Hue Essentials vs Creative
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Hue Essentials
Unlock the full potential of your smart lighting system. Create custom scenes, dynamic effects, and automate your lights with schedules and triggers. Control multiple smart home bridges and devices seamlessly for a personalized ambiance.
- Custom scenes and effects
- Music and entertainment sync
- Sunrise/sunset automation
- Multi-bridge control
- Device discovery and setup
- Button and sensor automation
- Away from home control
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Imagine unlimited possibilities in your smart home. Set scenes and fast effects to your mood. Experience Dance Sensation in your entertainment area with Philips Hue Entertainment. Feel more in control with schedules and automation from sunrise to sunset. Control multiple bridges simultaneously without switching between them. Supported devices • Philips Hue bridge • Philips Hue Bluetooth lights • deCONZ (ConBee) • diyHue • LIFX Scenes & effects Create the perfect ambiance from your photos or the included photo library. Experience special animations like lava, fireplace, fireworks, or lightning. Wake up at sunrise and go to sleep at sunset with fading lights. Get into the party on the beats of your music. Sync your lights for a night of disco with strobe effects (updates 25 times/sec). Quick access Create rooms and groups to organize your lights. You can even put a light in several groups. Smart lights & controls The unique ‘Touchlink’ search allows you to find new (3rd party, Zigbee) lights. Use included wizards for easy setup of your devices. You can set scenes, actions, or even multiple scenes on a button to make your switch a real investment. Experience the right ambiance during different times of your day with your motion sensor. All of your creations are stored on the bridge. Easy for you and your family. Advanced Automation allows you to have greater control of your smart home. Turn on your lights when the door opens. Adjust your ventilation when the humidity gets too high. Open or close blinds and curtains based on temperature or sunshine. Make it look like you are at home using 'Away from Home' (out of home control). Communicate directly with your Hue bridge using the API debugger. View technical details of your Hue bridge and update its resources like lights and sensors. You want it all? Fast performance with ad-free experience. Purchase the premium version to unlock full content.
Creative
Enhance your product's audio performance and personalize sound settings. Manage audio configurations, change sound modes, and set up speakers. Some features may vary by product.
- Manage Super X-Fi setup
- Change sound modes
- Configure custom buttons
- Speaker setup and calibration
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Creative app provides you with various configuration options to enhance the performance of your product and personalize your audio settings. With Creative app, you can: - Manage your Super X-Fi setup - Change sound modes - Configure the custom buttons - Perform speaker setup and calibration Note: - Some features may not be available for all products. Please check your manual for details. - To enjoy the complete experience of Super X-Fi, please download the SXFI App.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Hue Essentials at 4.1 against Creative's 2.2. Hue Essentials also leads on ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (37% vs 12%). Creative's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 8). On price, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Hue Essentials sells 8 one-off in-app purchases. Creative asks for nothing beyond the download.
Hue Essentials holds the better App Store score, 4.1 against 2.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 133 and 34 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 37% of Hue Essentials's written reviews are positive against 12% of Creative's.
Hue Essentials ships an update every 2 weeks, Creative every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 9, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Hue Essentials | Creative |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.1 (133 ratings) — better | 2.2 (34 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 37.2% of reviews — better | 12.2% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 133 — better | 34 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Freemium | Ad-supported — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 269 MB | 154 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Thomas Vos | Creative Labs Pte. Ltd. |
Customer experience
Hue Essentials
Creative
User reviews
Hue Essentials
From 133 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Excellent Hue lighting control
- 👍 Works well with multiple bridges
- 💡 Customizable remote controls
- 🚀 Faster than official Hue app
Room to improve
- 🐛 Buggy and crashes frequently
- 🔒 In-app purchases required for key features
- 👎 Poor execution and user experience
- 🔋 Widgets and Apple Watch app not working
Creative
From 34 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Great sound quality
- 🚀 Smooth app performance
- 💡 Customizable EQ and settings
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent connection issues
- 🔍 Poor device compatibility
- 🤔 Confusing or missing features
Bugs and requests
Hue Essentials
Reported bugs
4 issues- Fade feature not working
- Saving automations not working
- Crashes when checking 'About' section
- Widgets and Apple Watch app issues
Requested features
4 requests- Repeat/loop function for automations
- Strobing/flashing effects
- Dark mode
- Alexa integration
Creative
Reported bugs
3 issues- App crashes or freezes
- Firmware upgrade failures
- Settings not saving properly
Requested features
3 requests- Support for more Creative devices
- Improved Mac/iOS compatibility
- Enhanced EQ and sound customization options
In-app purchases
Hue Essentials
- Effects: Christmas$0.99
- Effects: Universe$0.99
- Effects: Wonders of nature$0.99
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- Effects: Romantic$0.99
- Effects: Floral fantasy$0.99
- Effects: Spooky$0.99
- Multiple bridges$4.99
- Premium$7.99
Creative
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Hue Essentials free?
Is Creative free?
Which has better reviews, Hue Essentials or Creative?
Do Hue Essentials or Creative have ads?
Which is updated more often, Hue Essentials or Creative?
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