sit in the want pile at Christmas, not the need pile. The premium price tag in this case starts from £134 which might put some people off.

However, if you want some smart lighting and want to create wall art alongside the other products Nanofeaf produce then these are something you need to consider for sure.

Product Rating   

Design: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars5.0

Setup: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars5.0

Nanoleaf App: 4.0 out of 5.0 stars

Features: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars5.0

Value for Money: 3.0 out of 5.0 stars

 

Overall ranking: 4.4 out of 5.0 stars – 4.4 stars  

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