While Ikea is famous for its affordable, piece-it-together furniture gracing apartments, dorms and first homes, you rarely hear about the company in the tech sphere. While Ikea has dabbled in smart home technology in past years, its offerings have been limited, temporary and often required partnerships with third parties. At CES 2026, all that changed.
This was Ikea's first CES, which is a statement in itself. The Swedish furniture (and meatball) company came well-prepared, bursting onto the scene with ambitious lighting and security options. It could change the smart home world, and I'm not sure other brands are ready.
Smart lights with a friendly glow
Ikea's new smart lights and plugs are a bold step for the company. Ajay Kumar/CNET
One of the most visually impressive products from Ikea was the Varmblixt smart home lights (yes, the classic Ikea names remain even in its tech endeavors). You may have heard of the Varmblixt line before, but now Ikea is adding smart technology to these stylish lamps.
The lights come in two varieties. One is a doughnut-like ring that you can hang from a wall or place on a nearby table, casting a warm light throughout the room in any color you choose. The other is a draping LED pendant lamp, more at home hanging in a corner, with shades available across the entire white spectrum.
Ikea's newest lights are app and remote-controlled. Ajay Kumar/CNET
Both lights impressed me, not only because of their unique and very Ikea appearance, but also for the new app controls that allow you to adjust the brightness and color at will. They also come with remotes that include a dozen presets, in case your phone isn't handy. For some of the first proprietary smart lights Ikea has made, it's an impressive showing.
If you're thinking a little smaller, Ikea's new smart home has that covered, too. The Kajplats line offers 11 styles of smart bulbs you can screw into sockets you already have, converting your old lights to smart, app-controlled versions.
Then there's the Grillplats, a smart plug that allows you to use app controls on any existing plug-in lamp, as well as other devices like fountains or heaters. What we saw of these app controls at CES looked easy to master and effective.
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