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Nowadays, light strips can be seen everywhere. From the back of our desks and TVs to the outside of our homes, light strips are a quick and easy way to add color to almost any surface. Over the years, although the light strips have become brighter, capable of displaying multiple colors at the same time, and even new wireless features have been added, the length of most light strips has remained the same—especially the HomeKit-compatible options.

One of the latest HomeKit-enabled light strips-Meross Smart Wi-Fi Light Strips-surpasses the standard, including not one but two colorful 16.4 foot light strips, the price is less than one. With a total length of more than 30 feet, the Meross light strip is easily the longest and therefore the most convenient HomeKit option, but is it enough to stand out from many competitors such as Philips Hue, Eve and Nano Leaf? Let us find out.

Bottom line: The extra-long Meross smart Wi-Fi light strips are ideal for large installations. With a peel-and-stick design, millions of colors, dimming, and HomeKit controls can be added to almost anywhere in the room. Smooth, customizable effects and affordable prices make it an excellent choice for smart, colorful lighting.

Although the total length of the Meross Smart Wi-Fi light strip is equal to 32.8 feet, the light strip is divided into two 16.4 foot sections in the box. Both parts of the strip are neatly wrapped on a plastic reel. If you only want to set up one, it is very suitable for storage, and is equipped with a control module, a power brick and several convenient accessories for easy installation. Accessories include mounting stickers for the control module, ten mounting clips to provide extra security for the stripping and sticking of the tape itself, and two extension clips that can be used to connect the two parts.

One thing that impressed me immediately after unpacking is how narrow the Meross lamp is. I estimate that the width of the Meross light strip is 10-20% smaller than the other light strips in my house, which may not sound like a lot, but when combined with a slightly thinner depth, it can open up additional mounting options.

Another hardware highlight is the compact control box and how it has two power connection lines that can power the two parts of the strip without physically connecting them together. However, apart from these differences, the Meross strip looks similar to its competitors, with a series of evenly distributed tiny LEDs and clearly marked areas where the strip is cut to a certain length.

Like other Meross HomeKit products, connecting the Meross smart Wi-Fi light strip to my home network is quick and easy. I like how Meross allows users to pair the light strip with the Home app out of the box—without downloading another app or registering an account. After scanning the HomeKit pairing code, there is no need to enter the Wi-Fi password or install a dedicated hub. The light bar can be up and running within a few minutes after opening the box.

However, to make the most of the light strip or use it with Android, Google Assistant or Alexa, you need to download the Meross app. The Meross app is easy to navigate, with clearly marked tabs and paired devices located at the front and center of the main screen. With this app, you can set a schedule (called a routine) that brings the strips to life at a specific time, can include scenes from other Meross accessories, and access remote controls outside of HomeKit.

With the easy-to-use Meross app, you can access convenient controls, schedules, scenes, and lighting effects such as Smart Wi-Fi strips.

Another benefit of using the Meross app is the ability to apply different lighting effects. The Meross app provides a total of five different presets: night, reading, work, reading and party. Each preset can be customized with speed and color options. My favorite effect is the party, which cycles through various colors and automatically matches the other smart lighting accessories I use at home. I did find that the default speed is a bit too fast for my taste, so I like the customization option mentioned earlier, which allows me to set it to the correct speed.

Through the Home app, the Meross smart Wi-Fi light strip provides the familiar HomeKit smart lighting control. Tap the accessory in the Home app to turn the light strip on or off, and long press to bring up the brightness adjustment and quick preset color options. HomeKit also enables the light strip to be integrated with automation and scenes including other accessories, and of course, it can also be controlled via Siri.

No matter which control method I use during the test, the Meross smart Wi-Fi light strip can respond to commands almost immediately, most of which are executed within one second. The Meross smart Wi-Fi light bar is also very reliable, because in the past few months, I have not encountered any failed commands or unresponsive messages from the Home or Meross apps. The Meross HomeKit series continues to impress me in this regard, coupled with the lack of necessary accounts or apps, this company is one of my first choices for recommending affordable and reliable accessories.

In terms of actual lighting, the Meross smart Wi-Fi light strip provides an industry standard of 16 million different colors and white shades. Most of the colors produced by the Meross strips look great at full brightness levels, but the deep red hue impressed me very much. It is very rich and one of the best colors I have seen so far. one. Lighter shades of blue are also great, but some colors are not up to the standard-will be detailed later.

Turning to brightness, although I can't find the exact lumen specification from Meross, it is bright enough for most accent lighting scenes, but not for the entire room lighting. Based on my previous experience with other smart lighting products, my best guess is that the light strip can reach up to about 800 lumens, which is also very suitable for accent lighting, but it is not the only light source in the room.

As mentioned earlier, the Meross Smart Wi-Fi Light Strip is divided into two 16.4 feet long sections, which will make it ideal for outdoor installation-if it is weather resistant. In addition, the company only includes a power supply in its box, so don't expect to use it in multiple locations. Since the strip is too long, I believe one can meet the needs of most people, so there will be a lot of unused parts sitting around, which seems wasteful. I hope that Meross is either developing an updated model that is weather-resistant and includes another power supply, because it looks like it missed the opportunity to make it stand out.

If the 16.4 foot part exceeds your needs, Meross light strips can be cut to a suitable size just like other light strips, and the attached extension clip is a good supplement. However, it turns out that getting the cut part to work with the editing is very difficult and does not always produce the best results. During the test, it was difficult for me to fix the clamps and make adjustments because they were difficult to open once clamped. When I finally got the two parts to work together, the slight bumps in the strip caused the second part to display a different color from the first part, so I ended up completely giving up because it was not needed for my specific installation.

Turning to color performance, the Meross light strip is not perfect, it has an obvious omission. Now, to be fair, no matter which brand you choose, certain colors—especially darker shades of green—are a common problem with smart lighting, but Meross strips compete with other colors such as purple and yellow. The light strips will not produce many changes with these colors, and even their appearance needs to be carefully adjusted in the Meross app. The lack of color variants will also prevent color temperature adjustments. To our credit, Meross anticipates and lets you know about the lack of these adjustments.

The Meross light strip is also a bit unstable, and the color can be adjusted through the Home app. Using the default quick color options provided by the Home app can cause shadows to sometimes look completely different from how they appear on the screen, and using the color picker does not always apply subtle changes as you would expect when you swipe. Finally, the Meross smart Wi-Fi light strip does not support the HomeKit adaptive lighting function of iOS 14 like other options on the market.

Although the HomeKit light strip market is limited compared to other platforms, it has a considerable share of options and can meet almost any demand. Our current selection of the best HomeKit light strips highlights the choices of popular brands such as Philips Hue, Eve, LIFX and Nanoleaf, as well as cheaper alternatives to VOCOlinc and SANTALA.

Compared with the $80 Eve Light Strip, the Meross Smart Wi-Fi light strip is three times longer, $30 cheaper, and thinner. However, the Meross light strip does not support HomeKit adaptive lighting and is not as bright as the Eve light strip. Although it is shorter in length, it can illuminate a larger area with 1,800 lumens. The two light strips are connected via Wi-Fi, the response time is almost the same, and both provide rock-solid reliability.

Compared with our current preferred product, Nanoleaf Essentials Lightstrip, which supports HomeKit adaptive lighting, the maximum brightness level of Meross products is once again surpassed because the Nanoleaf option reaches 2,200 lumens peak. In addition, like Essentials A19 bulbs, Nanoleaf's light strips include the latest wireless standard Thread, while Meross light strips rely on Wi-Fi. Thread is regarded by some as the future of HomeKit, featuring low power consumption, large range, fast response time and high reliability. However, Nanoleaf's Thread implementation currently requires HomePod mini, and Meross light strips use your existing network to provide the same performance.

You want an affordable light bar that supports HomeKit

The Meross smart Wi-Fi light strip, which costs less than US$50, is an affordable alternative to some of the more popular options of major brands. The low price does not mean that it has millions of colors, intelligent control and easy-to-pair functions.

You want a super long smart light strip

Meross light strips surpassed its competitors in total length, there are two 16.4 light strips in the box, covering a total of 32.8 feet. The extra length means less power to manage, of course, it can still be trimmed to meet any needs.

You want a light strip that is fast and easy to set up

The Meross Smart Wi-Fi Light Strip is very easy to install and operate because it does not require an additional hub to set up. For HomeKit users, no account is required, just scan the pairing code on the device to add the light strip directly to the Home app.

You want a light strip suitable for outdoor

Due to lack of weather resistance and dust resistance, Meross smart Wi-Fi light strips are not suitable for outdoor use. The long length of the light strip makes it very suitable for outdoor installation, but unfortunately, it must be kept dry inside in order to operate safely.

You want the absolute best color reproduction from the light strip

Like most smart color lighting, Meross light strips have difficulty handling certain colors, such as dark green and purple. The Meross smart Wi-Fi light strip is also inconsistent with color adjustments made through Apple's Home app, and lacks color temperature options.

You want to use two 16-foot-long strips in different locations

Although there are two 16-foot-long sections, the Meross box contains only one power supply. If you want to use the strips in a different location, you need to buy another set.

If you want an economical way to cover large areas of colored lighting without having to purchase multiple kits or multiple power adapters, Meross light strips are undoubtedly the best choice. Meross light strips can also be easily set up via HomeKit, and the included accessories make installation a breeze. However, if you want the brightest and best color reproduction, or if you want HomeKit adaptive lighting, then you'd better choose another option.

Although the long total length of 32.8 feet is its biggest selling point, Meross's HomeKit-enabled light strips are also suitable in other areas and are worthy of most people's consideration-even if you don't need the length now. Meross smart Wi-Fi light strips have millions of colors, convenient accessories, affordable prices, and an extremely simple HomeKit setup process, which is great value for money. It may not be the best overall HomeKit light strip you can buy today, but it is the best length to use right out of the box.

Bottom line: With an affordable price, a total length of 32.8 feet, millions of colors, and HomeKit, the easy-to-install Meross smart Wi-Fi light strip is a great choice for colorful indoor accent lighting.

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Christopher spends most of his time writing and dreaming about everything in HomeKit. If you want to explore everything with him in automation, you can follow him on Twitter @itschrisclose.