Set a Sweet Scene with Home Automation
Treat your sweetie to a romantic evening at home.
Set the tone
Start with a simple home automation task: Dim the lights and enjoy your favorite music and mood lighting with the touch of a button. The Philips Hue Stand Alone Bridge lets you connect indoor and outdoor lights using an app that offers seamless control of lighting. The Philips Hue White and Color Decorative Candle 40W Dimmable Smart Bulb lets you choose from a range of white and colored light, set brightness levels from the app, and sync lights to music, movies, and games, giving you the ability to customize your lighting to suit any mood.Make some music
Whether your evening calls for an energetic soundtrack that gets your heart pumping or a smooth jazz playlist that goes on for hours, music is the magic that sets the scene. Connect the newest Amazon Alexa Echo or Google Home Wi-Fi, digital speakers that deliver your device’s playlist or a free streaming music service, such as Pandora or Spotify. Hint: Find your perfect playlist ahead of time so you’re not gazing at your phone more than your companion.
Table for two
Dare to impress with the Hestan Cue Smart Cooking System. Pair your love of gadgets and good food with a smart pan and your smart phone for gourmet recipes the two of you can prepare together—with a system that shows photos step by step and sets the temperature just right, so the only thing burning will be your love!
If you have more time to prepare, treat yourself and your sweetheart to a delicious, slow-cooked meal. The gleaming stainless steel Hamilton Beach 5 Quart Programmable Stay or Go Slow Cooker cooks a gorgeous coq au vin with no supervision, and the NuWave Pro Plus Oven steams a pair of lobster tails in about 10 minutes (just add melted butter). Hint: Read through your chosen recipe twice before cooking to make sure you have all the essential ingredients on hand.
Smart, simple alternatives
If you’re not really a cook, date night probably isn’t the best time to learn. Instead, put that effort into making someone else feel special by finding their favorite film or discovering a new streaming TV series to binge watch. The LG 43" 4K HDR Smart TV has the Google Assistant built in, so you can control compatible smart home devices using just your voice. Or, try streaming music and movies with the Roku 4K Streaming Stick + Media Player or a pocket-sized Google Chromecast.
Trust the critics at Rotten Tomatoes to list the best Netflix series and movies. From quirky comedies to animation to terrifying murder mysteries, their list has something to suit everyone’s taste.
Bonus points
Surprise your sweetheart by cleaning up a few days before date night. Get dirty towels and laundry off the floor, recycle the junk mail, and load the dishwasher. Then, delegate floor duty to a robotic vacuum cleaner with just the sound of your voice. The Neato Robotics Botvac D5 works with Amazon Echo, Google Home, smart watches, and smart phones, and features laser-smart precision for cleaning up pet dander and dust bunnies. It connects to your home’s Wi-Fi through the Neato app so you can send it on secret missions from room to room while you’re at work. Hint: Pick up small toys and other items from the floor before you start the Botvac, or you may spend the evening scavenging your robot dustbin.
| If you have 5 minutes | Dim the lights and cue up an all-night playlist. |
| If you have 5 hours |
For a perfectly timed moonlight dessert, make a Valencia frozen chocolate mousse for two.
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