Ready, Set, Action! Your Ultimate Home Theatre Guide

Gone are the days when black and white films are mainstream. With improvements in technology, the range of offerings for watching movies has expanded dramatically – from colour grading systems scrutinised by cinematographers to the ability to watch the latest releases on your smartphone. However, nothing seems to beat the experience of watching a digital movie in the cinema. Or is there?

An Immersive Experience in Your Home Theatre

Like kids in a candy store, picking your favourite film, grabbing a box of popcorn, and walking meekly around a blacked-out theatre to find your seat, are part and parcel of a wonderful movie-watching experience. Of course, there is the massive screen and surround-sound when viewing a film in the theatre. But, in these situations, you can’t pause the movie, respond to texts, adjust the volume, or change up the colours of the lighting. This is why creating an impressive viewing experience right in the comforts of your own home is the ultimate dream for many.

Recreating movie magic in your home theatre

Drawn to the appeal of a new experience when watching movies, many homeowners attempt to find the right home theatre system that will fit their limited floor space and budget. From wide-screen TVs to the best surround sound systems, there are a few common gadgets and devices that people gravitate towards when attempting to make their cinematic kingdom a reality. But one of the best tools for recreating the ambience and look of theatre often gets put in the backburner – smart lighting control systems! Capable of taking the surround lighting experience of your home theatre to the next level, we cover the different types of smart lighting to consider and ways it can turn your mundane movie nights into a cinematic experience.

Types of Lighting  

There are two types of lighting that are a must-have for every home theatre. This includes overhead lighting and LED light strips.

1. Overhead lighting

The main source of lighting, overhead lights will brighten up the room without taking up much space. Recessed lighting or spotlights will flush with the ceiling, increasing the aesthetic appeal of the room. But be sure that your choice of overhead lighting is dimmable, and you do not overdo it with recessed lighting as this will generate spots and unwanted shadows.  

2. LED light strips

Though having these lights installed is not compulsory, if your budget allows for it, they are great accent lighting that’ll complement your home theatre system. The Near Smart Strip Kit, for example, is capable of changing and emitting up to 16 million colours! It can also be attached to the back of your projector, underneath your sofas, or other places for a cool effect.

Transform Your Lights into Special Effects 

So, you’ve gotten your hands on some of the above-mentioned lightings. Now what? How can you use these lights to your advantage for an immediate and immersive experience during those action sequences?

1. A little colour frenzy

Add a little flair and drama to the space with a smart home lighting control system. Understated and easy to hide, smart light strips are long strips of LED lights that support a more immersive experience. Controlled using the Near app, these modern LED lights have the added smart functionality of being controllable via voice assistants like Amazon Alexa. Not sure how to connect your smart lights to Alexa? Watch our Near Alexa setup guide.

2. Setting the scene

Creating a window to another dimension and levelling up your home entertainment game is made easy when you have a smart home lighting control system. Create a fine-tuned lighting environment to mimic the genre of the movie you are watching easily with the Near app too!

3. Automate your smart lighting for the ultimate experience

Have your lights change automatically – or even better, have your lights paired up with your smart home voice control assistants. You can also take things up a notch and link your LED lights to smart motion sensors on the floor so that, just like in the theatres, when someone gets up from their seat, the lights will go off!