• SmartThings Music Sync now integrates with YouTube Music
• Sync data comes directly from the app, not an external mic
• Music Sync buttons control playlists and syncs your smart lights

Samsung SmartThings, the tech giant’s smart home platform, just got a big audio upgrade. Its Music Sync feature, which enables you to synchronize your smart lighting with your music, now works with YouTube Music.

Music Sync is quite special because unlike some music sync systems it doesn’t rely on microphones, which can produce odd results and be affected by non-music sounds. Instead, it integrates directly with the music apps on Galaxy devices, taking the audio information directly from the app in order to synchronize it perfectly with your SmartThings-capable lights such as Philips Hue bulbs and lightstrips.

Light up your life with YouTube Music

The integration of Music Sync with YouTube Music means more than just flashing lights to the rhythm of the kick drum. It enables you to access key YouTube Music features from within the Music Sync app, so for example if you tap the Party button it’ll start playing your Party playlist from YouTube Music and shift to a color preset that, according to Samsung, “perfectly matches the vibe”.

There are similar features for other key YouTube playlists such as Relax and Workout.

I’m a big fan of smart light syncing – I use the Hue Play Sync Box 8K with Hue bulbs and, right now, a set of Hue Festavia string lights on my Christmas tree; it’s quite funny to have your festive fairy lights syncing with Die Hard on the TV – and while it can be a bit much at the most extreme settings or with extreme music there’s something wonderfully atmospheric about having your smart home lights reacting to your streaming soundtrack.

You can find out more about Music Sync on the Samsung website.

You might also like

• Philips Hue Festavia vs Nanoleaf: it’s the festive fairy light fight
• Our Philips Hue Festavia (2nd gen) review
• Our regularly updated YouTube Music review