Last year, Nanoleaf added the ultra black version of their Shapes Triangles to their lineup, and fans of the RGB light kits were excited that Nanoleaf had fulfilled their number one request. I was able to sample both the regular and ultra black Shapes Triangles, and I really favored the all-black aesthetic. Along with a couple of other new lighting options and collaborations announced last month, Nanoleaf revealed they were again extending their Shapes lineup with another ultra black option. This time around, consumers will be able to get their hands on Shapes Ultra Black Hexagons. Adding an all-black panel to the lineup last year was enough to keep the community happy, but will a six-sided repeat make as big a splash in 2023? After going hands-on with a Smarter Kit of the Shapes Ultra Black Hexagons, read on to see what we think.
Specifications
- Price: $219.99 (Nanoleaf)
- Dimensions
- Height Per Panel: 7.75 in (20 cm)
- Width Per Panel: 9.0 in (23 cm)
- Edge Thickness: .24 in (0.6 cm)
- Weight Per Panel: 0.46 lb (208g)
- Cable Length: 8.2 ft (2.5 m)
- Luminous Flux Per Panel: 100 lumens
- Color Temperature: 1200K - 6500K
- Color Channel Configuration: RGBW, more than 16 million colors
- Max Power Supply Power: 42W
- Max Energy Per Panel: 2W
- Max Panels Per Power Supply: 21
- Connect+: Yes
- Touch Control: Yes
- Music Sync: Yes
- Screen Mirror: Yes
Nanoleaf Shapes Ultra Black Hexagons - What Is It?
The latest entry into Nanoleaf’s Shapes lineup, the Ultra Black Hexagons are a 360° all-black version of the original Hexagons. The Ultra Black Smarter Kit includes nine hexagon panels, a controller, a power cord, and a set of 9 rigid linkers and mounting tape to create a basic design. To expand your design, expansion kits containing three panels and rigid linkers can be purchased for $69.99. The included power cord can power up to 21 panels, and the controller can handle up to 500 panels and is compatible with all of the Shapes lineup to allow mixing and matching of different Shapes kits.
The panels are made of black plastic and weigh 208g each. Each side of a panel is 4.5 in (11.4 cm) in length, for a total width of 9.0 in (23 cm). The hexagons use the same mounting plates as the rest of the Nanoleaf Shapes to provide a uniform 1cm thickness so the panels seamlessly connect together.
The Ultra Black panels are currently on pre-order and expected to ship in early August.
Nanoleaf Shapes Ultra Black Hexagons - Installation
Installation of the Ultra Black Hexagons is handled the same as any of the other Shapes. Once you’ve figured out your layout, installation takes less than 20 minutes. A piece of double-sided mounting tape is placed on the center of the Hexagon and applied to the wall. Unlike the Triangles, which have two connections per side, each Hexagon has a single link spot in the center of each of the six sides, and a linker is used to connect one panel to the next. The rigid linkers are the same as the ones used in other Shapes kits, so different shapes can be combined to create larger, more elaborate designs.
Each Shapes Ultra Black Smarter Kit comes with a controller and power cord that are plugged into any open link spot. The controller can handle up to 500 panels, and 3-panel expansion packs cost $69.99. And a three-pack of Shapes Flex Linkers can be purchased ($9.99) to stretch your design across multiple walls, the ceiling, or across angled surfaces.
Once your lights are installed, the Ultra Black Hexagons conform to the Thread and Matter standards and are controlled through Nanoleaf’s desktop or mobile app. The Nanoleaf app is easy to use and can manage all of your Nanoleaf products throughout your home.
The Ultra Black Hexagons also work with Apple Home, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, and the SmartThings platform. Nanoleaf also provides integration with Corsair, Secretlab, Razer Chroma, Engine DJ, IFTTT, and Flic Button.
Nanoleaf Shapes Ultra Black Hexagons - Aesthetics And Features
Whether you like the brightness of the all-white Shapes or the subdued tones of the Ultra-Black Shapes is a matter of personal preference. For me, the black Shapes are the way to go. While the Hexagon panels have the same build quality as last year’s Triangles, one positive I noticed about the Hexagons is they don’t have the same uneven lighting I saw in the corners of the Triangles. However, one issue remains - although the unlit black shapes look nice on the wall, I would still prefer a white cord that would blend in with my walls. And at this point in the game, I think it would go a long way to add at least one extension connector into the Smarter Kit so that you could have the panels on two walls without any extra cost.
The Shapes Ultra Black Hexagons are more than just RGB light panels and come packed with several other features. Like the rest of the Shapes lineup, the Hexagons have touch control, so you can assign touch gestures to control your most-used system actions or play games; do so at your own risk, though, as the panels are dust and fingerprint collectors. Hexagons can also pulse to the beat of your music or action movie with Music Sync, and Screen Mirroring adds an extra dimension of immersion to your favorite PC games. And although I haven’t had the chance to try out their newest feature, Hexagons can also be synced up to work in conjunction with Nanoleaf’s upcoming 4D TV Screen Mirror and Lightstrip Kit (be sure to watch for my upcoming 4D Kit review to see how this pans out).
The Nanoleaf app also helps coordinate lighting throughout your entire house. Individual light sets can be grouped by room, and lighting effects can be controlled individually or in groups manually or through schedules set in the app. For example, the design in my bedroom turns on at the same time as my alarm goes off, then automatically shuts off an hour later after I have left for work. Along with powering on and off, schedules can also automate changing from one scene to another or turning on/off music sync or screen mirroring.
Final Thoughts
The single connection point per side means that a set of Hexagons doesn’t give the same design flexibility as the Triangles. I tried placing the single set of Hexagons in several configurations, but none really popped. Although the Shapes Ultra Black Hexagons aren’t a ground-breaking addition to the Shapes ecosystem on their own, they really shine when combined with other Shapes kits to create larger designs.
Like the rest of Nanoleaf’s panels, the Ultra Black Hexagons aren’t cheap. The basic panel design has remained unchanged for a few years now, and I would have liked to see a slight price drop as the technology matures. Still, given the overall trend of price increases, I’m happy to see Nanoleaf hasn’t taken advantage of the economy to increase the price of a kit. And as I mentioned in my Ultra Black Triangle review, you aren’t just buying a lightbulb, you are getting a piece of art. And when looked at from that perspective, the pricing makes sense.
The product described in this article was provided by the manufacturer for evaluation purposes.