The phrase “she lit up the room when she walked in” is about to get a lot more literal. Electronics giant Philips has unveiled plans to introduce a glowing, color-changing wall covering that will provide a whole new layer of ambient lighting and customizable room decor. The flexible panels will combine LEDs with sound wave response, making the lighted wall covering react to certain sounds in the room. Music, movies and even conversations will be able to affect the way the room itself looks.
The panels are flexible aluminum designed to dampen sound in a large room, so they could be doubly useful in business settings to create a more intimate atmosphere. The shifting colors can be programmed to the user’s taste in order to create a specific mood – then changed at will to create a whole different feeling for the next event.
Philips doesn’t say when the panels will be available or how much they might cost, but the concept seems to be geared more toward businesses than individuals. It isn’t hard to see how a hotel, restaurant or dance club could make good use of glowing wallpaper. But there is also something to be said for having dancing lights covering the walls of a living room
