I recently reviewed the Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights Prism, and that kit kicked my holiday spirit into overdrive. I want to expand my holiday lighting display, but I’m new to outdoor lighting and want to take it slowly. After looking through Govee’s Christmas light lineup, I selected the Cone Tree Lights kit as the ideal starter set for an outdoor display. Although the Cone Tree Lights kit may sound like yet another set of RGB lights to drape across your tree, it’s more than that – it IS the tree. So I reached out to Govee, and they sent a kit for evaluation.
Specifications
- Price: $159.99 (Currently on sale for $104.99 during the holidays)
- Dimensions: Height: 6.0 feet, Base Diameter: 2.6 feet
- Colors: 316 beads, 16M colors
- Bead Type: RGBIC
- Connectivity: Bluetooth, 2.4GHz Wi-Fi
- Waterproofing: Tree lights: IP67, Control Box: IP67, Power Adapter: IP44
Govee Cone Tree Lights – Overview And Setup
The Govee Cone Tree Lights replicate a lighted Christmas tree without actually needing a tree. Usable indoors or outdoors, the kit’s core consists of a thin 6-foot pole and an 18-arm base. The light string includes a star topper and 18 strands connected to a small disc, totaling 316 in-line RGBIC lights.
Setup is unbelievably simple. After unfolding the arms on the base and securing them with a top plate, a plastic cover is installed to conceal the assembly. From there, the four-piece center pole snaps together and is placed into the base. The light strand is then placed at the top of the pole, after which each of the light strands is secured to the base by snapping the fish-hook connectors in place.
Six U-shaped stakes are placed over the base’s arm and driven into the ground to secure the Cone Tree in place. An optional water bag is also included to keep the tree in place when placed on concrete. The pole’s thin design and light strands make it wind-resistant, and the stakes are sufficient to keep the tree from blowing away during a storm. I currently have the tree on my front porch, and the water bag was enough to keep it from moving during 40mph winds the other day.
The lights and control box are IP67 rated, so outdoor weather isn’t an issue. However, the power adapter cord is only a couple of feet long and only rated IP 44 – resistant to splashing, but not submersion in water – so you’ll need to use a cord cover if the tree is placed out in the elements.
Just as crucial as an easy setup is a quick disassembly and convenient storage. Taking the display down took less than half the time of assembly. And unlike a typical strand of tree lights, the entire setup folds down and fits neatly back into the original box – no tree to dispose of at the end of the season or lights to untangle the next time you set up the kit.
Govee Cone Tree Lights – Lighting Up The Yard
As simple as it is to set up, the Cone Tree Lights deliver a large, vibrant display. It can take hours to decorate a traditional tree, and no matter how hard you try, one side always looks worse than the rest. With the Cone Tree Lights, you get a perfectly symmetrical tree in minutes. The support pole and base are virtually invisible from more than a couple of feet away – I have the white version, and the black may be easier to see – leaving the lights as the main attraction. The inline beads are small but glow as brightly as a traditional strand of lights, and the overall effect is enhanced by the display’s symmetry.
We are talking about Govee here, so you know the Cone Tree Lights kit is more than a blinking set of lights. The tree is controlled via the Govee App and is compatible with Alexa and Google Home. All the basics are here: single-color, multi-color, motion, sound sync, and everything in between is managed through the app. Also important is the timer function, which allows you to set on and off times for your display – your neighbors will want to see your display whether you are home or not.
The Cone Tree Lights include 82 preset scenes. With Christmas approaching, I reviewed all the holiday scenes and was pleased with the variety. One of the cool features of a 3D set like this is the ability to have a motion element. For example, the Christmas Stocking scene features a red-and-white stocking that rotates around the entire tree. Given the size of the tree, some of the scenes pull this off better than others.
In addition to the presets, you can enter DIY mode to create your own designs. You can use Finger-Sketch to create your own design, or use one of the included flowing patterns. With up to 10 layers, DIY designs can be as simple or elaborate as you want. Or, if you are like me, you just head straight to the Share Space section of the app and choose one of the apps other users have uploaded – you can still tell your neighbors you created the amazing displays.
Final Thoughts
With such an easy setup and hundreds of presets and user-created scenes to use, the Cone Tree Lights is a no-brainer addition to your holiday light display. The colors are bright and vivid, and the tree looks good in indoor and outdoor displays.
I only have two issues with the Cone Tree Lights kit. First, the power adapter isn’t waterproof, so you will need to visit Home Depot if you don’t already have a cord cover. That’s really a minor issue, but for $160, I expected an outdoor-ready display right out of the box.
My only other issue is scope: the tree can easily be integrated into the rest of your display. But if you’re like me and just starting out on a new display, a single tree leaves you wanting more. In that regard, I would like to have trees in multiple sizes available to create a more dynamic display. The 7.5ft tree is currently out of stock, leaving the 6ft tree as the sole option at the moment. To create a truly impressive display, I would like to see a range of tree sizes, from 3 ft to 10ft or taller.
