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The ambient lighting is by and large a fantastic concept. The idea that you can watch any movie of your choice and that the wall behind your screen reflects the colors shown makes for an incredibly immersive experience.
However, it can be costly. Philips’ Ambilight range impressed when it launched, but a TV with a built-in feature has been, at best, rare in the US for over a decade.
However, the proof of concept definitely works, which is why we are starting to see dynamic bands of light being attached to the back of your TV. Like the Govee Immersion G6199 TV LED strip. Coincidentally, that is exactly what we are reviewing today.
What’s in the box?
When you first open the box, you’ll be greeted by a coil of lights wrapped in a silicone strip, plus power cords, a plug, and a set of 6 bright orange sponges (the surprisingly are actually useful). The packaging also includes a couple of clips to secure the light to your monitor, along with a cool camera that sits on the top edge of your TV.
With all these important things, you will be up and running in about 20 minutes … unless, like me, you’re stupid and try to install the lights after mounting the TV on the wall. Then it takes about 45 minutes. You will also need an impressive level of contortion ability if you choose this approach.
Set up
In all fairness, it was a largely painless process to get everything working. I’m really impressed with how easy it is to use the Govee app. You are given step-by-step instructions instead of a video that goes faster than you can move, so you can walk through each part of the process for as long as you want.
It tells you exactly where to place the bright orange sponges, where and in which direction to attach the light strips. It even gives you an overview of what the camera can see in the app for final adjustments and lets you choose exactly where the field of view is. Once you’ve got everything set up, you’ll have full access to the app, which is also incredibly easy to use.
Basically, the way it works is that the camera sits on the bezel of your TV and “sees” what colors are being displayed before attempting to match them. I say to attempt because here the whole thing begins to fall apart. After two or three uses, it turned a deep purple hue and stayed that way, occasionally turning bright white for a few seconds before reverting to a bright shade that Prince would have been proud of.
In use
I can’t put it another way – I really love the Govee Home app. It gives you so much freedom and allows you to tailor the lighting exactly to your needs. If you’re having a party and want a little bit of ambiance, the rainbow setting will slowly circling through all of the different colors. Whether you’re watching Scrooged or Enemy of the State, a red, white, and green palette will make you feel extra festive at Christmas time.
Not to mention the personalized color schemes that you can create, upload, and download. Govee Light Studio has a whole community devoted to these things, and that means you can find something that’s perfect for almost every mood and genre.
Not everyone also uses the strip lights on their television sets. Some people have taken it to the next level, lining the lights in their living room, bedroom, or even on the edges of their sofa! There are so many innovative ways to use them and it all comes down to the ingenuity of the people who actually use the light strips.
My living room has two wall-mounted TVs so my partner and I can play co-op games together. You can really see the difference between day and night when using it compared to not. Here the strip light shines and the adjacent reference point really underlines how cool it is.
Recalibrate
I mentioned earlier that the Govee camera seems confused at times. Because of this, I got into a vicious circle in which I had to recalibrate the entire setup over and over again. Then do it again a few days later. And again a few days after that.
If you’re like me, you didn’t expect this to happen so you’ve already thrown away those handy orange sponges which means you need to remember where you placed them on the screen.
Don’t get me wrong, having to recalibrate over and over again isn’t the greatest thing in the world, but it got me out of the experience enough times that I haven’t used it at all in a few weeks. That’s a huge shame because when it works it’s amazing. Running through the English fields of Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla left the wall behind the television in deep emerald tones. Watch out Toy story or Moana with my child (for the umpteenth time) brought out bold shades or red, blue, yellow and green.
But after a few days I inevitably ended up in the same recalibration loop again. This is so disappointing that it has to be taken off.
The judgment
I was really ready to give full marks to the Govee Immersion. Everything about it is so user-friendly, from the app to attaching it to your TV or wall, to finding and downloading individual profiles. I honestly couldn’t praise that side of things anymore, especially for something that costs under $ 100.
The camera is a brilliant addition to the setup and one that not many other products like this one seem to have. That means you don’t have to worry about the right colors. The camera can still see the screen, so it will automatically adjust to what you see.
But then it actually works. Having to recalibrate every few days may not be the worst experience in the world, but it only left a little sour taste in your mouth. If you don’t mind going through the process every few days, I really can’t recommend it enough. However, if you’re as lazy as I am and don’t want to waste a minute or two every few days, I’d say avoid it for now.
Do you have any thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments below or carry the discussion into ours Twitter or Facebook.
Editor’s recommendations:
Just a note, if you buy something through our links we may receive a small percentage of the sale. That’s one of the ways we keep the lights on here. Click here for more. A sample device was made available for this check.
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