Philips has revealed more details about the updated Ambilight mood lighting system and new Aurora gallery function on its high-end OLED and Mini-LED TVs this year.
Having already expanded its iconic Ambilight feature in recent years to work with Hue bulbs, video gaming, music and more, Philips has now launched Ambilight Next Generation.
It’s an entirely revamped mood lighting system where the rear mounted LEDs are no longer split into groups. Instead, Philips told FlatpanelsHD that it’s using improved RBG pixels behind the TV with three drivers - or one per subpixel - to deliver individual control, more precise matching with what’s going on on the screen, and a wider gamut of colours.
Quite a number of Philip’s new TVs will get the Ambilight Next Gen treatment. The Philips OLED937, OLED807 and PML9507, which is a Mini-LED model, will all get a four-sided version with mood lighting that surrounds the display. Meanwhile the PhilipsOLED907 will get three-sided Ambilight.
As for the new Aurora function, this is a gallery mode with hundreds of pre-loaded images and videos that can be displayed on screen during downtime. It’ll switch on automatically when the TV recognizes that the viewer has stopped watching, or it can be activated manually, Philips said. However, some prospective buyers may be upset to discover that they’ll be unable to upload their own images to be displayed on the Aurora gallery, due to what Philips said is “GDPR restrictions”. It’s referring to the European General Data Protection Regulation, which is a piece of legislation that’s fairly expansive, though it’s nonetheless surprising it would impact Philips in this way.
Still, Philips stressed that while this limitation will exist at launch, it is looking into ways in which it might be able to allow images to be uploaded manually in future - but no promises.
Philips said the Aurora gallery function will be found in 2022 TV models ranging from the PUS8507 and up. Apparently, it will be possible to combine Ambilight with Aurora to create “an attractive background multimedia art show” that takes pride of place in the living room.
