These Nanoleaf smart lights make me want to spend more time in my garden

I’m a big fan of smart lighting products, with connected bulbs all throughout my home. But my outside space is a little… lacking, shall we say. Fortunately, Nanoleaf just dropped two new additions to its line-up, and finally my patio might be about to get an upgrade.

Nanoleaf’s newest devices are the Rope Light and Solar Garden Lights. One’s designed to twist and turn into whatever squiggly light-up nonsense your creative brain conjures up, and the other makes your garden look pretty magical.

• Read more: How to choose a smart lighting system

First up is the Rope Light – imagine an RGB rave noodle, but posh. It’s 5 metres of ultra-flexible silicone-coated splendour that you can shape into anything. With animated gradients and dynamic lighting effects, you can turn any room into a light show, synced with your music or your latest binge-watch. It plays nice with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and even Matter. You can control it via Nanoleaf’s app, voice, or the inline remote. Personally, I’m glad there’s an option you can use without having to tap your smartphone.

But it’s the Solar Garden Lights that really caught my eye. For starters, they’re solar-powered, which means I can feel just a smidge green-fingered while I light up my garden. Each light fixture comes with eight LED bulbs and weatherproofing that laughs in the face of drizzle (IP65, specifically).

They can cycle through 8 vibrant RGB colours and come with 11 preset animated scenes. Or if you’re feeling a bit more minimalist, there’s a palette of warm and cool whites to keep things tasteful. The built-in daylight sensors mean Nanoleaf’s Solar Lights switch on at dusk and off at dawn. You can even charge them via USB-C if the weather’s not cooperating, and there’s a remote to control up to 20 fixtures at once.

The Rope Light is available to order directly from Nanoleaf for £80/€90. The Solar Garden Lights, meanwhile, are up for pre-order at £50/€60. If you’re quick, there’s a 10% early bird discount up for grabs.

• Related: Nanoleaf smart lighting guide: our top picks

Connor Jewiss

About

Connor is a writer for Stuff, working across the magazine and the Stuff.tv website. He has been writing for around nine years now across the web and in print too. Connor has attended the biggest tech expos, including CES, MWC, and IFA – with contributions as a judge on panels at them. He's also been interviewed as a technology expert on TV and radio by national news outlets including France24. Connor has experience with most major platforms, though does hold a place in his heart for macOS, iOS/iPadOS, electric vehicles, and smartphone tech. Just like everyone else around here, he's a fan of gadgets of all sorts. Aside from writing, Connor is involved in the startup and venture capital scene, which puts him at the front of new and exciting tech - he is always on the lookout for innovative products.

Areas of expertise

Mobile, macOS, EVs, smart home