Enhance or Distract? The Nanoleaf 4D Review

[@ShaneCreates]

Do you think screen mirroring is distracting or enhances your gaming/theater experience? Purchase the Nanoleaf 4D here (affiliate link) geni.us/Nano4D Other products and links from my setup are in the video description.

[@halifaxguy]

Love it... I got the Govee one to test the water on my 75" tv and haven't seen any reason to spend the extra money for NanoLeaf or Philips... works fantastic... I do have a lot of NL triangles, canvas and light strips... but I'm loving the look of the black lines you have there... they look sharp...

[@jimmy_changa6964]

I think u didn’t like it because of the overwhelming amount of lights you had. If it was only the strip around the TV and nothing else, would change your mind. My humble opinion.

[@ShaneCreates]

Thanks for the comment Jimmy. I also watched some with just the lightstrip. And yes, it's certainly less distracting, but I still find it more distracting than I prefer when watching most things. Just a personal preference maybe or perhaps something I just need to get used to.

[@lootrich]

And a black wall

[@whateverthismeans7]

I thought the same thing. Not symmetrical also. Try just the light strips

[@jasdeepwalia9917]

@@ShaneCreates if I were to pick between this and govee t2, what would you recommend?

[@Drebe73]

My thoughts exactly. I wouldn’t sync any other lights to the setup.

[@TazGoldstein]

Great video, Shane! The extreme latency looks like the most distracting aspect. If the lights were in true sync, I think it could add to the experience. Until then, that’s a pass from me.

[@BegsYourPardon]

I had the govee one with camera and switched to the Hue Play and Hue strip. HUGE difference, plus having the src auto-switch depending on whichever device is active and the degrees of control do not motivate me to ever return to the camera set-up type. Having the color data come from the hdmi source is far superior to the cameras.

[@chriskasperski55]

I’m a huge fan of my hue sync boxes. They really enhance some things that I might find unremarkable. Even commercials are more satisfying. I love it for watching sports too. It does have a limitation of only 10 lights per entertainment area.

[@omegavr8746]

Either your setup is really bad or the nanoleaf product is, I think it’s your setup.. the lines and shapes are horrible there lol I have the Philips Hue version for 2 years now and absolutely love it and looks a lot better than that

[@ignaciomunoz8635]

Just got mine yesterday and installed it today and it took less then 30 minutes the corner brackets were such a great help I can’t wait to test them out through out the week

[@AlexManMe]

After three months how are you liking it?

[@ignaciomunoz8635]

@@AlexManMe they work great! I love to use them with movies and when playing music I also have some black shapes on my wall and they are a great when paired together

[@tianninggao6968]

The 4D mode looks super laggy

[@SmartLightDimwit]

Have you tried it using only the lightstrip? I’ve found backlighting to help bring me into movies and shows but I imagine if I had a big display of lines and Light Panels splaying out from the tv that would be distracting.

[@rob_over_9000]

This seems like a miss on Nanoleaf’s part. All the other boxes use HDMI and for some reason they decided you need an ugly camera? Did you ask them why they did it that way?

[@ShaneCreates]

They are not the only camera system like this. There are others, most notable is probably the Govee one as mentioned in the video. The HDMI boxes are typically much more expensive. So maybe that’s why they went with the camera solution.

[@rob_over_9000]

@@ShaneCreates the Govee AI Sync is HDMI!

[@ShaneCreates]

Uhhh yes. That’s correct. But they also sell the Envisual TV Backlight T2… which is a camera like the Nanoleaf 4D. All of these were mentioned in the video.

[@Charles0002]

The camera can have some advantages. For example, you can get the syncing/mirroring on the light strip to work if you just were viewing cable on your TV, not going through another box. The hue sync box can’t handle that, so I need to watch TV through my recorder if I want the sync lights to work. It’s not a huge problem. If your TV is smart and has the apps built in, you also wouldn’t get sync with an HDMI sync box if you used them. You’d have to have a Apple TV or Chromecast or something else to run the apps and go through the box. The camera would allow you to use the built in apps on the TV. Getting the sync boxes to work right can be a little tricky. I’m still having problems getting Dolby Vision to work with sync on the Apple TV. HDR works fine though and I can’t really seem to tell the difference between the two, so it’s ok with me, but I hope Apple fixes it. From what I can see on this video though, the HDMI sync box, or at least Hue’s version is 100x times better when it actually comes to syncing the lights with what’s on the TV. The nanoleaf version is pretty distracting, but I find the Hue version adds to movies very easily. At least with this version of the firmware.

[@itsprusax]

Crazy how i cant get the true 4D effect to work, NOT EVEN ONCE PAST THE TWO MONTHS IVE GOT THIS XDDDDD ngl - i got couple nanoleaf products but none of them is close to being shit shit of a product.

[@itsprusax]

if you have any ideas why my 3d and 4d scenes look exactly the same - id love to hear an answer !

[@chrisedwards5447]

Its distracting with the Nano Leaf version because the colors dont transition smoothly with the picture shown on the tv. The colors studder and judder as the picture changes. Companies like Govee & lytmi has perfected this and is not distracting.

[@babylon4953]

Drinking game. Everytime he says TV.

[@babylon4953]

Start at 3 min.

[@waynesmith2293]

I can’t get the light strip to come on I have no idea what the problem could be

[@sunilgangarh7448]

It’s cool but this would drive me insane too with how distracting it looks

[@nopamohd]

The camera doesnt give full immersive as u do screen mirror with nanoleaf desktop app huhu…feel like downgrade with the 4d camera…

[@jay-jay017]

I finally set mine up yesterday but I didn't test the light strip before applying it to my tv. The light strip does not turn on. doesn't even flash when power is applied. I was able to add it to the app and home kit but the light just doesn't turn on 😞

[@jamillacamilla6953]

Same! Wtf

[@rasmuspoulsen2621]

I dont understand why they havent made 90 degree corner brackets for something like this

[@miguelfigueiredo7416]

What about the latency response time in faster scenes?Any delay? Do you think the color accuracy seems good?

[@progoproductions]

I have the Lytmi sync box and it seems to have far better colour accuracy, no camera in the way and a smoother motion than this nano leaf. Also having just the lights round the tv is nice. Like you said having those additional hexagons linking is extremely distracting. Would have been nice if Lytmi had HomeKit support, could have used hue but that’s waaaay more expensive

[@d.j.vandermeer3832]

The Lytmi Fantasy 3 is insane. With this kind of products lag is everything. And oh what is the Lytmi fast. Also 4 HDMI 2.1 inputs on the box. Shame they don’t sell it in Europe 😁

[@alex_shevtsov]

I bought similar thing on AliExpress, with hdmi 2.0b. But Lytmi will be my next purchase of this type when I'll decide to buy such sync box. No cameras etc, just straight hdmi to rgb sync.

[@danieldelfuoco9139]

Hey dawg what’s that thing between your HomePods??

[@CameronYoung-n4v]

Great vid! Nanoleaf 4D rocks. Thinking of getting it as birthday gift for myself

[@Megaboyd]

These look really cool. It’s a shame that Nanoleaf has such a hard time syncing to HomeKit.

[@toetie2019]

Syncing seems fine? It’s the prices of Nanoleaf I’m more worried about

[@jaysgood10]

And what planet are you from?

[@Dr_Cole]

Great review, Shane. Color light strips and shapes have been one area I have not taken on. Because of a work project, I recently procured several of the Yeelight Cubes (20 different cubes plus various controllers), allowing me try them near my vertically stacked dual monitors. I had the same general reaction you did to this product. I like the music integration a lot more. That said, I was quite intrigued when I saw this product via CES reviews. I still may try it out some day, but I am admittedly frustrated with Nanoleaf and the absolutely pathetic ability of their products to undertake firmware updates.

[@timjones9128]

Had to get Govee version because I have a 75" screen

[@jamillacamilla6953]

Can you please help me! Mine won’t even turn on

[@generationgeek]

I am a fan of the immersive lights, but I tend to like a bit of a sci-fi vibe in my house which is not for everyone. I have the Govee one (with the two lights) on a small TV and use HomeBridge to access it with Apple Home, but since I never really change the mode it’s in I just have it set to turn on/off whenever the Roku that’s plugged into the TV is on/off and don’t really mess with it. I also have the Hue Sync box w/the side lights for another TV, but I’m in the process of swapping that TV so it’s taken down for now. When it was up, I found it to be way more laggy than the Govee camera, so I don’t know if that’s an issue between the vendors or the tech. I’ll definitely consider updating to the Nanoleaf since it’s Home-native and I have some other Nanoleaf products, but if the bulbs get updated to support it I’d definitely switch since bulbs can add a nicer, more subtle ambiance than Lines/Shapes do.

[@ShaneCreates]

Thanks for sharing. I’m quite surprise to hear the hdmi sync box was laggy. Hopefully that update to include the Nanoleaf essentials comes sooner than than later! I’m sure a lot of people would benefit from that.

[@iGiorgisWorld]

Hello Shane. Great video. I have a question. on your video you use Flex Linkers white or black? for the triangles

[@ShaneCreates]

Thanks for watching. They don’t make black linkers, last time I checked. So I used the white ones and wrapped them in black vinyl.

[@iGiorgisWorld]

@@ShaneCreates oh nice! 👌 thanks for the tip 😍🥰

[@Sw33tBabyRays]

The hdmi sync boxes are much more accurate than camera based ones. I would get the lytmi

[@victuringan1429]

Much more expensive tho

[@Sw33tBabyRays]

@@victuringan1429 paying more for better quality isn’t an issue for me.

[@ok_jawsh]

If you ever find the desire to invest in (or get one sent to you for testing) the Philips Hue Sync Box & Play Gradient Light Strip, it is by far the best experience you will have with these types of content syncing. Extreme accuracy done through HDMI content detection, much more customizable options when it comes to sync modes/brightness & can even be micro-controlled inside the Home app by using the Homebridge plugin for insane automations. I hate the huge price tag…. but I could never see myself buying any other version of content syncing system. Thanks again for all your awesome videos, I watch them religiously lol keep up the awesome content!!

[@ShaneCreates]

Thanks for the support! I appreciate you sharing your experience. Didn't know about the homebridge plugin. That sounds pretty interesting.

[@ok_jawsh]

@@ShaneCreates yessir! I have it automated to change sync value, type & brightness anytime the TV is using HDMI 1 (ATV 4K) & switch to game mode with “extreme” sync value when the PS5 (also in Homebridge) turns on or the input switch’s over to HDMI 2, etc. Pretty awesome in all regards. Maybe you’ll try it out someday & I can’t wait to see the video!

[@ok_jawsh]

@@ShaneCreates I would note one last big thing too: with their Play Gradient light strip, you will absolutely need to get the size bigger than they recommend if you want to wrap all the way around. Their gimmick is to buy the box, light strip AND a couple Play Bars to put on the bottom of the tv to “complete” the setup when it would be better (& much, much cheaper) to just get a strip that wraps all the way around. Anyway, good luck in exploring this category of smart home! It seems pretty divided when you get into brand loyalty on specific things like this, for sure comes down to preference of wanting it to “just work” like we expect from .

[@SpencersStuffTV]

Ive been using govee products for a few years. Once you use them, you dont go back. Especially if you get the backlighting right.

[@mikhailborg4733]

And for 55 inch I can’t right?

[@stevesmacfix]

Nice vid… I do have the Philips hue sync box and it’s on a tv that’s in a corner in the living room. It’s nice…. I lower the settings on regular movies but raise it when music is playing. It’s nicer on a corner because it doesn’t spread out too much. I don’t want to spend as much in my own bedroom so I am going to look into this for sure.

[@SamInNZ]

Personally not a massive fan of competitor products to Hue Sync that rely on a camera. The camera just looks tacky IMO. Either HDMI input/output, or built in app (i.e. Philips Ambilight TV or new Samsung TV).

[@hamzashike7796]

Its not working 🌚

[@Oma1878]

Is it works with all TV devices and monitors or only the smart ones?

[@ShaneCreates]

All TVs and monitors.

[@iben6234]

Hello thanks for this video. I'm a huge fan of Nanoleaf, i have lot of products from them. This 4D product doesn't seem to be so good : the mirroring looks not fantastic on your video.

[@brycewilson7805]

I'll be honest, I'm not a fan of the camera sticking out from the TV. It's kind of an eye sore. I went all in with the Philips Hue Sync Box. My family loves it, but in all honesty, we don't use the sync function all the time. We usually just have some ambient lighting going on. But when we do use it, it's really fun! I made a demonstration video here. kzbin.info/www/bejne/iXPPfKuVgLN4r5Y

[@spectre3492]

these things are cool but a big distraction. if i wasn't watching a movie then it would be fun to look at, but when things move behind the screen all the time it takes attention away from the content you're watching

[@mahaliawilliams2114]

Thank you for reviewing this! I just purchased and didn’t look at reviews prior, but this makes me feel relieved!

[@yourpappi]

So basically the Govee ecosystem lol. I have a bunch of Govee lights setup with my tv and I get the same if not better results for way cheaper

[@adamdavidsonx]

Thanks so much on the tip of buying the 85" for a 65" TV to get closer to the edges of the TV. I currently have a Nanoleaf Lightstrip which was not easy to do the corners. This looks more flexible.

[@DanKing79]

I've been thinking about something like this and what's always held me back is the camera that sits on top of the tv, I keep thinking it would be really distracting or just plain ugly. I really don't want this goofy looking thing hanging over the tv. I really want to get something like a Hue sync box, since I've got some Hue lights already but as I understand it, there are some issues with the sync box connecting to Apple Tv when you have a sound bar. I think this idea is really cool, but maybe it needs a little while longer to fully mature

[@devildrone1896]

Well if they say it will work on 65 then it should fit a 65 otherwise it false advertising. One inch more is not a huge cost for them

[@AlexandraFrancescaBal]

I've got to say, the Nanoleaf 4D is amazing! You can set it up however you want, and it instantly changes the mood. Couldn't be happier with it!

[@TylerJReed0]

How do you get Home App Scene Sync to work? Whenever I sync my nanoleaf scenes to the Home app they are all enabled together and turning them on/off only turns on and off my lights. They don't play the nanoleaf scenes.

[@aitchmail]

hi, have to ask which one is better, Govee or this Nanoleaf?? as the comments do not say the support is any good.. thank you

[@bravomike09]

I have Nanoleaf Canvas throughout my family room. Some by the TV. I also have Lifx light strips on the back of the TV but I use a movie scene that keeps the lights down around 10% brightness when works well to not catch your eye but still provide low ambient light.

[@nervigAT]

Was waiting for this one and I really feel the same as your review. Its mostly distracting. No clue what 3D is suppose to do, 4D really depends on the conent you are watching but mostly distracting. Going from dark to bright scenes in movies look horrible, also sometimes the black bars on certain movie formats screw with what its mirroring too. basically just use it now as a light strip behind the TV .. 1D or 2D is ok with low brightness so its not too crazy distracting.

[@RazManOne1]

I wish they had a setting to turn off when it sees the tv has turned off. It could be if there is no picture on screen after 5 minutes it turns off.

[@kingcoredogg]

Did you try mounting the camera to the tv at the bottom? I’m curious if it’s possible because my setup would require that vs on a table below.

[@MarkM-ys2lw]

I have a 140" projection screen, can multiple kits be combined? Is there a size limit on what the camera can see?

[@julianking6603]

To me this just makes it look like you have light bleed from the back of the tv.

[@alexander2685]

Bought it ❤ it had to use three of the round bracket borders to help give me a straight line the tape on the leds wish they would have tried something new had to add more m3 tape but so worth it.

[@akif_sever]

Can I use it for Samsung The Frame model TV? too close to the wall

[@braydenstafford2552]

My grandma had no clue what this was and she got it for me and she was amazed

[@rlainez]

I have the Govee version and I enjoy it when movie watching. I can see some disadvantage as you mentioned also. My son does enjoy the effects when he games.

[@lilbit813]

How do you reset it? I’m trying to add it back so i can put it in my home app

[@EdwardGuns]

5:33 why tf is she goint to fight you riight there hahah

[@MilesCri]

Miles away from the built in ambilight tv.

[@movingloz]

That looks awesome with everything going hey.

[@JMP.73]

Hi Shane! Long time viewer, first time commenter! Thanks for the video, been waiting for this one. One question, I already have a nanoleaf essentials light strip behind my tv, would the USB C connector be able to connect to my existing lightstrip? I.e do I not have to change my lightstrip? Or can I just swap the cable and controller! Thanks!

[@ShaneCreates]

Hi James, thanks for watching! Currently, yes, you would need to change the lightstrip. I don't believe the cable/controllers are interchangeable between this 4D lightstrip and the Essentials lightstrip. Once Nanoleaf pushes the firmware update to support Essentials Bulbs and Lightstrips, you would be able to use Sync+ to pair your existing lightstrip. They said that it's coming. Not sure when. Hopefully sooner than later.

[@alex_shevtsov]

I also have screen sync light, but with different tech. it's HDMI in/ RGB out box, that syncs pixel-perfect with my screen. There are a lot of them now from different vendors.

[@stefanleithner6922]

can you tell me the name?

[@bboyrodger2544]

This ir really awsome Great video , love your pannels too

[@hughsmith-o6n]

Can you use it with the essential light strips?

[@emmanuelcrisostomo12]

I believe that it is distracting in your setup because of the nanoleaf shape and lines being so near to the tv, give it a try unpairing only those lines and shapes next to the tv.

[@ShaneCreates]

I agree, the additional lights does make it a bit more distracting (although I was hoping those would make the effect even better and more immersive while watching). I did as you suggested and also watched with just the lightship. I still find it distracting on most settings.

[@nateut4866]

Love my hue sync box, but I have to keep the brightness to 50% or less and the intensity on the low end in order to make it less distracting and more about adding to the ambiance in the room.

[@ShaneCreates]

Thanks for sharing. I'm going to keep trying and tweaking the settings and see if maybe I find a sweet spot that I like.

[@jonathanitin9065]

Love the shirt, says it all 😂

[@Did_You_Know_QandA]

I have the 4D as well. I was very surprised that it was not mentioned in the video that the colors are not mirrored properly when watching movies and are inaccurate. Fine if you have it for slow moving screensavers but not an actual movie.

[@maervo4179]

Well it is working at my place, did you setup everything correct? Your camera settings might be to big, so it collects the light from the LED Strip itself, this leads to wrong lighting, try to make it smaller.

[@joshuahaney1135]

When will we get shylight

[@inelonwetrust9169]

I’ve been eyeing the Govee but would go this route for sure. Thanks for the great review Shane.

[@ShaneCreates]

Thanks for watching!

[@wscottfunk]

Hey Shane, what's the rectangular lighting device that's on your entertainment center underneath the TV? It almost looks like a flame effect. Thanks for always sharing some great info!

[@ShaneCreates]

Those are the Yeelight Matter Cubes. Video here > kzbin.info/www/bejne/mnezZYijp9l1f80

[@wscottfunk]

@@ShaneCreates Thank you!

[@bboyrodger2544]

Is their a video for your pannels installation

[@ShaneCreates]

Thanks for watching. No I did not make a video on this installation.

[@aliciawang-u2g]

Great review!!👍

[@Charlie.R1]

Hey Shane! I love your videos! Would this look nice if I had a projector instead of a TV?

[@ShaneCreates]

Thanks! I assume it would still work as long as it can accurately see the screen and colors from the mounting angle. Might want to get down low where the camera would sit and see how the screen looks from that angle.

[@Charlie.R1]

@@ShaneCreates Thanks!

[@LDN-pup]

Although it seems like a good thing to connect all their products up, I'd recommend trying it with *just* the TV LEDs... Should be far less distracting. It's also worth noting that TV backlights are good for your eyes as it reduces strain caused by the contrast of bright TV against dark wall (when in a dark room obviously) *Edit*: Re: HomeKit... I have my Govee ones connected through HA but I wish Apple would add some kinda interface to control RGBICs and/or select modes!

[@ShaneCreates]

Thanks for the comment. I still find it distracting when using just the TV lightstrip. Although yes, it is less distracting than using all the lights. Perhaps just a personal preference... maybe it's something I'm just not used to. You are right about the backlight being good for your eyes. I'be been using lightstrips behind all my TVs for years for that reason. I've just always kept them at a solid color and haven't tried the screen mirroring until now.

[@taranagnew436]

willl this work with your own light strps?

[@ShaneCreates]

Currently it only works with Nanoleaf Shapes and Lines and the 4D Lightstrip. In the future it should be updated to support Nanoleaf Essentials Lightstrips and bulbs.

[@michaeleorias]

Thanks, Shane. Great content as usual. I have a smaller 50" TV and for me the synched LED lights do make for a more immersive movie viewing experience. It did take a while to get used to, though after some adjustments I did find some settings that I like. Keep up the great work!

[@ShaneCreates]

Thanks for sharing Michael!

[@Charles0002]

I have the Hue sync box and the gradient light strip. Looking at the mirror in the 3D and 4D modes it’s far worse than the Hue version. I agree with you this is quite distracting. I really like the ‘mirroring’ options on the Hue. It has 4 intensities, which basically affect how quickly the light strip changes, there isn’t a white only background, but in that case you just set the color and don’t turn on the sync. I kind of hate to write it, because the Nanoleaf has some things that can be an advantage. The sync box can be tricky to setup. Having the camera means you aren’t dependent on having the inputs come through HDMI on the box. The Hue system also doesn’t cover the bottom of the TV. (No, you can’t just get a longer cable, otherwise the colors won’t be in the right positions) It’s not so much of a disadvantage if it’s sitting on something like mine, but for a wall mount having full coverage definitely looks nice. I think it also does a better job of pushing the light out the sides rather than back. I’m fairly confident you’d get more lightning on the wall with the Hue system. If someone wanted to sync with light strip with the TV, the Hue definitely is better option of these two from what I can see. The Nano leaf’s effect is more annoying than immersive with this firmware. It looks like a great option if one just wants to add controllable RGB lights around the TV.

[@Alex___R]

Products like this one just show how superior Hue sync is.

[@Collective_Oilers]

Finally a great review of this product. I think I would love this but it would drive my wife crazy - she gets annoyed with my Nanoleaf bulb changing as is! :) And that studio setup looks amazing - the lines look great and I've been considering them. You setup might have convinced to me to go for it. Great stuff as always Shane!

[@ShaneCreates]

Thank you!

[@cheddarmac7935]

First!